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What Exactly Does Willowdale Equity Do?

We are a multifamily investment company/real estate syndicator. We find and vet cash-flowing multifamily real estate properties, raise additional funds from outside investors to purchase it, force appreciation and then actively manage the asset.

Market Analysis

How We Select Markets

  • Population Growth

    Population and migration are a big factor in determining the growth of a market. We monitor year over year change to see where trends are moving and what factors are driving that change.
  • Landlord-friendly Market

    Some markets are more tenant-friendly and some are more landlord-friendly. We try to focus on more landlord-friendly markets in order to more confidently execute on our business plan.
  • What Stage In Market Cycle Are We In

    The market generally moves in four phases (i.e., Expansion, Hypersupply, Recession, Recovery) and each phase has three stages until it moves to the next phase. Understanding which phase our selected market is in allows us to highlight proper short-/long-term exit strategies to maximize returns.
  • Employment Growth

    Understanding and monitoring employment rates and demographics allow us to examine the social classes to better grasp if potential renters can afford to pay market rents and where things are trending in years to come.
  • Diversified Market

    Being in a market like Detroit, for example, which was almost solely driven by one industry (automotive) is not the best market to be in. Diversification of industries and types of jobs provide more stabilization and growth in a particular market.
  • Supply & Demand

    We monitor the supply of local units carefully to ensure it will not spike the vacancy rates and negatively impact rents.

Deal Analysis

How We Select Deals

  • Underwrite Over 100 To Find 1

    Hundreds of deals, come across our desk on a consistent basis. With our strict underwriting guidelines, we see one great deal to execute on every 100.
  • Strong Local Rent Growth

    We dive deep into the deals sub-market to understand the rent trends.
  • Verifying ACTUALS, not Proformas

    Brokers love to provide buyers with financial projections (proformas) as if they were today’s numbers. We verify, and base our analysis and offer on ACTUALS.
  • Value-Add Upside Potential

    Can we increase the NOI which will bring up the value of the asset? For example, current rents are below market rents due to unit quality. Can we rehab the units and increase rents? Can we add extra income in the property, for example, adding a laundry mat or other paid amenities? Can we hire a solid property manager and lean out expenses?
  • Stabilized Assets If CAP Rate High Enough

    Generally, we focus on more high value-add plays, but sometimes we come across more stabilized deals that have, for example 90% + occupancy that still have high cash flow after purchase.
  • Do The Numbers Work

    After all of the aforementioned, we come up with Maximum Allowable Offer (MAO), which is the maximum amount we can pay to acquire the deal. That maximum offer works off of the deal still having enough room to weather market conditions and pay a healthy return to the team and our investors.

Property Type Analysis

Property Classes

Class A

During a recession, Class A renters move down to Class B.

▪ Lower Cash flow

▪ Higher Values

▪ Great Locations

▪ New Construction Or Newly Renovated

rendering of a new multifamily community

Class B

Generally, we purchase Class B & C properties.

▪ Strong Cash flow

▪ Lowest Vacancy Rates

▪ Middle-Income Tenants

▪ Generally More Well-Maintained

Apartment complex

Class C

During an economic boom, Class C renters move up to Class B. Generally, we purchase Class B & C properties).

▪ Higher Cash flow

▪ Longer Vacancies

▪ Lower Income Tenants

▪ Generally Needs Improvements

front of an apartment unit

How Our Investors Build Wealth

newly renovated multifamily property

Even though most of your time is committed to your day-to-day active work, it won’t limit your ability to get some exposure to cash-flowing passive real estate investments. 

Real estate investing doesn’t mean that you need to be the landlord, own 100% of the project, and take calls from disgruntled tenants whose air conditioner blew at 2 am. Some people may like that responsibility and may have a bit more time to actively operate their rental properties on the side, but it’s not appealing to everyone. That’s why real estate syndications are a good option to passively invest as a limited partner (LP), and generate passive income while getting all the same benefits with no headaches.

  • Cash flow

    Rents are collected from tenants each month, less operating costs, which gives us the Net Operating Income (NOI). The only expenses not included in the NOI are debt servicing costs. You get the total cash flow available for distribution when you subtract this number from the NOI.
  • Forced Appreciation & Market Appreciation

    The net operating income (NOI) of a multifamily property is what drives value, rather than exclusively using the comparable approach like with a single-family home. Therefore when you find ways to increase the NOI, the value of the property increases. This is done by capturing “Forced Appreciation”, acquiring properties where we can bring the current rents up to market rents, adding other income drivers, leaning out the operating expenses, and much more. Market appreciation is simply the value of the property rising in line with market and economic factors, due to buying in the correct cycle of the market. Both forms of appreciation increase the property’s value and equity, which we’d both share in.
  • Amortization

    The paydown of debt each month increases all investor’s equity positions in the deal. We get a piece of the equity when we refinance it and when we sell it. To further lower the risk profile, we’ll have already identified the possible exits before closing on the property.
  • Depreciation

    You, as the investor, may enjoy all of the tax advantages that come with commercial property ownership since you’ll have actual direct ownership in the LLC. The ability to use “paper losses” through depreciation, as well as cost segregation and tax-free cash-out refinances, are just a few of those benefits.

