BY JOSEPH PIMENTEL LOS ANGELES

LOS ANGELES — Investors are capitalizing on the high demand for housing in Southern California.

In the past four quarters, investors spent more than $18.6 billion buying apartments, duplexes and other multifamily properties in the Greater Los Angeles region, CBRE reported.

According to the new CBRE report released Thursday, Greater LA ranked fourth for multifamily investments over the past four quarters among the 69 metros the commercial real estate company tracks. CBRE defines Greater LA as the five counties of Ventura, LA, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino. 

Investors invested more in Dallas/Fort Worth ($29.1 billion), Atlanta ($21.3 billion) and New York (17.6 billion).

Nationally, investments in the multifamily sector reached $63 billion in the first quarter of 2022, a 56% increase year-over-year. CBRE officials said it's the strongest first quarter on record and brings the four-quarter multifamily investment total to $374 billion. 

In the first quarter alone, multifamily investments accounted for 37% of total commercial real estate investment volume, followed by office at 21% and industrial at 20%.

The level of multifamily investment activity in LA was a 122% increase from the previous year, CBRE officials said.

"Los Angeles recorded record volume last year," said Dean Zander, executive vice president of CBRE's multifamily division. "We surpassed pre-pandemic levels in terms of dollar volume and nearly matched it in terms of the number of transactions (2019 was slightly ahead). Since cap rates have continued to compress since 2020, pricing has surpassed the previous highs, and demand is far outpacing supply."

CBRE officials said household formations, job and wage growth, rent growth and rising home prices fueled demand for multifamily properties nationwide.

"Renters are feeling emboldened by covid restrictions lifting," said Zander. "They are more comfortable spending more money on better apartments as they return to work. Confidence has been restored in the job growth markets throughout Southern CA."

The new report comes as the coronavirus pandemic wanes and people return to a "new normal" way of life, including returning to the office. 
The pandemic accelerated the demand for single-family and multifamily housing due to low-interest rates, work from home policies, and limited housing supply. 

With so many people shut out of the single-family housing market because of the high prices or stiff competition, they've had to continue to rent. 

Investors noticed. 

Apartment rents went up by as much as 18% year-over-year across Southern California. Rent has gone up 14% year-over-year in LA. Orange County rent jumped nearly 18% year-over-year, and rent in the Inland Empire jumped 17%. 

And as the Federal Reserve increases interest rates to curb inflation and housing prices remain high, relief remains far off for tenants and prospective homebuyers.

"With continued strong rent growth throughout every Southern California market, ranging from 14% to 18% year-over-year, investors are drawn to multifamily opportunities, despite interest rate pressure," said Zander. 

As companies call their workers back to the office, Zander said investors are targeting areas many workers fled at the onset of the pandemic, including downtown LA, Hollywood and other job-centric locations. 

"The Orange County, Inland Empire and San Diego markets command the most attention due to job growth in the life sciences industries, warehousing, distribution and logistics centers, and outpaced rent growth," he said.

While investors are capitalizing on the high demand and rent growth, it doesn't bode well for tenants. 

As multifamily investors seek the highest return for their investments, expect rent to continue increasing. 

​"We can expect to see continued upward pressure on rents as single-family homes remain unaffordable in nearly every metro," said Zander.

BY Hannah Madans Welk

A 105-unit luxury apartment complex in Redondo Beach has sold for $74.5 million, or more than $709,000 per unit. Clovis-based Ideal Capital Group sold the property, at 616 Esplanade, to an unnamed private investor.

CBRE Group Inc.’s Dean Zander and Stewart Weston represented the seller in the transaction. The buyer was represented by KW Commercial’s Ryan Rembert and Mason Rowland. The property, known as Elements 616, sits on 1.2 acres. It has undergone $25 million worth of renovations since 2013. Ideal Capital acquired the property in 2019 and wrapped renovations in 2020.

The building’s amenities include water views from 40% of the units, an upgraded residents lounge, pool area, fitness center, laundry room and elevator cab.

“Elements 616 was completely reimagined by Ideal and is a well-positioned coastal multifamily asset that appealed to many California investors,” Zander said in a statement. “The proximity to Silicon Beach, its irreplaceable location, combined with the scope and quality of the renovations were a huge draw for the new owner.”

​READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE HERE

By Hannah Madans Welk

​A large multifamily property in Pomona has sold for $130 million.

Century City-based Standard Communities, the housing division of Standard Cos., and West Hollywood-based Faring Property Group purchased the property from Clear Capital.

The 349-unit apartment complex, known as Monterey Station, is located at 120-180 E. Monterey Ave.

CBRE Group Inc.’s Dean Zander and Stewart Weston represented the seller in the transaction.

