Los Angeles | by Isabella Farr

Blackstone has sold an apartment complex in the Inland Empire city of Riverside for a large haircut.

The private equity firm sold a 304-unit complex at 3610 Banbury Drive for $102 million, or about $336,000 per unit, public property records show. CBRE’s Dean Zander and Stew Weston, who brokered the deal on behalf of the buyer, announced the sale earlier this month, but did not disclose the seller or the price.

Silver Star Real Estate, a firm based in La Palma, bought the property, using a loan from MF1 Capital, which is a partnership between Berkshire Residential Investments and Limekiln Real Estate. Financial terms of the loan were not disclosed.

The deal came out to about what some other firms have paid over the last year for apartment complexes in Riverside on a per unit basis. In December, Advanced Real Estate Services bought a 212-unit property in downtown Riverside for about $80 million, or $377,000 per unit.

Blackstone had bought the property for about $145 million in 2019, records show. Since 2019, average rents for a one-bedroom unit in Riverside have increased about 38 percent to an average of $1,800 per month, according to Zumper. It’s unclear what drove the price decrease on the property.

​Rents at the Banbury Drive complex currently range from $1,800 for a one-bedroom to $2,600 for a two-bedroom unit.

​Formed in 2006, Silver Star Real Estate currently owns 37 properties in California, Texas, Utah and Arizona, comprising more than 1,900 units. In L.A., the firm owns 20 properties from Santa Monica up to Granada Hills in the San Fernando Valley. The new property in Riverside is the firm’s first in the city.

Los Angeles – August 11, 2022 – CBRE announced the $48.6 million sale of Atrium at West Covina, a 138-unit multifamily community, to Langdon Park Capital, a real estate investment management company based in Los Angeles that specializes in preserving workforce housing. This represents their third Los Angeles acquisition.

CBRE’s Dean Zander and Stewart Weston represented the sellers, an affiliate of Abacus Capital Group, a private real estate investment firm with an extensive nationwide portfolio.

Atrium at West Covina, located at 1829-1841 East Workman Avenue, was built in 1962 and 1963. While the previous owners updated the property with enhanced amenities such as improved social areas, redesigned pools, and an upgraded fitness center, there is still room for the new owner to improve the property. The majority of the apartments remain in their classic condition.

“The few renovated units have demonstrated potential for impressive income gains,” said Zander. “Langdon Park Capital plans to continue improving the balance of the units while adhering to their mandate to preserve workforce housing.”

Malcolm Johnson, Langdon Park Capital’s CEO and founder added, “The Langdon Park Capital team is looking forward to implementing further capital improvements at the property, listening to residents and working closely with community partners, to maintain our commitment to creating high-quality and affordable residential communities.”

The property has a variety of large, well-designed floor plans, comprised mostly of two- and three-bedroom apartments, that average over 1,000 sq. ft. Located on a 4.68-acre lot in the San Gabriel Valley, the property has an expansive, low-density feel in a garden courtyard design that is rarely replicated in new construction.

Added Weston, “Offering over half-a-million jobs, the San Gabriel Valley has shown a strong demand for workforce housing where occupancy rates have averaged over 98%.”

​The city of West Covina is centrally situated within the San Gabriel Valley in the eastern portion of Los Angeles County. In close proximity to the property are five major grocery stores as well as three of the region’s most prominent shopping centers that feature over 200 regional and national retailers.