Greystone Capital Advisors Arranges $107.5 Million in Debt and JV Equity for Norwalk Office-to-Residential Conversion
Greystone Capital Advisors has arranged $107.5 million in debt and joint venture equity on behalf of Saber-Hightower and Granoff Real Estate for the office-to-residential conversion of M7 Lofts, a 286-unit multifamily project at 101 and 201 Merritt 7 in Norwalk, Connecticut, the firm announced Sept. 2.
The capital stack consists of $75.5 million in construction financing provided by Bank OZK and $32.0 million in JV equity from a confidential family office. Greystone Capital Advisors served as financial advisor on the transaction, with a team that included Drew Fletcher, Paul Fried, Bryan Grover, and Jesse Kopecky.
Project Overview: Adaptive Reuse at Merritt 7
M7 Lofts is an adaptive-reuse conversion of two eight-story office buildings totaling approximately 511,318 square feet on a 6.48-acre site near the Merritt Parkway and Route 7. The buildings, constructed in 1980 and 1982, will be repositioned into a residential community featuring loft-style layouts, open floor plans, floor-to-ceiling windows, and 11-foot ceilings.
Plans call for approximately 55,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities, including a fitness center, co-working space, an outdoor pool deck, lounge areas, and landscaped private gardens. The property sits less than a five-minute walk from the Merritt 7 Metro-North station, providing commuter access to Stamford, Greenwich, and New York City.
Marty Berger, Principal of Saber-Hightower LLC, said the location and existing infrastructure made the conversion a logical step. "These are well-located buildings that can serve Fairfield County far better as housing than as office," Berger said. "By leveraging the existing infrastructure at Merritt 7 and the property's proximity to transit, we can create a differentiated residential experience while giving these buildings a new purpose. We appreciate Greystone's assistance in developing a financing strategy that supports our vision."
Financing Structure and Greystone Capital Advisors' Role
The transaction pairs construction debt with joint venture equity, a structure suited to a large-scale repositioning of aging suburban office inventory. Bank OZK provided the $75.5 million construction loan, while the $32.0 million equity commitment came from a family office that was not publicly identified.
Drew Fletcher, President of Greystone Capital Advisors, said the deal required a customized approach. "This was a compelling adaptive-reuse opportunity that required a financing strategy tailored to the sponsor's long-term business plan," Fletcher said. "We were thrilled to represent Saber-Hightower and Granoff Real Estate in assembling the capital needed to move this conversion forward."
In addition to Fletcher, the Greystone Capital Advisors advisory team included Paul Fried, Bryan Grover, and Jesse Kopecky.
Fairfield County Market Context
The M7 Lofts conversion reflects broader structural pressures on Fairfield County's office market. Office availability in the county stood at 25.0% in the first quarter of 2026, with net absorption registering negative 71,000 square feet during the same period. Quarterly leasing totaled 367,000 square feet, above the prior quarter but still below the five-year average — conditions that have made repositioning older suburban office stock increasingly attractive to investors.
Merritt 7 is a six-building, 1.4 million-square-foot, 22-acre office campus in Norwalk. The two buildings targeted for conversion — 101 and 201 Merritt 7 — together contained more than 400,000 square feet of office space and 1,224 parking spaces, according to planning and zoning filings. The broader campus has been the subject of multiple ownership and repositioning moves, placing the M7 Lofts transaction within a larger revaluation of the Merritt 7 office cluster.
On the residential side, multifamily vacancy across Fairfield County remains below 3.5%, supporting the demand case for new housing supply near transit. The M7 Lofts project's proximity to the Merritt 7 Metro-North station positions it to capture commuter-oriented demand from renters seeking access to Stamford, Greenwich, and New York City.
Outlook
With financing closed, construction on M7 Lofts is set to proceed. The project adds 286 units to a Fairfield County housing market that has seen limited new supply relative to demand, while removing two aging office buildings from a campus where vacancy has persisted. The transaction is consistent with a broader pattern of office-to-residential conversions gaining traction in suburban markets where older office inventory faces structural headwinds and multifamily fundamentals remain comparatively strong.
Sources: Greystone Capital Advisors announcement, Sept. 2, 2026
