MRK Partners scored $67 million in construction-to-permanent financing for the redevelopment of Federal Apartments, a planned affordable housing project in Fort Lauderdale.
Berkadia provided the financing, which consists of $50 million in tax-exempt debt and $17 million in taxable debt, through its Private Placement Bond Program. Tim Leonhard and Melissa Koppel of Berkadia Affordable Housing arranged the financing, according to a release.
The loan will fund the replacement of 88 housing units built in the 1950s in Fort Lauderdale’s Progresso neighborhood with 164 affordable residential units serving households that earn between 30 percent and 50 percent of the area median income.
The units, available in two-bedroom, three-bedroom and four-bedroom floorplans, will span 192,000 square feet across two five-story buildings, the South Florida Business Journal reported. There will also be 3,220 square feet of amenities and 173 surface parking spaces.
The debt works out to $408,540 per unit.
California-based MRK Partners, headed by Sydne Garchik, acquired the 3.7-acre site at 800 to 844 Northwest 11th Avenue through an affiliate last June, records show. Berkadia provided an acquisition bridge loan while the permanent capital structure was arranged, according to a release.
Fort Lauderdale’s Development Review Committee considered plans for the project last August. The complex will operate under a regulatory agreement and extend the property’s Section 8 Housing Assistance Payments contract through 2046, Capdex reported.
The financing comes amid a significant affordable housing shortage across Florida. The state has a deficit of more than 660,200 affordable and available rental units for households earning below 60 percent of the area median income, according to the University of Florida’s Shimberg Center for Housing Studies.
In 2022, Broward had only 25 affordable homes for every 100 families, ranking last in the state, the Miami Herald reported. In 2024, the county was short more than 74,100 affordable units, with Fort Lauderdale posting a deficit of nearly 7,300 units.
The project will join MRK’s affordable housing portfolio, which spans nine states, according to its website. Its Florida projects include Casa Devon Apartments in Miami, Emerald Palms Apartments in Dania Beach and Phoenix Apartments in Homestead.
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