As miserable as they were, the recession years were also a time of opportunity for investors with the cash to buy assets in greater Phoenix. The proof of that is recent sales of properties bought back then turning a sweet profit.

Lincoln Property Co reaped the benefit of good timing and capital improvements with the sale of Camelback Square in Old Town Scottsdale to Dallas-based Velocis, a private equity real estate fund that paid over $42M. Lincoln Property and Oaktree Capital Management acquired Camelback Square out of special servicing back in 2011 for a reported $19M. They then followed a repositioning plan that re-energized the 175k SF asset as a centerpiece project, EVP David Krumwiede tells us (snapped with his daughter at the Cubs spring training facility). Also, Old Town Scottsdale is the revitalized kind of place investors look for, because tenants want to be there now. David completed the deal along with VP Amr Ceran.

Since '11, Lincoln Property completed new building entrances, modern lobby and common area finishes, a courtyard water feature and patio furniture, and upgraded building signage. The company also initiated an aggressive leasing plan in partnership with Lee & Associates that moved the building from 50% occupied to 95%. Velocis has been a real estate investor since 2011, acquiring 16 assets in markets in Texas, Colorado, Georgia, Florida and North Carolina. The buyer cites the steadily rising rents and values in Old Town Scottsdale as proof that the market's getting even stronger.

Here's another recent example: San Diego-based Pathfinder Partners, which specializes in opportunistic deals, closed on its sale of Chester Place, an 11-unit condo project finished in 2008 in Downtown Phoenix, for $1.6M. Pathfinder senior managing director Lorne Polger tells us that his firm acquired Chester Place in 2012 in an REO from a regional lender and implemented a capital improvement program to enhance the property’s common areas. Lorne notes that the property was also appealing because Pathfinder had the option to sell the project in bulk or sell individual condos. The property was acquired by Arizona-based Koventures LLC, with ABI Multifamily's Eddie Chang and Alon Schnitzer brokering the deal.