The commercial and residential development portfolio of financially struggling developer StoryBuilt is up for sale with an estimated value of $2 billion, including projects in some of the highest-growth markets in the United States.

A&G Real Estate Partners and Onyx Asset Advisors said they are looking to sell 28 developments in various stages of planning or completion in Austin, Texas; Dallas; Denver; and Seattle by the end of the year.

The portfolio, which A&G values at $2 billion at build out, is being marketed either as a whole or through individual deals as part of a receiver sale. Neither A&G Real Estate nor Onyx Asset Advisors responded to requests to comment further about the valuation.

StoryBuilt laid off more than 100 employees and went into receivership through Travis County District Court at the end of July after the Austin-based company failed to raise enough money to keep it operational. Receivership can help creditors recover funds from a financially struggling company.

Sun Belt markets, which had the fastest rent growth in 2021 and the first half of 2022, are now facing the largest imbalance between supply and demand with developers completing record numbers of units and not enough renters to fill them. Some Sun Belt markets, including Austin, finished the third quarter with negative year-over-year rent growth, according to a report from Apartments.com, which is owned by CoStar Group.

“This sale will give a single or several buyers an opportunity to enter Austin’s highly active development market potentially at a discount to current pricing,” said Jay Lybik, CoStar Group’s national director of multifamily analytics. He doesn't expect the properties hitting the market to significantly hurt conditions or valuations.

Los Angeles-based financial adviser and fiduciary firm Stapleton Group serves as StoryBuilt's court-appointed receiver. Mike Bergthold, managing director at Stapleton Group, told CoStar News in an email that it was premature to comment on the value of StoryBuilt's portfolio "since the investment banking process just kicked off and the analysis of all the claims is not complete."

StoryBuilt did not immediately respond to requests to comment. Properties up for sale include StoryBuilt's pipeline of 17 projects in Austin, five in Seattle, three in Dallas and three in Denver.

A large portion of the StoryBuilt projects available in the receiver sale are part of joint ventures, including a multibillion-dollar private global markets firm, according to the statement. StoryBuilt handled the design and construction of the 17 joint venture projects and has at least a 10% stake in them.

“The availability of StoryBuilt’s position in one or more of these 17 projects is an extraordinary opportunity for qualified developers,” A&G Real Estate Co-President Emilio Amendola said in the statement. “You’re creating the opportunity to develop or complete these assets and receive substantial fees associated with things like construction, site work and construction management and supervision.”

Some of the joint venture projects include:

• Austin’s “George,” with 80 town homes and 36 single-family homes that is 40% complete;
• Seattle’s “Josephine,” a development site approved for 380 apartment units;
• Denver’s “Judy,” a development site approved for 55 town homes;
• “Jolene" in Dallas, a development site planned for 800 residential units comprising condos, town homes and apartments, plus retail space.

StoryBuilt was founded in 2009 and its "unique approach" included finding the neighborhoods first and then building projects that meet people’s needs, according to the statement. However, like many other builders in recent years, "the company ran into capital constraints,” Bergthold said in the statement.
The entire portfolio features land parcels in various stages of approval for construction of 2,500 residential units across the four cities.

“Some of these sites are essentially shovel-ready, with the municipality having already reviewed and green-lighted the plans,” Onyx Asset Advisors Managing Partner K. Kevin Otus said in the statement. “It is a major advantage for developers looking to seize opportunities in these high-demand markets.”

Other properties included in the receiver sale are:

• Thornton Flats, a 104-unit income-generating property in Austin’s South Lamar neighborhood;
• Scout, 16 town houses in the Meridian Park neighborhood of Shoreline, Washington, and 75% complete;
• Stanley, 19-town homes in Seattle’s Georgetown neighborhood that’s 75% complete;
• Bruno, a development with 42 apartment units in Austin that’s 35% complete;
• Frank South, a town house and single-family home development under construction on S. First St. in Austin;
• and My Darling Clementine, a South Austin project with 12 single-family homes that's 66% complete.