The acquisition marks Champion’s first student housing community in the state and will available to Wake Forest University students.
By Jeffrey Steele | multihousingnews.com | October 19, 2022
Family office Champion Real Estate Co. has acquired Villages at Wake Forest, a student housing portfolio near Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C. The 62-parcel, 75-unit portfolio features single-family homes and duplexes across from the Wake Forest University campus at 961 Palm Drive. The acquisition cost was $43 million.
The property will be rebranded as Victory at Wake Forest by Champion Wake Forest LLC, a subsidiary of Champion Real Estate Co. This marks Champion’s first student housing community acquired by in North Carolina. This year alone, the company has acquired more than 1,500 beds across the country at four different universities. The property will continue to be operated as best-in-class student housing option for Wake Forest students. All units are fully furnished and leased by the bed.
Twin hurdles
Champion faced two major challenges prior to closing date. “From the date that we waived our contingencies, the 10-year Treasury went from essentially 3 percent to 4 percent,” Parker Champion told Multi-Housing News. The firm was able to raise additional equity to lower its LTV below 55 percent.
Hurricane Ian represented the second major obstacle. “Ian caused a disruption in the insurance markets where many carriers were refusing to provide quotes,” Champion said. “We had to lean on a preexisting relationship with one of our carriers, allowing us to bundle the coverage with other properties to get the deal closed.” Earlier this year, Champion acquired an Upstate New York student housing community for $65 million.
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