From the "what are they building now" file:

Construction crews are putting in foundations this week at the corner of U.S. 401 and Spring Forest Road in Northeast Raleigh. They're building the 300-unit Flats on 401 apartment complex on what had been a wooded 13-acre property, across the street from a field of horses.

The area is on the fringe of Raleigh's growth and doesn't have many apartments. But the site is close to Interstate 540 and the rapidly expanding northern campus of Wake Tech Community College.

The influx of students will need somewhere to live, and Flats on 401 hopes to fill that need.

West Village’s owners plan a June 14 groundbreaking for a 156-unit apartment building near the downtown Loop.

Called “West Village III,” the six-story building is designed to architecturally “complement” the former Liggett & Myers cigarette factory complex now occupied by the existing West Village apartments and businesses.

“We view this phase as … invigorating to the entire city,” said Bryan Kane, vice president of Federal Capital Partners. The Maryland company bought controlling interest in West Village in 2012.

Federal Capital has also bought the 10-story Erwin Square Plaza building in Old West Durham, near Ninth Street. (See previous post, below.)

The new apartments are to be a mix of studio and one- and two-bedroom units, with nine-foot ceilings, full-size washing machines and dryers, granite counters and other luxury amenities.

Besides a new building, the owners are opening a new, expanded fitness center for resident and providing access to two Zipcars for resident use.

West Village III had been proposed as a 196-unit, two-building complex, but the Historic Preservation Commission denied approval for plans to build on a lot within a designated local historic landmark.

Leasing for West Village III will be handled by Bell Partners. See www.westvillagedurham.com.

Kane Realty is partnering with Federal Capital Partners to build a 400-unit apartment complex in the Ramblewood neighborhood near North Hills.

The project, which involves tearing down the 1960s-era Lantern Square apartment complex, is expected to begin construction in the third quarter of this year, the companies announced Friday.

The deal represents a family reunion of sorts for the Kane family, as one of North Hills developer John Kane's son, Bryan Kane, heads up FCP's Triangle office.

It also marks FCP's fourth investment in the Triangle over the past 14 months. Late last year the Washington-based firm paid $35.25 million for the first phase of the West Village development in downtown Durham.

An Atlanta real estate company has bought the the Villas at Centerview apartments in West Raleigh for $42 million, according to Wake County property records.

Centennial Holding Company purchased the 374-unit complex from Boston Capital Real Estate Partners. Centennial also owns the Century Creek apartments in Durham and the Century Carrington Park apartments in Morrisville.

Villas at Centerview opened in 2007.

It was 94 percent leased as of Dec. 6, according to Karnes Research and the Triangle Apartment Association.

Highwoods Properties announced Monday that it has sold a vacant, 96-unit apartment building in Kansas City for $11 million.

The property is in the city's Country Club Plaza.

It is part of a site where Highwoods once hoped to build a $58 million headquarters for the law firm Poisinelli Shughart.

That project, which would have required tearing down the apartment building, was scrapped in April 2011 after it ran into unexpected opposition from city officials and residents.

Highwoods will use the proceeds from the apartment sale to pay down its unsecured revolving credit line.

A Massachusetts apartment management company has bought the Bradford Crossing apartment complex in North Raleigh for $13.2 million, according to Wake County property records.

VTT Management bought the property from UCF Bradford LLC. UCF Bradford paid $10 million for the 365-unit complex in April 2011, meaning it earned a 32 percent return in less than a year.

Bradford Crossing was built in 1968. It's just outside the Beltline in between Six Forks and Wake Forest roads.

The complex was 75 percent leased in October, according to data from the Triangle Apartment Association and Karnes Research.

VTT Management specializes in repositioning undervalued and distressed real estate.

The deal is just the latest example of how multi-family property valuations have risen in recent years.

Crescent Resources broke ground today on a 303-unit apartment complex in Durham.

The $47 million project, called Circle Ninth Street, is being built on a six-acre site adjacent to Ninth Street and the historic Erwin Mill building. 

The first units are expected to be available this fall.

Circle Ninth Street is to be similar to eco-friendly communities that Crescent has built in Florida and the Charlotte area.

The Charlotte developer is also behind The Residences at Cameron Village, a 282-unit apartment complex in the west Raleigh shopping center.

A Houston real estate investment trust has bought the Asbury Village apartments in West Raleigh for $44.2 million, according to Wake County property records.

Camden Property Trust bought the 350-unit complex from Boston Capital Real Estate Partners. Asbury Village, built in 2008, is just east of Interstate 40 near the intersection of Chapel Hill and Nowell roads.

Nearly $900 million worth of apartment transactions were completed last year, and investor interest in the sector shows no signs of cooling off.
 

New York-based Clarion Partners and The Residential Group of Atlanta announced plans today to develop a $37 million apartment complex in northwest Raleigh's Brier Creek area.

The project, called Crest at Brier Creek, will include 291 units and be located near ACC Boulevard and Glenwood Avenue.

It's one of several new apartment projects planned for the Brier Creek area.

Clarion said in a release that site work on the project began this month, with completion expected in June 2013.

In August, Clarion paid $15.7 million for Cary Park Town Center shopping center. The firm has more than $23 billion in assets under management.