Varia US Properties AG, a Swiss-listed investor in U.S. multifamily housing, said it signed a definitive agreement with affiliates of Brookfield Asset Management to place 13 of its 17 U.S. properties into a newly formed two-vehicle joint venture with a gross asset value of $693.9 million, or about $694 million. The portfolio in the venture comprises 4,112 units across nine states, while four properties will remain wholly owned and consolidated by Varia US. The company said the structure gives it access to up to $200 million of equity capital for future acquisitions as it invests in the venture assets, plans disposals, and recycles proceeds into higher-quality purchases to improve liquidity, financial flexibility and capital efficiency.