Equity Splits & Returns

By investing and partnering with a multifamily private equity firm like Willowdale Equity on a deal, you effectively share in all the cash flow, equity growth, amortization, and tax advantages throughout the holding period of a deal. Additionally, each time we have a potential deal that we are looking to acquire, we will present an Investor Memorandum detailing a full breakdown of the deal,  our business plan, and how we are going to execute and achieve the highlighted returns. 

  • How Much Equity Do I Get On A Deal?

    Each deal that we partner up with investors on will be done so through the creation of a new LLC made for the deal. We will present the total amount needed for funding on the deal. Funding works on a first-come, first-serve basis. Depending on the amount of capital you fund, it will determine the amount of available shares issued to you, the investor.
  • Deal Splits & Waterfalls

    The split is the investment returns that are provided to the investors in the portion of the split. So, if the split is 70% to the investors and 30% to the deal syndicator (Willowdale Equity), after the preferred return is paid (if there is one), then the partners split all other proceeds from distributions or capital events 70/30. That split can change if a certain hurdle (or waterfall) is achieved. For example, a split could be 70/30, then go to 50/50 once the IRR hits 18%. Any returns higher than 18% will then be split 50/50 (Investors/Syndicator), which is a ‘waterfall’.
  • What's A Preferred Return?

    A preferred return, for example, is as follows: if the preferred return was 7% and you invested $100,000, that means that the first $7,000 of free cash flow distribution would go to the preferred return investor before paying any other general partners.
  • The Deal

    The projected refinance for a deal would be somewhere between year 2-3. This would be the first large liquidly event for the deal. Typically we look to hold a property for 5-7 years, although we could sell well before that if we can achieve our desired number.

For Investors

Investment Requirements

  • We Accept Accredited & Non-Accredited Investors Depending On The Offering

    An accredited investor is an individual who meets the guidelines and requirements of income and net worth based on securities and exchange commissions (SEC) regulations. This is so that the SEC can ensure proper protection for all investors. To be an accredited investor, you must satisfy at least one of the following: 1.) Have an annual income of $200,000, or $300,000 for joint income, for each of the last two years, with expectations of earning the same or higher income this year. 2.) Have a net worth exceeding $1 million, not counting your primary home. Some investments that we offer will be eligible for non-accredited investors to invest as well, each offering will be different. We will make it clear weather we are taking on just accredited investors or a mix of both non-accredited and accredited investors before we make the investment opportunity available.
  • Minimum Investments

    Typically, the minimum investment into one of our deals is $50,000.

Assets Under Management: $150 Million

Total Units: 1070

Meritage Apartments

Houston, TX

240 Units

Built in 2008

Highland Apartments

Houston, TX

216 Units

Built in 1994

Beckley Apartments

Houston, TX

210 Units

Built in 1999

Aspire Apartments Funded

Aspire Apartments

San Antonio, TX

335 Units

Built in 1986

Mill Gardens Apartments

Warner Robins, GA

69 Units

Built in 1969

The Hands-off Multifamily Investing Process

The Hands-off Multifamily Investing Process
Step 1: Sign Up

Fill out some basic information on our form which will get you access to your private investment portal and allow you to dive into our educational resources.

Step 2: Schedule A Call

Set up a brief introductory call with our team so we can learn more about your investing goals, and answer any questions you may have.

Step 3: Start Investing

Once we have a new multifamily deal, we'll share this exclusive investment opportunity with you. If you elect to invest, we'll walk you through the whole funding process.

Step 4: Collect Returns & Start Building Wealth

Start collecting cash distributions every month/quarter while receiving ongoing reporting and updates.

Common Questions

Get the answers to all the questions you have by clicking the questions below. For more Frequently Asked Questions, visit our FAQ page.

A real estate syndication is an efficient way for investors to pool their money together to purchase larger real estate assets that they typically couldn't manage or afford to purchase as an individual investor. Generally, by leveraging and raising additional funds from outside investors to purchase it, we force appreciation and then actively manage the asset.

Typically 25%-30% of the funds are pooled together from the syndicator and the passive investors, and the other 70%-75% of the funds come from the lender/bank.

There are many parties involved in a syndication, including, but not limited to, CPAs, lenders, real estate brokers, attorneys, property managers, passive investors (you) and the syndicator who puts the whole deal together and manages the asset (Willowdale Equity).

We are a multifamily real estate syndicator. We find and vet cash-flowing multifamily real estate properties, raise additional funds from outside investors to purchase it, then force appreciation and actively manage the asset.

This varies based on the deal, but whenever there is an update, we will effectively communicate through email or phone. Additionally, we are available for communication Monday through Saturday!

An accredited investor is an individual who meets the guidelines and requirements of income and net worth based on securities and exchange commissions (SEC) regulations. This is so that the SEC can ensure proper protection for all investors.
To be an accredited investor, you must satisfy at least one of the following:
1. Have an annual income of $200,000, or $300,000 for joint income, for each of the last two years, with expectations of earning the same or higher income this year.
2. Have a net worth exceeding $1 million, not counting your primary home.

Apply To Join The Willowdale Equity Investment Club

The Willowdale Equity Investment Club is a private group of investors that are looking to passively grow their capital and share in all the tax benefits through multifamily real estate investments.

Track Record
soft reservation investor portal screenshot

You’ll Get Access To:

Exclusive Investment Opportunities

Our Private Investor Portal

Private Webinars

Our Resources

And Much More!