Luxe rentals ramp up in suburban Glendale

A couple of projects have brought luxe rental prices to Glendale, a suburban city where
rents have been relatively reasonable for the pricey Los Angeles market.

Median Glendale rents are about $2,100 for a one-bedroom apartment, a figure near the California state median, according to research from Zumper. But two Glendale projects offer prices on par with Laguna Beach, the Los Angeles/Orange County market’s most expensive town, where the median rent for a studio is $3,000 and a two-bedroom costs $5,925.

The newest entry on Glendale’s luxe scene is the adaptive reuse project Arista Glendale, a former office building located at 520 North Central Avenue. It opened for residential leasing in August, with its most expensive penthouse priced at $11,000. The unit is located at the top of the eight-story building.

An interior of a unit at the Arista Glendale (Arista Glendale)

Arista Glendale’s rents range from $3,950 to $6,335 for two bedrooms and two baths, $6,205 to $7,005 for three bedrooms and three baths to $6,775 to $10,900 for the penthouses in the 53-unit building.

About a mile away, The Americana at Brand Luxury Apartments, developed by Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso, currently is leasing a studio for $3,300 a month and a two-bedroom for $5,600 per month. In mid-December, it will offer a three-bedroom apartment for $12,000, according to the Americana website.

When Caruso unveiled the Americana at Brand’s apartments in 2008, he promised luxury living. The Americana offers amenities such as concierge, private residential elevators and an onsite car wash.

While Glendale may not have the cachet of Beverly Hills, an Arista Glendale statement said well-to-do people are willing to give luxury living in Glendale a chance.

The first phase of Arista’s project to transform a former office building into high-end apartments is more than 70 percent leased. Developed and owned by Adept and Octane Group, both headquartered in Pasadena, Arista Glendale offers hardwood flooring in some units, as well as floor-to-ceiling windows. Arista Glendale also offers a fitness center and a park-like green space. The developers will equip the building’s parking spaces with EV chargers, said Greg McLemore, Octane Group’s chief executive officer.

He estimated 80 percent of Arista Glendale residents were living in Glendale before moving into the building. “They’re looking for highrise luxury in the city,” McLemore said. About 20 percent of Arista Glendale’s residents are from out-of-state. The development’s residents work in the entertainment industry, tech and are small-business owners.

Octane Group developed rentals rather than condos because of market conditions, according to McLemore, particularly as Interest rates shot up in the months before the project started leasing. Also, McLemore and his colleagues believed there was stronger demand for rentals in Glendale.

A second phase of Arista Glendale will provide luxe rentals delivered in spring 2023.

Elsewhere in Glendale, Merlone Geier has submitted plans to develop a 682-unit complex at a former Sears retail site. Media reports have not confirmed pricing for the planned units. Another recent adaptive reuse project in Glendale includes senior housing to be built on a former medical building, located about a mile away from Arista Glendale.

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