Top multifamily sale prices drop during 2023 in LA market

Top prices for Los Angeles multifamily properties in 2023 couldn’t compare with the previous year. A $125 million sale topped the 2023 list, about four times less than the $504 million trade which led the 2022 parade of priciest multifamily deals.

Multifamily headlines didn’t bring in much cheer during the year. The average sales price for a residential unit in Los Angeles dropped by 19.4 percent, according to a NAI Capital study released in April.

Eric Sussman, professor at the UCLA Ziman Center for Real Estate, placed most of the blame for the bearish market on skyrocketing interest rates.

“It really put a kibosh on deals,” Sussman said. “It was quicksand last year. It was dead while everyone tried to figure out interest rates, politics and the economy.”

But transactions still happened in Los Angeles. Here are 10 of the year’s priciest multifamily deals. 

The Province | San Gabriel | $125 million

In June, Chateau Group closed a deal to sell an unfinished project in San Gabriel, about 11 miles east of Downtown Los Angeles. The buyer was an LLC named UP Province Holding.  The price per unit amounted to $940,000.

Located on 400 West Valley Boulevard, The Province had been pitched as a development offering retail and 133 residential units for people described as active adults in a marketing brochure. Floor plans ranged from 484 square feet for a studio to 1,800 square feet for a three-bedroom unit. 

Angelene Apartments | West Hollywood | $112 million

In March, Olympus Property acquired a 179-unit multifamily listing  from JPMorgan Asset Management for about $628,000 per unit.

JPMorgan acquired it for about $125 million in 2020. Located at 915 North La Brea Avenue, Angelene’s floor plans range from 579 square feet to 1,351 square feet in one- to three-bedroom units, according to Multi-Housing News.

IMT Summerset Village | Chatsworth | $106.65 million  

In October, Equity Residential, Los Angeles’ biggest landlord, sold a 280-unit building to IMT Residential for about $381,000 per door. Located at 11450 Poema Place, IMT Summerset Village had been owned by Equity Residential for more than 25 years. Both the land and the structures, built in 1986, cost the company about $26.3 million, according to SEC filings. 

The Enclave at Warner Center Apartments | Canoga Park | $106.65 million

Also in October, MG Properties sold a 195-residence building for $597,000 per unit.  The buyer was undisclosed. 

Located at 6710 Variel Avenue, Enclave at Warner Center Apartments lists units such as a 632-square-foot one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment with prices that start at $2,098, according to the building’s website. Prices for a 1,150-square-foot two-bed, two-bath unit start at $2,917.

Oxford Park | Los Angeles | $106.4 million

Located a few miles away from the campus of the University of Southern California, Oxford Park, a senior housing community located at 1920 South Oxford Avenue, was part of a portfolio of affordable housing buildings purchased by Standard Communities. 

The affordable housing investor and developer acquired a total of 407 units in Los Angeles County during September for $261,400 per unit. The seller was Goldrich Kest. Almost all of the other buildings in the portfolio catered to senior tenants. 

Cathay Manor Apartments | Los Angeles | $97 million

New York-based affordable housing developer Capital Realty Group acquired in June the 15-story Cathay Manor Apartments located at 600 North Broadway in Los Angeles’ Chinatown. 

An entity called Chinese Committee on Aging Housing Corporation, which is linked to landlord Don Toy, sold the 273-unit building for $355,300 per unit. In March 2022, Cathay Manor Apartments was the site of protests where tenants protested the building’s slum-like conditions.

3907-3943 Flower Drive | Los Angeles | $94.2 million

In January, Ventus Group sold 32 units to Landmark Properties for $2.94 million per unit. 

The trade came a year after Ventus floated several development plans for its holdings on Flower Drive, located in the University Park campus for USC.  One plan was for a 252-room hotel. This 2020 plan was opposed by neighborhood groups.  Another plan consisted of building 435 apartments, which would offer student housing and affordable housing.

Providence Gardens Apartments | Long Beach | $75 million

In September, Las Palmas Foundation traded the 200-unit Providence Gardens Apartments to Redwood Housing for $375,000 per unit. Located at 1011 Pine Avenue in Downtown Long Beach, the 13-story Providence Garden was designated as a Section 8 senior housing development, according to a statement from Redwood. It went through a round of renovations in 2011.

Redwood plans a $200 million renovation, which includes new elevator cabs and an onsite wellness center. The upgrade was scheduled for completion in Spring 2024.

Portofino Townhomes | Wilmington | $67.5 million

Open Path Investments acquired a 200-unit compound located at 1625 Pacific Coast Highway for $337,500 per unit. 

The seller was Virtu Investments, which acquired Portofino in 2017. The Marin County-headquartered Virtu made news in 2023 for partnering with Archway Investments to acquire a 190-unit apartment complex in San Jose for $74 million. 

Westside Villas Apartments | Los Angeles | $66.1 million

In March, Xenon Investments acquired a 113-unit building located at 2245 South Beverly Glen Boulevard for about $585,000 per unit.  The seller was Equity Residential. 

Xenon used proceeds from sales of smaller multifamily assets throughout the Los Angeles area to complete the purchase on Beverly Glen prior to the implementation of the Measure ULA transfer tax, according to media reports. 

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