Rent in Los Angeles continues to trump rent in Southern California’s other major cities. However, leasing space in L.A.’s office, industrial and multifamily properties is a bargain when compared with its Northern California cousins, San Francisco and the Silicon Valley.
The average monthly apartment rent in L.A.’s Westside, Downtown, South Bay and Tri-Cities markets was $1,811 in the fourth quarter, according to data from JLL. It was more expensive than San Diego’s $1,558 a month and Orange County’s $1,753 a month. However, that’s all chump change compared to the average rent in San Francisco: a steep $2,556 a month. It wasn’t much better in the San Jose market, which saw apartment rents average $2,080.
Similar patterns existed in the office market. The average monthly rent for a Class A office in Los Angeles was $3.23 a square foot a month in the fourth quarter, compared to $2.87 in Orange County and $3.14 in San Diego. It paled in comparison to rent in San Francisco, which was $6.01. Rent in the Silicon Valley was only slightly more expensive than it was in L.A., at $3.74.
Industrial rents were actually more expensive in San Diego than they were in L.A. in the fourth quarter, by 11 cents a square foot. Los Angeles and Orange County both averaged 67 cents a square foot for industrial rent. The San Francisco average was $1.03, a touch higher than 97 cents in the Silicon Valley. – Hannah Miet