Nuveen announced that it is acquiring Omni Holding Co.’s affordable housing portfolio.
The transaction positions Nuveen as one of the nation’s largest institutional managers of much-needed affordable housing and increases the value of Nuveen’s affordable housing assets under management to $6.4 billion. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
The deal involves 46 properties comprising roughly 12,000 affordable units, according to officials.
Nuveen is the asset management arm of Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America (TIAA) and is managing this newly acquired portfolio of assets for the TIAA General Account (GA) and for the benefit of retirement plan participants. Affordable housing is an important part of the general account’s impact investing strategy.
As part of the transaction, Nuveen will acquire Omni’s best-in-class affordable housing capabilities in development, construction, maintenance, safety-technology, and corporate functions to create a vertically integrated affordable housing asset management business.
“The acquisition strongly advances our ability to promote greater financial inclusivity, and health and wellness in communities that have lacked meaningful and lasting investment,” said Nadir Settles, global head of impact investing at Nuveen Real Estate. “Our strong commitment to affordable housing—and the communities where we are operating— is also a strong commitment to our clients, who are long-term supporters of this strategy.”
Over the last decade, Nuveen has invested substantially in affordable housing on behalf of the TIAA GA and third-party clients. As a result of the transaction and pending approvals of other related acquisitions, the TIAA GA is expected to own 161 affordable housing investments with approximately 32,000 units across 24 states valued at $6.4 billion.
Omni was co-founded and built by Maurice “Mo” Vaughn and Eugene Schneur. The firm’s portfolio is largely concentrated in the New York metro area, with more than 10,000 units located in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Long Island, and Newark, New Jersey.
“Our goal is to meaningfully invest in the preservation and expansion of high-quality affordable housing to support the well-being of rent-burdened residents within local communities,” said Pamela West, senior portfolio manager of impact investing at Nuveen Real Estate. “With the Omni transaction, we can develop and manage properties across the U.S. and achieve the desired outcomes for residents and investors.”
Nuveen Real Estate also plans to launch its U.S. Impact Housing Fund, a core-plus, open-end vehicle, later this quarter. The fund will focus on generating strong risk-adjusted returns and building resilience among low-income communities in the U.S., primarily by investing in rent-subsidized, income-restricted, and naturally occurring affordable housing assets.
Jones Lang LaSalle Securities, an affiliate of Jones Lang LaSalle Americas, advised Nuveen on the acquisition of Omni Holding Co. Omni Holding was advised by CBRE Affordable Housing in partnership with CBRE Capital Advisors. The Paul Hastings and Nixon Peabody law firms acted as transaction and regulatory counsel to Nuveen, respectively.