Amy Tait, chairman, president and CEO of Broadstone Real Estate LLC, joined REIT.com for a CEO Spotlight video interview at REITWorld 2014: NAREIT’s Annual Convention for All Things REIT at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis.
Broadstone Real Estate sponsors Broadstone Net Lease, Inc., a private REIT that invests in single-tenant, net-leased properties throughout the United States, and Broadtree Homes, Inc., a private REIT that invests in single-family homes for rental in multiple markets. Broadstone Net Lease currently owns more than 200 medical, industrial and retail properties in 31 states. Broadtree Homes is currently active in New York, Florida, Georgia and Minnesota.
Tait commented on the company’s capital raising and acquisition activities in the net lease sector. She noted that Broadstone Net Lease has raised about $90 million in capital so far in 2014. For the year as a whole, that total will likely reach a little more than $100 million, she said.
Tait stressed that the company’s track record with direct investors and wealth managers, who are starting to include Broadstone Net Lease in their national platforms, should boost capital raised in 2015 to the $150 million to $200 million range.
At the same time, the company has closed $120 million of acquisitions in 2014 and sold $26 million of properties.
“Right now, we have a great balance sheet. We’re below our leverage targets and we’re very well positioned for what is usually a pretty busy time of year,” said Tait, adding that the company’s total market capitalization should reach about $1 billion around the end of the year.
Tait also discussed Broadstone’s private platform in the single-family rental market. Tait stressed that the investment opportunity in the single-family rental market is “huge,” with only a small percentage of rental homes owned by large or institutional investors. Tait said Broadtree is “very well-positioned” to acquire smaller portfolios from investors who originally purchased the properties with “fairly expensive capital.”
Finally, Tait said shareholder sentiment is the overriding factor when considering the possibility of a liquidity event for the company. Broadstone recently polled its shareholders on the matter. “We heard a message very loud and clear. We did not see that very many were anxious for us to go public,” Tait said. “While we remain opportunistic right now, we’re just continuing to grow prudently and focus on our per-share results. My guess is that slow and steady wins the race in the long term.”