Bella Vista, San Pablo, Calif.

Real estate investment firm Kennedy Wilson (NYSE: KW) and its partners have acquired Bella Vista at Hilltop, a 1,008-unit multifamily community in San Pablo, Calif., for $140.5 million. The sale represents the largest single multifamily transaction by number of units thus far in 2011, according to Real Capital Analytics.

Terms of the transaction announced Tuesday include assumption of an existing seven-year Fannie Mae loan of $97.5 million at a fixed rate of 5.25% until 2017.

The addition of Bella Vista also is the largest single multifamily asset acquisition in Kennedy Wilson’s history, increasing the company’s multifamily portfolio to 12,906 units in the western U.S. and Japan and assets under management to $7.4 billion.

“Bella Vista is an institutional-quality asset in one of our largest target markets,” says Robert Hart, president of Kennedy Wilson’s multifamily management group. “This deal is a prime example of Kennedy Wilson’s ability to source high-quality, off-market opportunities.”

Bella Vista at Hilltop consists of 42 three-story apartment buildings with units averaging 887 sq. ft. The recently renovated community features four outdoor swimming pools, one indoor swimming pool, four whirlpools, one sauna and four lighted tennis courts.

Other amenities include a business center, a fully equipped exercise center, laundry rooms, a large playground area, meeting rooms and access gates.

Founded in 1977, Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Kennedy Wilson offers an array of real estate services including auctions, conventional sales, property services and investment management.