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Canadian real estate giant Brookfield has walked away from several office and retail properties so far in 2023, but the company seems poised to plow about $800M into a multifamily portfolio in San Francisco.
Brookfield and Ballast Investments are teaming up to purchase a bundle of troubled loans tied to apartment properties owned by Veritas Investments, the city’s largest multifamily landlord, the San Francisco Chronicle reported, citing anonymous sources.
Veritas defaulted on the mortgages tied to some of its San Francisco apartment buildings, resulting in lenders placing those loans on the market. Veritas tried to purchase the loans itself but was unsuccessful.
Acquiring the mortgages would give Brookfield and Ballast control of 75 apartment buildings with more than 2,100 units.
Ballast was identified as a potential buyer late last month. Brookfield’s participation would represent a departure from its recent moves in major markets across the country, including San Francisco. Toronto-based Brookfield is in the process of surrendering ownership of the San Francisco Centre, a downtown mall it owns in conjunction with Westfield.
The company in April 2022 halted construction on Pier 70, a $3.5B project in the Dogpatch neighborhood, citing high construction costs and a troubled office market. Brookfield has also defaulted on office loans connected to properties in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.
In spite of its difficulty with some major properties across the country, Brookfield has maintained its affinity for commercial real estate as an investment vehicle. After raising a record $93B last year, the company launched a fifth real estate-focused fund in February.
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