By Chuck Slothower

In California and Oregon, rent control laws prevent landlords from raising the rent on existing tenants by more than about 10% a year.

But when tenants leave, however, it's a different story. Landlords routinely raise rents by much more, real estate experts said.

The limits on occupied units mean landlords tend to raise rents as aggressively as possible in vacant apartments while securing a new renter.

In an investor call earlier this year, Adam Wyll, president and chief operating officer of American Assets Trust, a major West Coast real estate investment trust based in San Diego, revealed that rent growth upon lease turnover was more than double that of occupied apartments.

"Regarding our multifamily portfolio in San Diego, we are seeing vacant units lease at an average of over 20% over prior rents with little to no concessions offered," Wyll said. "Note that renewal rates are capped just below 10% based on California laws. So we are maximizing the rental rates on vacant units to the full extent of our capabilities, all the while managing expenses."

Neither California nor Oregon's rent control laws place any limit on rent hikes once an apartment turns over. That often means new tenants can end up paying much more than the previous renter.

"Generally, if the unit is vacant, it's brought to market [rent levels] and the increase is much healthier than 10%," said Dean Zander, executive vice president for CBRE in Los Angeles.

Local regulations vary, as California allows cities to enact stricter rent control regimes, which has been done in Los Angeles, Berkeley and other municipalities. Rent caps are also tied to local consumer price increases, and in Oregon, the allowable rent hike cap is set statewide.

Nationally, rents grew by 16% during the first half of 2022, according to Freddie Mac. Rent growth is expected to remain robust, with high interest rates keeping would-be home buyers in apartments, all while a nationwide lack of multifamily supply is struggling to meet demand... READ MORE

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.

By JACK WITTHAUS
​CoStar News

CIM Group Spends More Than $45 Million on Property in Los Angeles and West Hollywood

Los Angeles developer CIM Group bought the 1.6-acre property around 1000 N. La Brea Ave. for roughly $46.5 million, according to statements from CIM and CBRE. The property consists of multiple parcels where a cement plant has been operating for roughly 60 years. The plant is expected to stay open as CIM Group figures out what the site's future is.

The seller, West Hollywood developer Faring, assembled the site in November 2019 for a combined $23.7 million, according to CoStar data.

The neighborhood has been teeming with development in recent years, particularly around the nearby Sycamore District along Sycamore Avenue. That's where Canadian developer Onni Group wants to build roughly 200,000 square feet of retail and office space at 7000 Romaine St., while CIM Group itself completed development last year on 926 Sycamore, an eight-story, 80,000-square-foot office and retail property.

The Sycamore District also features a number of upscale retailers and restaurants including Gigi's restaurant and luxury retailer Just One Eye.

Dean Zander, an executive vice president at CBRE who was involved in the deal, said in the brokerage's statement that the property received a considerable amount of interest because it's one of the last remaining commercially zoned parcels of significant size in the area. Stew Weston, an executive vice president at CBRE who also was involved in the deal, said in the statement the city of West Hollywood indicated it wants a large, mixed-use multifamily development on the property.

“The larger one-acre parcel could be developed into a luxury mixed-use apartment property, taking advantage of the area’s exceptional demographics and surrounding retail and lifestyle amenities, while the adjacent site at Sycamore Avenue is ideally suited for a creative office development,” Zander said.

BY EMILY LU

Standard Communities has acquired Jefferson SoLA, a newly built 244-unit luxury multifamily complex in South Gate, Calif., for $130 million, Commercial Observer has learned. The City of South Gate sold the asset, according to property records.

CBRE’s Dean Zander and Stew Weston brokered the sale. The deal marks the duo’s second $130 million sale to Standard, the first being the 349-unit Monterey Station in Pomona, Calif., in December 2021.

Located at 10930 Garfield Avenue in South Gate, about 15 miles from downtown Los Angeles, the multifamily complex was completed in November 2021 and was approximately 50 percent leased at the time of sale. Standard expects the asset to reach full stabilization by the end of the year, according to a prepared statement from CBRE.

“Jefferson SoLA is well positioned to take advantage of the demand for newer and luxury housing that has been sorely lacking in the Los Angeles County south cities,” Zander said. “The location, combined with the scope and quality of the asset, were a huge draw for the new owner.”

The apartment complex’s amenities include a pool and spa with cabanas; gourmet grilling stations with indoor/outdoor seating; a fitness lounge with state-of-the-art equipment and a yoga/spin room; a double-height clubhouse with media wall and game area; a private conference center and coffee lounge; package locker service; a dog park and dog wash; a bicycle center; and multiple courtyards with fireplaces and fire pits.

Officials at Standard Communities did not immediately respond to a request for comment.​

By MARK NIETO

A CBRE report indicates the national multifamily sector saw record leasing activity, rent growth and investment during the first quarter of 2022. Meanwhile, Greater Los Angeles was 4th among all metros for multifamily investments over the past year, with $18.6 billion in total volume, or 5% of the U.S. total.

In terms of year-over-year rent increases, Greater Los Angeles came in 7th in the Pacific region, with a 13.9% jump, while Orange County landed in 2nd place with 17.7% rate hikes and Inland Empire was 3rd at 16.8% higher rents.

“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 rate pressure,” said CBRE’s Los Angeles-based Executive VP Dean Zander. “Based on offerings we have in the market, there is abundant demand for well-located apartment buildings in this tight rental market.”

​Zander added, “We’ve noticed a resurgence in interest in markets that were negatively impacted by the pandemic, including Downtown LA and Hollywood.”

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