Small Change continues to make a difference in the Pittsburgh market. Its currently live campaign is offering is the Buvinger Building. Located at 4407 Butler Street, the historic three-story building located in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the developer is seeking equity investments of $238,500, which will be invested for a period of 5 – 10 years and will be used to acquire the building and then to redevelop it from a single residential unit + retail space into four residential units + retail space. To date, over 70% of the funding — over $168,240 — has been secured by 10 investors.
“This project is all about upgrading an architecturally significant building and making it a more active asset for the neighborhood,” commented developer Shawn Kichline, of Oxide Real Estate Development, LLC.
The minimum investment on the campaign is $2500. Investors will receive all cash flow until an 8% preferred return is met. Most of the equity investment is expected to be returned when the building is refinanced at stabilization, according to the platform. An overall Internal Rate of Return of around 13-16% is projected over the investment period. Both Pittsburgh and Lawrenceville are rapidly strengthening in market value, and Butler Street is one of the leading urban retail corridors in Pittsburgh, said Small Change.
The investment strategy consists of a two-phase strategy to add value. Phase 1, in which the upper two floors are converted from one to four units, will be implemented immediately, to better capture market demand. Phase 2, in which the under-performing retail tenant will be replaced, will be implemented no later than the end of 2019, and sooner if the retail tenant decides to leave. Rent is approximately 50% of market rate in the retail space.
Small Change was founded and launched in Pittsburgh by urban (ad)venturer Eve Picker, who has developed a dozen buildings in blighted neighborhoods as well as taught urban design and participated in Sustainable Design Assessment Teams for the American Institute of Architects in cities as diverse as Downtown Los Angeles and Springfield, Ohio, helping to set a strategic course for housing development and urban design for downtowns in trouble. Founding Small Change, Picker seeks to package offerings for developers not only in order to make cities better but also to “provide investment opportunities for everyone who cares about cities and wants to make change.”
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