Russo’s Vermella at Garwood Station secures $80M refinancing

On Jan. 19, JLL Capital Markets announced it arranged $80 million in pre-stabilized permanent refinancing for Vermella at Garwood Station, which includes nearly 300 apartments and 40,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities adjacent to its namesake city’s New Jersey Transit rail station.

JLL said it secured a 10-year, fixed-rate, non-recourse loan through a national life insurance company at a low-2% coupon rate, including a nine-month forward component, on behalf of the borrower, Russo Development LLC.

Leasing opened at the community this past November.

Vermella at Garwood Station is located at the intersection of South Avenue and Center Street in Garwood, providing access to downtowns including its own, and those of nearby Westfield and Cranford. Approximately 19,500 square feet of street-level retail space at the community will bring a café, restaurant and other convenience operators to the property.

The JLL Capital Markets Debt Advisory team representing the borrower was led by Senior Managing Director Thomas Didio, Senior Director Thomas Didio Jr. and Associate Gerard Quinn.

“JLL is pleased to work alongside Russo in securing pre-stabilized permanent financing that will allow the borrower to complete construction and lease-up of this beautifully designed, transit-oriented community,” the younger Didio said in a statement. “The life company market met this opportunity with tremendous interest, and we are thrilled for the Russo Development team.”

Thomas Didio Jr. helped to secure financing earlier this month for two Hudson County multifamily properties: a purchase in Jersey City’s Bergen-Lafayette neighborhood, and refinancing for Hoboken’s Hudson Square North.