Tuesday, February 18, 2014

George Smith Partners Secures $5.1 Million in Construction Financing for Class-A Multifamily Development in Las Vegas, NV


Rendering of planned Elysian in the District apartments, Las Vegas, NV

David Rifkind

LAS VEGAS, NV (Feb. 18, 2014) – Commercial real estate investment banking firm George Smith Partners has successfully arranged $51 million in construction financing for the development of Elysian at the District, a 360-unit Class-A multifamily community in Las Vegas, according to George Smith Partners’ Principal and Managing Director David Rifkind.

Rifkind was assisted by George Smith Partners’ Vice President Omer Ivanir.

The property will be developed by joint venture partners The Calida Group and Cypress Equity Investments.

“This project is positioned to be one of the highest quality, most amenity-rich and dynamic rental projects in Las Vegas,” says Rifkind.

“From a location standpoint, financing this project appeared to be a win-win,” Rifkind explains. “It is in a sought-after area and will be in close proximity to more than 15 restaurants, a movie theater, a grocery store, a library and a number of highly rated public schools.  While it would initially appear that it would be fairly easy to find a lender, we faced a challenge when it came to loan-per-unit development cost.”

Omer Ivanir
Rifkind notes that the proposed development’s exceptional location and Class-A quality resulted in a loan-per-unit cost that was much higher than other completed comps in the market.

“For lenders, many of which are already hesitant to lend in Las Vegas, this discrepancy in cost was a potential roadblock,” he says. 

To bypass that roadblock, the George Smith Partners team focused on the value and stability of the proposed project, as well as the considerable experience of the joint venture developers.

“The Calida Group and Cypress Equity Investments have a strong track record of developing quality product in the Las Vegas market, and we leveraged that success in order to identify the right lender for this deal,” says Rifkind.

Douglas Eisner, Co-Founder and Managing Director of The Calida Group explains, “When we bought the land for Elysian at the District, we knew it was a once-in-a-cycle opportunity, and we designed a project that honored the quality of the location.” Eisner added that “developing trophy assets in a recovering economy has its challenges.”

 For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Corynne Randel/ Jenn Quader
Brower, Miller & Cole
(949) 955-7940

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