Latitude – Investment Property Advisors LLC

Located just steps from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Latitude allows its occupants to discover innovation and experience new heights as an all-inclusive apartment complex for students and professionals. Upon completion, this five- and six-story development will have 324 apartments with 519 beds. Amenities include a fitness center, a club house, a spa pool with water volleyball and hot tub, study space and three roof terraces — one featuring a movie theater, grills and fires pits. Shopping will be convenient for tenants as the first floor of the facility will contain 20,900 square feet of retail space.

Each apartment of Latitude provides an ideal space for professionals and students as the units are completely furnished with designer home furniture, private bed and bathrooms, memory foam queen beds, chef-inspired kitchens and study desks in each room. Tenants will also experience a convenience factor with washer and dryer access as well as on-site management and maintenance.

Strategic development

The owner and developer of Latitude is Investment Property Advisors (IPA). Based in Louisville, Kentucky, IPA has garnered wide acclaim for its student housing developments. Founded in 2004 by Chase Sorrick and Larry Gough, IPA has established itself as a niche developer completing urban infill-type projects on sites that are traditionally difficult to develop. IPA is able to take on challenges that include complex financial structuring, and receiving new-market and historical tax credits. “We use these kinds of tools that are often available to us to create the urban infill environment,” says Sorrick. “

IPA’s strategy is to position its developments in or near universities, with the aim of attracting students and young professionals. By taking the time to assemble property, the company was able to create 29 parcels for Latitude, which allowed IPA approximately two and a half city blocks for the development.

This approach however, can create zoning challenges, often due to outdated regulations. For Latitude, the 30-year old zoning laws of Champaign never accounted for a development of this scale. This forced IPA to rezone the location to a property enterprise development. “In some of our developments, we have worked with universities and local governments to create overlay districts that basically introduce new zoning standards,” recalls Sorrick. “It’s a lot of work but it’s worthwhile to go through these processes to develop in the best locations.”

Multipurpose spaces

With developments such as Latitude, Sorrick says that the company will often add a mixed-use element to facilities due to the urban setting. IPA tends to fill in ground floor levels with non-residential space, such as parking or commercial space that also acts as an amenity to the tenants. At Latitude, a CrossFit franchise is included on the first floor with discounts available to tenants. “We also like to set up the ground floor similar to that of a hotel lobby,” says Sorrick. “We like to include a coffee franchise with lounge seating.”

With a degree in finance from the University of Indiana, Sorrick has developed the financial modeling to analyze all of IPA’s current and prospective projects. Through his work with local entitlements, land formation and zoning, Sorrick is able to generate unique building designs to maximize revenue for each development. Sorrick is also well-versed in commercial and real estate appraisal, multifamily and commercial construction management, architecture and real estate development.