By Bain Capital | Rose Law Group Reporter
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – February 13, 2024 – Bain Capital Real Estate and Cherry Tree Capital Partners today announced the formation of BCT Development, a strategic joint venture focused on the ground-up development of premier rental townhome communities throughout Southern California. The joint venture launches with the objective of deploying several hundred million dollars of gross capital over the next several years.
BCT Development will initially focus on acquiring, entitling, and developing land in Southern California’s highest-growth suburban markets with the goal of providing differentiated rental product by way of elevated townhome communities. The partnership plans to target developments in growing neighborhoods, ensuring that residents have access to the best-in-class amenities, schools, and entertainment options.
Chris Marsh and Tim Stanley, who together previously oversaw an aggressive 22,000+ unit multifamily development pipeline as executives of Irvine Company, launched Cherry Tree Capital Partners in 2021 and will lead the new BCT Development venture.
“Aging millennials are the fastest-growing demographic in Southern California. As individuals and families continue to migrate to the suburbs, they’re faced with a lack of attainable for-sale housing, and quality alternatives. That’s where BCT comes in — meeting this deep need of elevated rental living through our premier townhome communities, all while prioritizing affordability by design” Mr. Stanley said. “Bain Capital Real Estate has a long-standing reputation as a thoughtful, thematic investor who shares our conviction in the multifamily housing space. We are thrilled to partner with their team to launch this differentiated and well-capitalized platform to execute on our investment strategy and provide new housing solutions to California residents.” added Mr. Marsh.
“Our multifamily strategy is closely aligned with our thematic investment approach. In a supply constrained market with growing consumer demand, we believe there is a significant opportunity to develop premier townhome communities for the high concentration of households in Southern California that have been priced out of homeownership,” said Martha Kelley, a Managing Director at Bain Capital Real Estate. “We look forward to a successful partnership with the Cherry Tree Capital Partners team and leveraging the combination of our deep industry expertise to provide renters with high-quality, affordable housing options.”
Cherry Tree Capital Partners recently appointed Josh Wheeler as Head of Land Acquisitions. Mr. Wheeler brings over a decade of California land acquisitions experience to the company, and most recently served as Vice President of Land Acquisition at KB Home for over a decade. The Cherry Tree Capital Partners team also includes Principals Austin Maleki, Mike Wu, and John Bosco.
Jones Lang Lasalle advised the joint venture with capital placement services.
“When creating joint ventures (JVs) it’s crucial for partners to clearly spell out how a deadlock will be resolved.” -Rose Law Group partner and Director of Corporate Transactions Shruti Gurudanti
