Lee & Associates Transacts $175,000,000 for Recapitalization in San Francisco

Deal brings new, preferred equity partner to Park Merced Apartments

 

SAN FRANCISCO – January 17, 2012 – The Lee & Associates-LA North/Ventura team of Jim Fisher, Craig Stevens and Mike Smith brought $175,000,000 in preferred equity to a recapitalization of Park Merced Apartments, a 3,100-plus unit community at 3711 Nineteenth Ave. in San Francisco.

Under the terms of the joint venture agreement, Palo Alto, CA–basedEssex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE: ESS), a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, develops, redevelops, and manages multifamily residential properties, joins with a partnership of Fortress Investment Group LLC, (NYSE: FIG) as a new, preferred equity partner in the property.

New York-based Fortress, a leading, highly diversified global investment firm, had approximately $46.3 billion of assets under management as of Q3 2011.

Fisher, Stevens and Smith, principals with Lee & Associates-LA North/Ventura, Inc., represented both Fortress and Essex in the transaction.

Additional terms of the transaction were not disclosed.