Firm buys Landings at Boot Ranch

BUYER: WRH Boot Ranch LLLP (principals: John Withers, Helen Feinberg, J. Mark Rutledge, William Hough and W.R. Hough Jr.), St. Petersburg

SELLER: FHFC III Inc.

PROPERTY: 205, 217, 229, 235, 243, 257, 266 and 284 Katherine Blvd., Palm Harbor

PRICE: $11.25 million

LAW FIRM ON DEED: Nabors Giblin & Nickerson PA, Tallahassee

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: St. Petersburg-based WRH Realty Services Inc. purchased the 232-unit The Landings at Boot Ranch apartments for $11.25 million.

The price equated to $48,491 per unit.

John Selby and Jim Bobbitt with the CBRE Multi-housing Group in Tampa advised the seller.

The center was 93% occupied at the time of the sale and had an average rental rate of more than $800 a month.

Built in 1997, The Landings at Boot Ranch features 48 one-bedroom, 132 two-bedroom, 46 three-bedroom and six four-bedroom units. The units average 1,072 square feet. Amenities at the complex include a pool with a spa, a fitness center and sand volleyball courts.

“It offered us the opportunity to buy something in our backyard,” says John Withers, senior vice president of WRH Realty Services. “The past several years with the rash of condo conversions we've been priced out of the market. We believe in the long-term prospects for the area. This was a quality asset that was well maintained.”

WRH Realty Services Inc. is a multifamily property management company that also provides construction management and real estate advisory services. It plans to paint the apartment complex and improve the landscaping and amenities, particularly the clubhouse and garages.

The purchase entity WRH Boot Ranch LLLP mortgaged the property to Wells Fargo Bank NA for $9.6 million.