Schaumburg apartment complex sold after doubling value in four years

An approximately $7 million upgrade allowed a redevelopment partnership to sell the 300-unit Woodbury Place apartment complex in Schaumburg for $43.2 million this month after buying it for only $19.2 million in 2012.

Each unit was thoroughly renovated, the clubhouse was almost completely rebuilt and $200,000 was spent improving the landscaping, said Justin Ohrmundt, CEO of the Chicago-based Stadt Group.

His firm was one of three that co-owned Woodbury Place at 1010 Knollwood Drive, southeast of Golf and Barrington roads, before its recent sale to TLC Management of Chicago.

Stuart Handler, CEO of TLC Management, said the appeal of the renovated complex was obvious.

"Schaumburg is a quality market," he said. "The improvements were extensive. It was almost like a new property."

Ohrmundt said the potential of the now 42-year-old complex was just as obvious when the partnership bought it four years ago.

"We're 'value-add' guys, so we only look at properties we can add value to," he said.

While rents have inevitably gone up, the renovated Woodbury Place is still marketed to largely the same combination of white-collar and blue-collar workers as before, Ohrmundt said. The complex retained approximately 40 percent of the residents it had before the upgrades, he added.

Rents of different sized units at Woodbury Place are currently listed between $1,153 and $1,618 per month.

While the renovators worked closely with Schaumburg's Community Development Department, the project remained sufficiently within the parameters of the original plans of the complex to not require the attention of Schaumburg's planning or zoning boards.

Both buyer and seller agreed there's been a monumental shift in the rental market in the past 10 years, with more people preferring the flexibility of apartment living over homeownership.

Handler said TLC Management is already the largest manager of apartments in the Chicago area, while Ohrmundt said Stadt Group is now turning its attention to a similar renovation of the Timber Creek Apartments in Woodridge.