SEATTLE, WA – Bellwether Housing, King County, Washington s largest nonprofit affordable housing provider, has bought 213 affordable homes at two locations: The BLVD, a 136-unit apartment complex in Kent and The Marina Club, a 77-unit in Des Moines. This acquisition is part of Bellwether s strategy to preserve existing affordability levels in lower-cost rental housing in locations highly vulnerable to steep rent increases.
These acquisitions were made possible by the Amazon Housing Equity Fund, a $2 billion commitment to preserve and make more than 20,000 affordable housing units by offering low-rate loans and grants to housing partners, traditional and non-traditional public agencies, and minority-led organizations. The low-cost financing allows Bellwether to compete with commercial-rate buyers who would buy these units with the goal of significantly increasing existing rents.
Bellwether s CEO, Susan Boyd, clarified, The Amazon Housing Equity Fund could not have come at a better time. Our goal has been to preserve as much affordability in King County as we can before it s too late. Public funding sources are severely constrained and have not prioritized this kind of strategy. As we were preparing our hunt for low-cost capital, Amazon announced its Fund. We anticipate this tool will allow us to bring hundreds more units into permanent affordability and prevent hundreds of lower income families from being displaced from their homes.
We are so pleased to be a part of the solution by addressing housing shortages in our region, said Catherine Buell, Director of the Amazon Housing Equity Fund. By teaming up with organizations such as Bellwether Housing, we are able to help grow the housing stock for households making moderate- to low-incomes. These households may include teachers, transit workers and firefighters — people whose jobs may pay a modest income, but whose contributions are invaluable.
The Amazon Housing Equity Fund has made prior investments in Puget Sound including funding $185.5 million in low-rate loans and grants to King County Housing Authority to preserve affordability for 1,000 apartment homes and committing $100 million in low-rate funding to developers to help make and expedite the development of Sound Transit property offered for affordable housing. These latest commitments bring that figure to more than $310 million in loans and grants in the region to date.
Bellwether s preservation strategy has targeted South King County, where the development of light rail and other commercial growth are pushing rents up quicker than other parts of the region, and where immigrants, refugees and other lower income families are particularly vulnerable to displacement.
The financing for these acquisitions also included tax-exempt financing from CitiBank and equity investments from Bellwether Housing.

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MIAMI, FL – Lerner Enterprises of Rockville, Maryland has bought Motion at Dadeland, a 25-tale class A+ multifamily high-rise community comprised of 294 market-rate apartments and 8,246 SF of amenity-based retail, including a preschool slated to open Q4 2021. The building is adjacent to Dadeland North Metrorail Station in Miami, Florida. Lerner will also be the property and asset manager of Motion at Dadeland.
“We are excited to own and manage a market-leading asset and provide increased value to our residents in Florida,” said Melissa Balkin, Managing Director, Lerner Residential Florida.
Founded in 1952, Lerner is a developer, owner and manager of office, multifamily, retail and hospitality assets primarily in the greater Washington, DCregion but also in other markets such as New York City and Florida.
Lerner is the owner of the Washington Nationals Baseball Club, the 2019 World Series Champions. Lerner’s expertise in the Florida markets started with the Nationals’ 160-acre training facility at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach.
“We are thrilled to add to our Florida portfolio with the acquisition of Motion at Dadeland. Lerner is aggressively pursuing multi-family assets across Florida, focused primarily on the tri-county regions of Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties. Motion will be a cornerstore asset in our portfolio for many years and we are pleased to complete our first transaction with KKR as a lender,” reported Michael L. Cohen, Vice President of Investments at Lerner.
Motion at Dadeland, a transit-oriented development, is located within a ½ mile of nearly 2 million square feet of office with nearly 12 million square feet across the Dadeland submarket. Motion is also across the street from Dadeland Station which is home to Target, Best Buy, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Bed Bath and Beyond, Michaels and PetSmart. The property is also walking distance from Dadeland Mall, which is the home of Tesla, Apple Store, Cheesecake Factory, Chick-Fil-A, LEGO, Coach, Disney Store, Macy’s Florida Flagship, JC Penney, Zara, Lacoste and Saks Fifth Avenue.
Lerner received a loan from capital managed by KKR to finance the acquisition of Motion at Dadeland.
Newmark’s South Florida office led by Avery Klann exclusively represented the seller, while JLL’s Rob Carey (Washington, DC office) and Ted Taylor (South Florida office) along with Newmark’s Debt and Structured Finance team of Kassi Saridakis (Washington, DC office) and Matt Williams (South Florida office) advised Lerner on the transaction.

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KANSAS CITY, MO – The Cordish Companies and Kansas City Power & Light District officially commenced construction on Three Light Luxury Apartments with a ceremonial groundbreaking event at the project site in the heart of the Power & Light District. Executives from Cordish and the Power & Light District were joined by Eric Bunch, Fourth District Kansas City Councilman Brian Platt, City Manager, City of Kansas City, MO; Lantrina Stewart, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Multifamily Housing Paul Neidlein, JE Dunn Construction Company; and numerous community and business leaders to recognize this major milestone.
Following the success of its predecessors One Light and Two Light Luxury Apartments, which have remained 97% occupied through the pandemic, Three Light’s construction starts the third stage of luxury living in the Power & Light District. Three Light’s opening will bring the total number of new apartment units to downtown Kansas City by The Cordish Companies to 900 since the opening of One Light in 2015. Additionally, the Three Light project is making 500 construction jobs.
“Three Light is a sign of fantastic optimism and progress for downtown, especially needed as we continue to navigate the ongoing effects of the pandemic,” said Nick Benjamin, Managing Partner of The Cordish Companies’ Midwest portfolio. “We are proud that One Light and Two Light have become vital parts of the renaissance of downtown Kansas City and are keen to see the vision for Three Light start to reveal itself to the community as work progresses and the tower starts to rise.”
“This next phase of development at the Power and Light District is a symbol and example of what successful development in Kansas City can and should be,” said Brian Platt, City Manager, City of Kansas City, MO. “The real estate market in Kansas City is strong and continuing to build momentum, and we look forward to future mixed income developments here that also include workforce and affordable housing.”
Situated at the vibrant intersection of the Power & Light District and Crossroads Art District, Three Light will bring another 450 residents to downtown. The 26-tale, 288-unit building will feature 19 floors of studio, one bedroom, two bedroom and penthouse apartments, a seven-tale garage with 472 parking spaces and 7,600 sq. ft. of retail space on the first floor. Units offer floor-to-ceiling windows with inspiring views of the city, gourmet kitchens, luxury Quartz countertops, private balconies, finishes typical of high-end condominiums and more.
More than 20% of the units in Three Light will be priced below the 80% of AMI affordability threshold.
“We are extremely excited to be introducing Three Light Luxury Apartments to the Power & Light District and downtown Kansas City,” said Emelyna Aurich, Director of Property Management for Cordish Living. “Three Light will offer its residents a first-class living experience with spectacular views, resort-style amenities and curated concierge services. We look forward to welcoming more residents to downtown Kansas City in the fall of 2023.”

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