S3 Capital funds Travelers Rest apartments

S3 Capital, a national private real estate lender, originated a $29.75 million construction loan to finance the development of Liva Travelers Rest, a 152-unit multifamily property located at 208 Tubbs Mountain Road Travelers Rest.

S3 Capital says the transaction is their first loan in South Carolina and advances the firm’s growing footprint across the Southeast, particularly markets in close to Charlotte.

Liva Travelers Rest will be a multifamily community consisting of five three-story buildings and seven two-story buildings, featuring 120 apartment units and 32 townhomes, with a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom residences. Amenities will include a resort-style pool, clubhouse, fitness center, fire pit, dog park and bike barn, according to a news release.

“This transaction represents an important step in our continued nationwide expansion into high-demand U.S. markets and the sunbelt states,” Steven Jemal, managing director of origination at S3 Capital, said in the release. “While this marks our first loan in South Carolina, Travelers Rest sits just across the border from North Carolina and within the broader Charlotte orbit, a market where we’ve been active and continue to see compelling multifamily fundamentals.”

The company pointed out that Travelers Rest is in a region that has experienced sustained population and employment growth in recent years. The city’s population increased by approximately 15% between 2020 and 2025, while rising household incomes and an influx of higher-earning residents have supported a 4.4% year-over-year increase in effective rents across the surrounding submarkets. Within the broader metropolitan area, employment growth has consistently outpaced the national average, supported by a diversified economic base spanning health care, advanced manufacturing and professional services. Proximity to downtown Greenville, combined with access to outdoor recreation, further enhances the area’s appeal to both residents and employers.

Clear Mountain Properties, the project sponsor, brings deep local market expertise to the development of Liva Travelers Rest and has experience developing more than 1,000 multifamily units across the Carolinas, according to the release. Construction will be led by Capstone Building Corp., a Birmingham-based general contractor with a strong presence across the southeast that has completed more than $3 billion of multifamily projects since its founding.

“We highly value working with sponsors who are deeply rooted within the markets they transact,” said Joshua Crane, co-founder and principal of S3 Capital. “That kind of local expertise allows our borrowers to effectively complete their business plans and allows S3 to feel confident that our underwriting will match reality.”

S3 Capital specializes in construction and bridge loans for multifamily development. Since launching its credit business in 2013, the New York-based company has originated more than 820 loans totaling more than $8.3 billion, the company says.