The property has 14 different floor plans and has a resort-style pool and spa, a fitness center, a dog run and a clubhouse for residents. It also has 38 live-work units, which CBRE said worked well for work-from-home or hybrid workers.

The brokerage added that there have been only 27 multifamily communities of 100 units or more added to the San Gabriel Valley since 2007, making properties like this rare.

“Due to the size, age, location and scale of Monterey Station, we received a tremendous amount of interest from private capital, institutional investors and funds,” Zander said in a statement. “The best execution, however, was offered by Standard/Faring, which purchased the property under their highly successful ‘missing middle’ bond program, ensuring workforce housing will remain in Pomona for many years.”

The so-called missing middle refers to residents who earn too much money to qualify for affordable housing but too little to afford market-rate units.

A large number of sales of properties with more than 100 units this year have been part of the bond program. The program, which began last year, uses tax-exempt bond financing to acquire multifamily properties which are then converted to middle-income housing.

“This was a unique opportunity for Standard/Faring to make a difference in the affordable housing space. They executed flawlessly,” Weston said in a statement.

Some of the other large sales using the bond program this year include the 507-unit Altana Apartments, in Glendale, which Waterford Property Co. and California Statewide Communities Development Authority purchased for $300 million; Residences at Westgate in Pasadena, which the two purchased from Equity Residential for $237 million; and the 357-unit Union South Bay in Carson, which sold for $220 million.

Faring and Standard have been very committed to middle-income housing. Earlier this year, Faring and Standard Communities announced a $2 billion joint venture to build housing across California for the missing middle. The companies, through their joint venture known as Standard-Faring Essential Housing, have around $500 million in active deals and have announced plans to build units in the next 18 to 24 months. They have already created more than 650 units of middle-income housing in Southern California.

BY Greg Cornfield

​Lincoln Avenue Capital acquired the 354-unit building in Chatsworth

Nuveen Real Estate has unloaded the 354-unit Waterstone Apartments in suburban Los Angeles for $101.8 million. 

Lincoln Avenue Capital acquired the property, according to CBRE, which announced the deal and represented Nuveen. The firm first acquired the property for $72.5 million in 2016, property records show.

The property is located at 9901 Lurline Avenue, and it’s the largest multifamily property in the Chatsworth neighborhood, which spans about 15 square miles in the northwestern reaches of the San Fernando Valley. The 50-year old property has undergone extensive renovations over the years. 

“The buyer recognized the inherent value in providing workforce housing in a neighborhood where there is a clear need,” said Dean Zander of CBRE. “Waterstone represents the largest sale — both in sales price and number of units — of pre-1980s built multifamily properties in the San Fernando Valley over the last 24 months.”

Suburban markets around Southern California are experiencing the sharpest rent increases since the pandemic hit. The Chatsworth submarket has seen an average annual rental growth of 5.1 percent since 2010, according to CBRE.

Chatsworth is mostly made up of multifamily and single-family residential homes, but this year also featured a $74 million trade for an Amazon delivery facility.

Zander and CBRE’s Stewart Weston represented Nuveen, which has been active across sectors in Southern California. The firm paid $60 million for a fully occupied industrial property in the Inland Empire in the summer. And, in the spring, CO reported Nuveen’s plan to acquire Comcast’s new esports studio on the Glendale-Burbank border for about $53.5 million.

Los Angeles / By Isabella Farr

An affordable housing complex in Pasadena has traded hands for $223 million.

The 313-unit Kings Villages at 1141 North Fair Oaks Avenue sold this month for around $712,000 per unit, according to CBRE’s Dean Zander and Stewart Weston, who brokered the deal. The buyer was not disclosed.

Records show the complex was previously owned by Fresno County-based Affordable Housing Development Corporation. AHDC, run by founder Peter Herzog, bought the site for $25 million in 2000 and last renovated the property in 2003, according to the firm’s website.

The Kings Villages complex receives a 100 percent state welfare real estate tax exemption, according to CBRE marketing materials. The complex also has a contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which provides assistance for tenants. The contract expires in October 2035.

The deal is one of the priciest transactions in recent months in Pasadena, where a number of deals have involved affordable or “workforce housing” projects in the area. Workforce housing generally involves some government aid on financing in exchange for keeping rents below market rates for new tenants who earn between 80 and 120 percent of the median income.

​In June, Waterford Property Company bought two complexes totaling 513 units for $335 million–about $653,000 per unit for conversion to workforce housing.

​Pasadena still lags on affordable housing, like much of California. In January, the city of 140,000 was assigned a target of 9,400 affordable units by 2029 under the state of California’s affordable housing goals.

BY: Lisa Brown

A 197-unit multifamily property in the Inland Empire recently sold to Tailwind Investment Group, an Orange County-based real estate investment firm, for $53.6 million. The Vue, located at 1660 W. Kendall Dr. in San Bernardino, was built in 1988 and is situated on 11.94 acres near California State University, San Bernardino.

