Real-estate fund IWC Opportunity Fund I, acquired its seventh property in the Tri-State area of the United States, financed from funds raised last December from mostly Jamaican investors.

The building, located at 808 Macon Street, is situated along the same block as two other properties (number 804 and 814) previously acquired by the fund, according to a release.

The acquisition price was not disclosed.

The fund, managed by Jamaican Matthew Wright, raised some US$5 million in the private placement market last December, according to Mayberry Investments, the deal's lead broker and arranger. The fund then secured loans to purchase undervalued real estate in New York and Philadelphia since December.

Choice New York was appointed managing agent for the new portfolio addition. Complementing its mixed-use commercial property interest along the Nostrand Avenue retail corridor, the fund is expected to continue selectively building on its footprint of residential apartment buildings in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

IWC's previous property acquisitions in Brooklyn cost US$2 million for an eight-bedroom apartment complex near the affluent Fifth Avenue district, and an additional US$945,000 for a complex of nine family units.

The fund aims to buy properties of up to US$10 million in value, primarily located in Brooklyn. Wright, investment manager for IWC Opportunity Fund I, previously noted that its acquisitions would provide rental yield of 10 per cent.

IWC Opportunity Fund was launched in Kingston in August 2011 at a forum organised by VM Wealth. IWC ultimately wants to raise up to US$83 million over time - a maximum US$25 million from equity, and US$58 million of debt, according to the IWC Opportunity Fund I term sheet. The fund aims for an above 18 per cent average annual return on equity.

IWC Opportunity Fund I is a private equity real-estate fund focused on the acquisition of middle-market residential and mixed-use commercial properties in major US metropolitan areas with a primary focus on New York City and its environs. The fund is managed by IWC Capital Management LLC, a private equity investment management firm which specialises in the small to middle market.

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