A group of friends led by an accounting professor at Fairfield University have grown their investment portfolio of several hundred apartment units with a recent $9.15 million purchase of two downtown Ansonia buildings recently converted from office use into 44 apartments.
Ahmed Ibrahim, an associate professor of accounting and certified public accountant, said he is one of five principals in MADG Realty LLC. In a deed recorded Aug. 25, the Fairfield-based LLC acquired the three-story office buildings at 158 and 200 Main St., in Ansonia.
Other MAGD principals include Khurram Nomani, of Stamford; Awais Malik, of Fairfield; Tahir Choudhry, of Wethersfield; and Fahmy Khalil, of Trumbull.
“I am kind of the glue that put them together, because as a CPA, almost all of them are clients,” Ibrahim said. “But, before they are clients, they are friends. So, it’s a group of friends who have the same business approach.”
Ibrahim said the partners are all retail and wholesale business owners who individually also had multifamily portfolios before coming together to scale their capabilities. They have used various LLCs but primarily operate under MAGD, which means “Glory” in Arabic.
“Ansonia, for instance, is 44 apartments,” Ibrahim said. “Nobody individually has the capacity to do that. So, working together allows us to scale to bigger deals. It also helps with finance and applications.”
The group’s portfolio, which is self-managed, includes more than 350 units, mostly clustered around Fairfield County, with just one property outside of Connecticut. The group’s largest property is a 48-unit building in Clinton, Ibrahim said.
The partners have also begun investing in Litchfield and New Haven counties, focused on the Naugatuck Valley, where they see affordable prices in areas likely to gain value.
In Ansonia, MAGD purchased 158 and 200 Main St., from a partnership of four Delaware-based limited liability companies. Joseph Gega signed the deed on behalf of the sellers.
The three-story, 16,791-square-foot building at 158 Main St. was converted to 20 apartments under a permit granted in 2023. The three-story, 20,493-square-foot building at 200 Main St. was converted into 24 units under permits granted in 2022 and 2023.
Ibrahim said the off-market deal included the assumption of a Fannie Mae mortgage under favorable terms. The properties have the added benefit of proximity to a passenger rail station, he noted.
Having recently been converted, the buildings are in top shape, Ibrahim said. Still, he plans to invest in improved tenant storage areas, an upgraded fitness center, common social rooms and laundry facilities.
The properties are more than 90% occupied, he said.
