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A Braintree developer acquired a 37-building apartment community in Ayer following a campaign by tenant activists fighting rent increases.

Schochet Companies paid $32 million for the Devenscrest Village property and agreed to maintain all 114 apartments with income restrictions.

After the property was acquired in 2021 by Brady Sullivan Properties of Manchester, New Hampshire, tenants launched a campaign to protest evictions and rent increases, and received support from the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute.

Following a request for proposals, the Devenscrest Tenants Association selected Schochet Companies. The company offered to give tenants a say on operations and an option to purchase following a 10-year holding period, Schochet Companies announced.

Schochet extended the 114-unit complex’s affordable restrictions, which include units reserved for households earning a maximum 80, 60 and 50 percent of area median income.

Eastern Bank provided $24 million in acquisition financing. The town of Ayer also contributed to the acquisition.

“The preservation of Devenscrest as affordable housing underscores the importance of sustained investment in naturally occurring affordable housing across the Commonwealth,” the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute said in a statement.

Schochet Companies owns and manages more than 6,000 apartments along with 100,000 square feet of commercial space in New England.