The property is also near the 210, 215 and 15 freeways, allowing access to Los Angeles County, the greater Inland Empire region and a variety of nearby entertainment centers. Residents are within walking distance to amenities including Campus Crossroads Shopping Center and The Shops at University Park.

“The Vue has benefited from the phenomenal rent growth over the last couple of years, consistent with overall rent growth in the Inland Empire, which has increased 22 percent since the fourth quarter of 2019,” says CBRE’s Stewart Weston.

CBRE’s Dean Zander and Weston represented the sellers, Dalan Management and VM Management, in the transaction.

​“With minimal new apartment supply coupled with an abundance of jobs in the warehousing, manufacturing, distribution and logistics centers nearby, investors are demonstrating a strong and growing preference for well-located Inland Empire apartment buildings,” said Zander. “Tailwind plans to perform unit interior and common area upgrades to better position The Vue in this highly desirable submarket.”

Los Angeles – Aug. 5, 2021 – CBRE announced the sale of Vintage at SLO, a 105-unit multifamily community in San Luis Obispo, Calif., to California-based real estate investment firm IDEAL Capital Group for $51 million.  
​
Stew Weston, Dean Zander and Jef Henderson represented the seller, a joint venture between Newport Beach, Calif.-based real estate investment and development firm Capstone Commercial Properties and local developer and general contractor, Robbins | Reed. 

Construction of Vintage at SLO was completed in 2021 on a 5.1-acre site at 3554 Ranch  House Road. The 91,749 square-foot property is comprised of seven three-story buildings with  an average unit size of 874 square-feet. Community amenities include a resort-style pool, fitness center, dog washing station and 161 parking spaces. 

“The developer delivered a true best-in-class community, as evidenced by the rapid leasing  velocity, lack of concessions and increase in rental rates throughout the lease-up period,” said  Zander. 

Added Kevin Conway, Managing Director at IDEAL Capital Group, “As a firm located in the heart of California’s Central Valley, we recognize the long-term value growth and high barriers to entry of Central Coast real estate. Vintage at SLO is an irreplaceable, high-quality asset located adjacent to technology companies, hospitals and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.” 

The property is three miles from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, a public university with an annual enrollment of approximately 22,000 students. 

​“We’re pleased to have developed and sold this one-of-a-kind community,” said Ricky Nelson, Vice President of Capstone Commercial Properties. “This project furthers our goal of developing unique apartment communities, investing in the Central Coast and expanding our apartment portfolio in the western U.S.” 

By Hannah Madans

Multifamily sales slowed during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the market began to rebound by late last year.
 
During the previous five years, according to CBRE Group Inc. Executive Vice President Dean Zander, the multi-family market in Los Angeles County usually saw about 500 sales a year of properties with 20 or more units.
 
But in 2020, Zander said, the number of sales fell by nearly half.
 
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Renters Drawn to Units Not Near Crowded City Core During Coronavirus

By Jacquelyn Ryan  |  CoStar News

A local family that owned five suburban apartment complexes for decades has almost 100 reasons to show why rentals outside city centers are popular in the pandemic. In short, that's how many offers the sale generated.
 
Raintree Partners bought the properties in greater Los Angeles for $142 million after a bidding war for the portfolio that underscores spiking demand for rentals in less crowded suburbs.
 
The real estate investment company based in Dana Point, California, bought the properties in Camarillo, Canoga Park, Glendale and Hollywood from a local family that has owned them for an average of 34 years, according to CBRE Group, which brokered the deal.
 
Strong apartment demand has helped offset some of the worst effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Los Angeles real estate, CBRE's Dean Zander, who represented the seller, told CoStar News. Apartments in L.A. suburbs such as Glendale in the San Gabriel Valley and Camarillo in Ventura County 50 miles northwest of downtown show better financial performance than properties in some of L.A.'s densely populated and expensive neighborhoods.
 
"The pandemic is having a ripple effect on both the office and multifamily markets because people just aren't inclined now to go into central business districts to live, work and play," Zander said. "People used to define quality of life as access to entertainment, nightlife and jobs in the urban core. We've seen a switch now to larger garden-style units, away from luxury high-rises. It's much more about the need for space, distance and quality of life now, and suburban areas are really benefiting more than ever before."

The properties received the almost 100 offers to buy either the whole portfolio or individual properties before selling to Raintree for an average cost per unit of about $257,713, CBRE said. That's well below the Los Angeles average asking price of $372,000 a unit, according to CoStar.
 
The sale and accompanying bidding war reflects the growing popularity of multifamily properties outside of urban metropolitan centers as renters seek more space and less expensive units on the outskirts of major cities during the pandemic, Zander said.

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