A joint venture including CPM Property Management of Minneapolis and Fides Capital Partners of Lake Forest, Ill., won the bid for 407 apartments in a total of 11 buildings, most of them in the Twin Cities metro area. Terms were not disclosed, but the bidding was hot. There were more than 20 offers.

The buildings had been owned by Warner Properties for decades and ranged from 25 to 71 units with an average occupancy rate of 97 percent. In a statement, Ted Warner, president and co-trustee, said, "Though selling assets which have been in the family for generations is a difficult thing to do on many levels, we are confident that given the valuation we achieved this was a great trade for Warner Properties."

Ted Abramson of CBRE's Minneapolis office represented the sellers and said that the sale price set a new high for these types of properties. The deal comes at a time when demand for rental properties is intense. Cassidy Turley said last week that the vacancy rate in the Twin Cities at the end of the second quarter stood at 4.2 percent, the fourth-lowest in the nation.