Pathfinder Partners, LLC – a San Diego-based firm which makes opportunistic investments in distressed real estate assets and defaulted loans – announced today that it significantly expanded its portfolio of multifamily properties and residential subdivisions during the third quarter, acquiring five communities in Los Angeles and Coachella Valley (near Palm Springs), Calif.; Orlando, Fla.; Portland, Ore.; and Norman, Okla.

According to Mitch Siegler, senior managing director of Pathfinder Partners, “three of the acquisitions were loan purchases and the other two were properties acquired from lenders and bank real-estate owned (REO) departments –aggregate loan balances on the transactions exceeded $60 million.”

The loan purchases included:

• A $12.5 million senior loan on Hewitt Street Lofts with 33 partially constructed lofts in L.A.’s “Little Tokyo” district. Pathfinder and its partner will conclude the foreclosure, complete construction and market the units for sale.
• An approximately $27 million senior loan on Crimson Park, a 268-unit, 792-bed resort-style student housing project in Oklahoma City. Pathfinder and its partners will conclude the foreclosure process, complete deferred maintenance and aggressively lease the units.
• A $6.9 million senior loan on Hawthorne Lofts, a newly constructed 27-unit loft project in the Hawthorne District of Portland, Oregon. Pathfinder will enforce the terms of the loan with the current borrower.

The REO and lender transactions included the acquisition of:

• Valencia Homes, a detached residential subdivision project in Coachella Valley, near Palm Springs consisting of 22 partially-completed single family homes and 50 finished lots. Pathfinder and its partner are currently completing construction and marketing the homes for sale.
• Isis Condominiums, a 41-unit, new condo project in Orlando, which includes 6,500-square feet of retail space. Pathfinder and its partner concluded the acquisition in August and the project is now 100% leased.

According to Siegler, each acquisition was completed in just a few weeks on an all-cash basis and was financed, in part, with capital from various Pathfinder Partners Opportunity Funds. “For all of the investments except Isis Condominiums, we plan to make major improvements – completing construction or deferred maintenance and aggressively marketing the homes or units for sale or lease,” he added.

Pathfinder has raised two opportunistic real estate investment funds since 2007, and the company is poised to continue its rapid expansion – concentrating on acquiring distressed assets and defaulted loans from lenders and special servicers. Since its inception in 2006, Pathfinder has acquired more than $250 million in defaulted commercial real estate loans and REO properties and currently owns and operates more than 1,000 units in California, Florida, Texas, Colorado, Oregon and Oklahoma. Pathfinder is actively seeking investment opportunities in these markets, as well as in Arizona, Nevada and Washington.