| ATLANTA – February 10, 2021 – Atlantica Properties, a real estate investment company with a mission to empower individuals by establishing thriving, holistic communities, has successfully demonstrated that out of the box thinking can produce affordable housing solutions. In less than two years, Atlantica sold 94% of the single-family rentals it initially purchased from the Housing Development Corporation of DeKalb to owner-occupants – many of whom were first time homebuyers. The unique initiative was designed to increase homeownership rates and help solve the growing concerns of rising rents in DeKalb County.
In 2019, Atlantica Properties was searching for solutions to help increase affordable housing options in metro Atlanta, especially in DeKalb County, which according to the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), has a lower homeownership rate (54%) when compared to the state average (63%). Partnering with Auerbach Funds, a New York-based real estate private equity fund, they purchased 72 single-family homes from the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) of DeKalb.
Once the homes were acquired, Atlantica Properties contacted each renter and offered them an opportunity to purchase the home at fair market value, which ranged from $125,000 to $225,000. If the tenant did not want to purchase the home, then they could remain until the end of their lease term or move to a month-to-month lease term until they found another affordable rental. If the tenant chose to relocate to another rental, the home was offered for sale on the open market. While this attracted cash buyers as investors, Atlantica was committed to seeing renters become first time homebuyers to help build equity and generational wealth. As a result, more than $1 million of equity has been created for the owner-occupant buyers.
“The process was not easy, especially since we received offers from investors who were offering cash and willing to pay above our listed price,” said Darion Dunn, managing partner of Atlantica Properties. “However, we stayed true to our mission because we wanted to make a positive impact on the community by preserving affordability and neighborhood stability,” he added.
“We have now been partners with Atlantica Properties on four separate transactions and consider Darion and Trent Dunn as family. Marrying doing well by our investors with doing well by the community is a testament to our joint effort with Atlantica. We were happy to partner on this project that helped increase access to homeownership for so many families,” said Peter Auerbach, founder and CEO of Auerbach Funds. “We are looking forward to working with Atlantica Properties on similar ventures in the future.”
Atlantica accepted buyers with all forms of financing, including FHA, VA and NACA participants, and in fact sold 8% of the homes to their existing tenants, some of which were able to lower their monthly housing payment by securing mortgages at historically low rates.
“I highly suggest working with the Atlantica Properties team. They made this process so easy and I’m so thrilled to be a homeowner now,” said Laura Bales, first-time homebuyer and former Atlantica tenant. “Their program is vital and is going to make a huge difference in the community that we live in,” she added.
Moving forward, Atlantica Properties has plans to acquire more single-family home portfolios to preserve affordable rentals and promote homeownership. In addition, Atlantica recently announced their plans to develop 46 affordable townhomes in Grove Park on Atlanta’s westside that will be available for purchase.
About Atlantica Properties
Founded in 2010 by brothers Darion Dunn and Trenton Dunn, Atlantica Properties is a real estate investment and property management company with a mission to empower individuals by establishing thriving, holistic communities. Focusing on workforce housing in emerging markets, Atlantica Properties uses hands-on strategies to acquire and manage single-family and multifamily properties in metro Atlanta. To learn more, visit www.atlanticaproperties.com.
About Auerbach Funds
Auerbach Funds is a privately held real estate investment firm with assets in nine states throughout the continental United States comprising nearly 4 million square feet. Founded by Peter J. Auerbach, Auerbach Funds aims to partner with reliable and experienced operating partners in order to utilize their local expertise, relationships, and deal flow to create diversification and opportunity for its investors. To learn more, visit www.auerbachfunds.com. |
