Blackstone Calling A Bottom In High End Rental Market

May 15, 2024

First Multifamily Tenants Set to Move Into Belpointe OZ’s New Class A Downtown Sarasota High Rise

We at Belpointe PREP, LLC (“Belpointe OZ”) (NYSE American: “OZ”) are very excited to receive our first residents at our flagship Class A luxury apartment community, Aster & Links, in downtown Sarasota, Florida. There is great anticipation among our team and Greystar Real Estate Partners, LLC, one of the largest global property management companies and the team managing the new tenant application and move in process.

Seeing a project of this scale come to fruition in what has been a challenging environment for commercial developers is, we believe, a testament to the confidence of our counterparties in our projects and to the strength of our team in executing the entire build-out process of Aster & Links to its final move-in ready phase.

 

Although we do not think it is properly reflected in the Class A unit trading price of Belpointe OZ (NYSE American: “OZ”) at present, we maintain the view that once the market recognizes Aster & Links as a stabilized asset, and once our next Class A full-featured luxury apartment community gets ready to open its doors, the approximately 40% discount in the trading price of our Class A units as compared to the net asset value (“NAV”) of $100.88 as of December 31, 2023, will narrow significantly.

In our view, for an indicator of where the high-end apartment rental market is currently priced, one only needs to look at Blackstone Inc.’s, a global leader in real estate investing, recent agreement to acquire Apartment Income REIT Corp. (“AIRC”) for $10 billion. We believe this transaction supports what some analysts are calling a turning point for the better and possibly a floor in the commercial real estate market. To put it simply, we believe that when Blackstone starts buying, the whole real estate market takes note, especially those in the sub-sector of the broader commercial real estate market that they are buying into. Our opinion is that investors will take notice when Blackstone buys a portfolio of 76 apartment communities consisting of 27,010 apartments in large metro regions; Blackstone’s largest acquisition in the multifamily market.

In the press release announcing the deal, Nadeem Meghji, global co-head of Blackstone Real Estate, is quoted as saying: “AIR Communities represents the highest quality, large scale apartment portfolio we have ever acquired, and is located in markets where multifamily fundamentals are strong.”

It is our opinion that once interest rates start coming down, there will be a huge rush to deploy capital that will, in theory, lift prices, and Blackstone wants to be ahead of that. Aggregating assets with new projects in current market conditions offers real upside potential in terms of being able to sell those assets one day at significant premiums.

As to Belpointe OZ’s inaugural multi-family project, investors and future tenants can now preview and pre-lease the available units and floorplans on the Aster & Links website, which displays the full-featured, Class A luxury apartment layouts with living spaces from 865 to 2,820 sq. feet, one-bed/one-bath to four-bed/three-and-a-half-bath and a wide array of options to fit the needs and wants of all future tenants.

Below we’ve included 2 photos of 1000 First Avenue North in St. Petersburg, Florida, another property in Belpointe OZ’s portfolio that is roughly 40% complete.

1000 First is being developed into a 15-story high-rise building named “Viv.” Viv will be comprised of two 11-story residential towers above a 4-story parking garage, featuring approximately 269-apartment homes consisting of studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units, with approximately 15,500 square feet of retail space located on the first level.

We currently anticipate amenities at Viv will include a clubroom, fitness center, courtyard with a swimming pool, shared working space and a leasing office. Viv is located in the downtown district of St. Petersburg, one mile west of Tampa Bay and the downtown waterfront district and features direct access to downtown amenities, such as public parking, restaurants, museums, and cultural sites.

In our view, investors seeking a discounted real estate investment opportunity should consider exploiting the disparity between the current market price of Belpointe OZ’s (NYSE American: “OZ”) Class A units and its NAV, notwithstanding the tax benefits that Belpointe OZ, as a qualified opportunity zone fund, has to offer. What’s more, investors do not need capital gains to take advantage of the NAV-to-Class A unit price disparity. However, without investing capital gains investors will not qualify for any of the opportunity zone program tax benefits.

Belpointe OZ

255 Glenville Road

Greenwich, CT 06831

T: (203) 883-1944

E: IR@belpointeoz.com

The information in this communication is for illustrative, educational and informational purposes only and is subject to change. Nothing in this communication is or should be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. Offers may only be made by means of a prospectus.

Belpointe PREP, LLC (“Belpointe OZ”) has filed a registration statement (including a prospectus) with the SEC for the offering to which this communication relates. Prior to making an investment decision, you should read Belpointe OZ’s prospectus and the other documents that it has filed with the SEC in their entirety, and carefully consider its investment objectives and strategy, risk factors, fees and expenses and any tax consequences that may results from an investment in the offering. Copies of these documents can be obtained free of charge from www.sec.gov or investors.belpointeoz.com or from any broker-dealer participating in the offering.

The information in this communication should not be relied upon as investment or tax advice. You should consult with your own investment and tax advisers concerning the federal, state and local income tax consequences of purchasing, owning or disposing of securities in the offering, and of Belpointe OZ’s election to qualify as a partnership and qualified opportunity fund for federal income tax purposes. There is no guarantee that Belpointe OZ will continue to qualify as a partnership or qualified opportunity fund.

Past performance is not an indicator or a guarantee of future performance. An investment in the offering to which this communication relates involves a high degree of risk, including a complete loss of your investment, and may not be suitable for all investors. The price of Belpointe OZ’s securities will fluctuate in market value and may trade above or below net asset value. Brokerage commissions and expenses will reduce returns.

The offering to which this communication relates is being made on a best-efforts basis on behalf of Belpointe OZ through Emerson Equity, LLC, Member FINRA, SIPC, as managing broker-dealer.

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