courtesy of MHN online, By Dees Stribling, Contributing Writer

Tempe, Ariz.—Wood Partners is preparing to break ground on Alta Tempe, a 296-unit apartment complex at University Dr. and Dorsey Ln. in Tempe. The property, which will be located on about seven acres, is slated for a mid-2015 completion; leasing will begin in the third quarter of this year.

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The property will include 180 one-bedroom units, 104 two-bedroom units, and 12 three-bedroom apartments averaging 892 square feet. Residents will have access to such amenities as a fitness center, resort-style pool, 8,000-square-foot clubhouse with a living wall system (vertical garden), and an observation deck with views of Camelback Mountain and all of northern Phoenix.

Alta Tempe, designed by Womack + Hampton Architects, is also near the new Marina Heights, which will be the state’s largest office park when it’s completed in 2017. Marina Heights will include 2 million square feet of office space and 40,000 square feet of retail, and State Farm Insurance will locate one of its four nationwide operation centers there.

According to investment specialist Marcus & Millichap, metro Phoenix’s employment growth is expected to outpace the national growth rate in 2014, supporting tighter apartment vacancies and a fifth consecutive year of rent growth. The company predicts that as employment grows by about 3 percent in the area this year (about 54,700 jobs), effective rents will go up 2.1 percent.

The in-demand Tempe/Arizona State University submarket in particular will tighten in 2014, with vacancies down to the low 4 percent range by the end of 2014, Marcus & Millichap predicts. Marketwide, apartment vacancies in greater Phoenix are expected to drop to the mid-6 percent range by the end of this year.

Wood Partners is no stranger to the Phoenix market. Its other properties there include Alta Park West, Alta Phoenix Lofts, Alta Ravenwood, and Pietra. Nationwide, the company currently owns 77 properties with a combined total of more than 20,000 units.