The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, through its real estate investment arm Property Reserve, has acquired the Del Ola apartment complex in Boca Raton for $152.5 million. The transaction involves a 384-unit property at 7801 North Federal Highway and continues the church’s pattern of investing in South Florida real estate over the past two years.
Property Reserve is based in Salt Lake City, Utah, and invests church reserve funds into commercial properties. The seller was an affiliate of Clarion Partners from New York, according to public records and information from real estate database Vizzda. The purchase price amounts to over $397,100 per unit.
Del Ola was completed between 2012 and 2013 and includes 19 three-story apartment buildings, a two-story clubhouse, and five one-story garages on a 17.4-acre site. Clarion Partners had previously bought the property for $120.8 million in 2019.
The apartments at Del Ola range from one-bedroom to three-bedroom units with monthly rents between $2,169 and $4,802.
Ashley Powell leads Property Reserve, which has made several acquisitions in South Florida since 2023. These include ownership of Beacon Logistics Park in Hialeah—a campus spanning 1.3 million square feet on 75 acres—acquired through multiple deals with Codina Partners and Affinius Capital. In 2023 alone, Property Reserve spent $174.3 million for several buildings at Beacon Logistics Park as well as $55.8 million for another warehouse on the site.
Other recent purchases by Property Reserve include the eight-story Ellsworth apartment building in Plantation for $133 million and Elan Polo Gardens near Wellington for $102.4 million.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been criticized regarding its extensive real estate portfolio and limited financial transparency due to less stringent disclosure requirements than other organizations are subject to. In 2023, both the church and its investment manager Ensign Peak Advisors reached settlements with the Securities and Exchange Commission over allegations that their portfolio was hidden using about a dozen limited liability companies; they paid fines totaling $5 million without admitting or denying wrongdoing.
Another investment entity tied to the church, Farmland Reserve, purchased dozens of farms nationwide last year—including some in Florida—for a total sum of $289 million.
Despite high interest rates and slower rent growth across South Florida’s multifamily market recently, there has been an increase in investment sales activity. Many buyers are utilizing financing options such as Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae loans or assuming existing debt on properties; some transactions are being completed entirely with cash or alternative arrangements like all-stock deals. For example, AvalonBay Communities recently paid $98.3 million for Avalon Coconut Creek without recording a mortgage on the deal (https://therealdeal.com/miami/2024/08/14/avalonbay-buys-coconut-creek-apartment-complex-for-98m/), while Favo Capital bought the 1818 Park tower in Hollywood through an all-stock transaction (https://therealdeal.com/miami/2024/08/12/favo-capital-buys-hollywoods-1818-park-tower-for-190m-in-all-stock-deal/) involving assumption of liabilities.
Property Reserve did not record a mortgage when purchasing Del Ola.
