The Opportunity
Berkadia is pleased to present Silver Lake Apartments, a 158-unit apartment community in Portage, WI, a northern suburb of Madison. Built between 1975 to 1984, the asset represents a prime value add opportunity in a largely untapped market with significant return potential. Silver Lake features classic units spread across nine buildings, with attractive green spaces between each. The unit mix includes mostly 2-bedroom, 1-bath apartments, along with 16 townhouse floorplans with full basements. There is ample parking, with 68 garages and outdoor spaces for every unit. Each building’s basement features ownership-operated washers and dryers, as well as storage units for each apartment. The spacious layouts and amenities make Silver Lake a highly desirable community.
The property can be purchased well below today’s replacement cost and offers major untapped potential. Historically, there was no need for upgrades due to high demand and excellent maintenance. However, ownership has recently begun investing capital by replacing nearly all roofs and starting unit renovations. This presents a prime opportunity for a new investor to continue renovations while maintaining high occupancy, leading to rent premiums and value creation. We will further discuss an ideal renovation plan and how a new owner can effectively implement improvements immediately after acquisition.
Investment Highlights
First Time Offering In The Last 25 Years!
Silver Lake has been owned and managed by the same family office for nearly 25 years. They have done a great job of maintaining the asset and making it a prime value-add opportunity!
Large, Well-Designed Units with Strong Amenity Mix
- Units average over 1,000 SF—spacious by local standards—with layouts offering detached garages, balconies, and patios—all highly attractive in the Portage and regional market, appealing to renters seeking long-term tenancy and lifestyle flexibility.
- The property stands out with park-like, green space with mature landscaping and large oak trees with a setting that offers high curb appeal and quality[1]of-life advantages.
- Sixteen two-level 1250 SF townhouse units with full basements and washer/dryer hook-ups.
Occupancy Story
Silver Lake has a very strong occupancy history with very low vacancy and even a waiting list at times over the last few years. Given the units and setting, the property should continue to remain very competetive against other multifamily in the area.
Favorable Submarkets and Effective Rent
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In place rents are at or below market average. There will be an opportunity for new ownership to push rents, especially with newly renovated units.
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Portage is a 40-minute drive from Madison and only 15 minutes from the world-famous Wisconsin Dells. Silver Lake offers a great opportunity to invest in a stable market with value-add potential, while being close to one of Real estates fastest growing cities in the country.
Pricing Well Below Replacement Cost
- Though Silver Lake is being offered without a formal asking price, the Asset will trade well below today’s replacement costs, which would be well in excess of $200,000 per unit.
Tremendous opportunity to add value
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Built from 1975-1984, Silver Lake presents a prime opportunity for a new owner to come in and substantially upgrade the units and maximize the potential that the community holds.
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The Current owner has begun renovating unit interiors over the last few years and have been renovating about 1 unit per month. Roughly 18 renovations have been finished to date. These renovations could be done on a more programmatic basis by the new ownership. Currently the only people working on these renovations are the maintenance supervisor (who also performs many property manager-like duties) and one contractor.
Optimizing Unit Upgrades
- The current unit renovations include new flooring, kitchen and bathroom appliances, lighting, air conditioning units, freshly painted walls, ceilings, doors, and new windows and blinds. A new owner could enhance these upgrades by adding all new cabinetry, new glass doors to the patio areas and even the possibility of adding washer/dryers to many units. In addition to the existing washer/dryer hook-ups in the 16 townhouse units, there are five units that already have had washer/dryers added. Doing this will create the opportunity to push rents to higher levels and provide dramatically modernized units to an improved tenant base.
The Property
We would market Silver Lake Apartments as a tremendous value-add opportunity with some units already updated, but the majority still being great candidates for upgrades. Given the long-term ownership of the asset, as well as the units breakdown, it might also make for a great bond or tax credit renovation. For the purpose of our analysis, we proposed the following assumptions:
- All units would be upgraded with flooring, lighting, counter-tops, and appliances. Possibly painting or replacing cabinets.
- The cost of unit renovations would be roughly $1,200,000 or $7,600 per unit.
- The overall average rent increase would be $102 per month over the current asking rents equating to $1,286 per month in average rent. In addition, we allocated $250,000 for common area and grounds upgrades
Located in Portage, WI, Silver Lake Apartments offer a prime opportunity to invest in a rental community consisting of 158 units spread out between 9 residential buildings, 68 detached parking garages, and a leasing center. The units total approximately 159,910 rentable square feet and an impressive average unit size of 1,019 square feet. The complex predominantly featuring two bedrooms and townhome units. The property was developed in three phases, with the front three buildings constructed first, followed by the middle three, and finally the back three. Each phase introduced a variation in exterior design, with newer buildings featuring lighter brick. The property has been very well maintained over the years. The community is enriched with green spaces between buildings, including a central park that provides a welcoming atmosphere for residents.
Apartments:
The property features 140 two-bedroom, 1-bath units as well as a single one-bedroom, bath, and one studio unit. All two-bedroom units share a consistent design, with carpeted living areas and vinyl plank kitchens and bathrooms. These units vary in square footage depending on which building they are located. The kitchens have maple finishes with white or stainless-steel appliances. Master bedrooms boast spacious walk-in closets, with four units featuring washers and dryers installed within these closets. All units offer a small private balcony or patio area.
Town Homes:
The community includes 16 townhome units, each spanning three floors including the basement. Tenants may renovate basements with permission, though most remain unfinished. Townhomes offer a spacious living area and half bathroom on the first floor, with two bedrooms and a full bathroom on the second floor. There are two A/C units in each townhome, one on the first floor and one on the second. Bedrooms maintain the same design as other units. These townhomes are very popular and lease up almost immediately after they have been vacated.
The Location
Palatka, FL
Utah boasts one the strongest economies in the nation encouraged by business-friendly legislation and tax incentives. These incentives help businesses reduce their tax burden and increase their profitability, allowing them to reinvest in their operations, expand their workforce, and drive economic development.
#20
LOWEST COST OF LIVING IN FLORIDA
NICHE
#23
HEALTHIEST CITY IN FLORIDA
US NEWS & WORLD REPORT
#34
PLACE IN FLORIDA FOR RETIREES
NICHE
#36
FLORIDA FOR OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
BEST PLACES
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Contact Us
Milwaukee Office
833 East Michigan Avenue,
Suite 950
Milwaukee, WI 53202
INVESTMENT SALES
Ralph DePasquale
Managing Director
312.845.8572
[email protected]
WI DRE #: 50333-90
Liam Waters
Associate Director
312.845.8576
[email protected]
MORTGAGE BANKING
Jason Bond
Managing Director
312.845.8504
[email protected]
Paul Matusiak
Senior Managing Director
312.845.1888
[email protected]
Dominick Ens
Associate Director
616.822.2697
[email protected]
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917 Silver Lake Drive, Portage, WI 53901
Berkadia®, a joint venture of Berkshire Hathaway and Jefferies Financial Group, is an industry leading commercial real estate company providing comprehensive capital solutions and investment sales advisory and research services for multifamily and commercial properties. Berkadia® is amongst the largest, highest rated and most respected primary, master and special servicers in the industry. This advertisement is not intended to solicit commercial mortgage company business in Nevada.
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