Missouri Valley REIT buys 700 multifamily units

Springfield-based Missouri Valley REIT Inc. closed Sept. 14 on the purchase of five Wichita, Kan.-area apartment complexes comprising 696 units, a move that boosts its portfolio by 66 percent.

Jacob Harvey, diretor of capital markets for the real estate investment trust, said the purchase increased its portfolio to nearly $100 million in assets, up from around $60 million. He declined to disclose the purchase price. Nathan Farha of Wichita-based NAI Martens, which served as the broker for the deal, said the seller was Nebraska-based Olderbak Enterprises South LLC.

“Wichita is a market that really interests us because it’s similar to Springfield,” Harvey said, pointing to strong education and health care systems, as well as agricultural and industrial employers.

The acquisition comprises Eastgate Apartments, High Point East Apartments and Morgan’s Landing in Wichita, as well as Springcreek Apartments in Derby, Kan., and Northridge Crossing in McPherson, Kan. Missouri Valley REIT hired Wichita-based Key Management to run the day-to-day operations at each complex, Harvey said.

Harvey said the expectation for the apartments is to pay at least a 6 percent dividend to the trust’s investors.

With the purchase, Missouri Valley REIT - which made its first offer in 2009 - now has 1,797 apartment units in its portfolio, spread between the Wichita area, Springfield and southwest North Dakota, he said.