Altera, Virtus Pay $43M for Tucson MOB Portfolio

Altera Fund Advisors, in a joint venture with Virtus Real Estate Capital, has acquired four medical office properties in Tucson, Ariz. Healthcare Realty sold the 215,571-square-foot portfolio for $43.2 million, with Capital One providing $32 million in acquisition funding, Pima County records show. Newmark arranged the equity placement and advised Altera on the joint venture formation.

The properties came under Healthcare Realty ownership in multiple phases. The company purchased Desert Life Medical Plaza and La Cholla Medical Center for $21.1 million in 2007 from West Coast Capital Partners, according to CommercialEdge. In 2008 the company picked up Academy Medical Center for $8.1 million from a private owner. Lastly, Healthcare Realty bought Gateway Medical Plaza in 2012 for $16.4 million from Rendina, as part of a larger $83.4 million portfolio transaction, according to the same research.

The four outpatient properties came online between 1971 and 2008 and offer between 40,969 and 60,000 square feet. All facilities are low-rise buildings and range between A and C property classes. They offer controlled access, covered parking and a total of 1,257 car parking spaces.

The Newmark team representing Altera included Senior Managing Director John Nero, Executive Managing Director Ben Appel and Senior Managing Directors Jay Miele and Michael Greeley, along with Vice Chairman Alex Foshay. Associates Ron Ott, Conor Hilton and Chad Prescher provided financial analysis.

Properties near hospital campuses

The portfolio was approximately 73 percent leased at the time of the sale and its tenant roster included ATI Physical Therapy, Community Medical Services, Labcorp and Tucson Orthopedic Institute, among others.

The properties are part of or adjacent to hospital campuses, as follows:

• Desert Life Medical Plaza, located at 2001 W. Orange Grove Road, 7 miles North of downtown Tucson and adjacent to Northwest Medical Center
• La Cholla Medical Center, located at 6261 N. La Cholla Blvd., 7 miles North of downtown Tucson and near the Northwest Medical Center
• Gateway Medical Plaza, located at 6320 N. La Cholla Blvd., 7 miles North of downtown Tucson and situated on the Northwest Medical Center campus
• Academy Medical Center, located at 310 N. Wilmot Road, 9 miles West of downtown Tucson and situated on the St. Joseph’s Hospital Campus

This is not Virtus Real Estate Capital’s first medical office acquisition in Arizona. The company purchased Banner Health Center Plus, a 70,000-square-foot property in Phoenix, for $48.5 million. The two-story building is part of The Grove, a $400 million mixed-use project.