Cityview Sold More Than $180M In Assets Last Month, As SoCal Multifamily Heats Up
Cityview ended 2019 selling $180M worth of multifamily assets in Southern California.
The Los Angeles-based multifamily investment firm announced the sale of three multifamily properties totaling 760 units in December.
Last month, Cityview sold Mira, a 174-unit multifamily community in the Warner Center development in the San Fernando Valley, to Virtu Investments for $70.5M in an opportunity zone deal.
The property at 21425 Vanowen St. is under construction and slated for completion later this year.
Cityview then sold its interest in The Pearl on Wilshire in the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles to Hankey Investment Co. for an undisclosed price. Cityview and Hankey co-owned the property. Cityview sold 65% of the equity for an undisclosed price.
The Pearl, which opened in 2018, is a 346-unit mixed-use development at 687 South Hobart Blvd. The property is a mix of studio, one- and two-bedrooms above 8,300 SF of ground-floor retail. Retail tenants include Orangetheory Fitness, Alchemist Coffee Project and The Carving Board.
IPA's Greg Harris represented Cityview in the Pearl transaction.
Cityview also closed on Baker Block, a 240-unit multifamily property in Costa Mesa, to Baker Block Associates for $113.5M.
Cityview officials said the the 181K SF property, which was completed in 2017 at 125 Baker St. East, is one of the highest price-per-unit sales ever recorded for a mid-rise multifamily rental product in Orange County.
Moran & Co.'s Tom Moran Jr. represented Cityview in the transaction.
“Baker Block exceeded our lease-up expectations and achieved one of the highest per-unit sale prices in the area," Cityview CEO Sean Burton said in a news release. "After leasing the project we saw significant investor interest in the market, which helped inform our decision to sell.”
The sale of the properties highlight the demand for new multifamily assets in the Los Angeles and Orange County markets, a Cityview executive said.
With California's AB 1482 coming into effect in the new year, properties less than 15 years old are not subject to the new rent cap law. AB 1482 or the Tenant Protection Act of 2019, caps the amount landlords can hike rent at 5% plus inflation, and makes it harder to evict tenants.
In an email to Bisnow, Cityview Managing Director Tony Cardoza said The Pearl and Baker Block assets received more than 25 offers.
"We are seeing deep interest in the market for quality multifamily product in desirable West Coast urban locations," Cardoza wrote.
Cardoza said disposing of the assets was part of the company's overall business plan.
"These assets were sold pursuant to the strategic business plan established at the acquisition of each asset," Cardoza wrote.
"The Pearl and Baker Block were both part of an opportunistic fund ..." he said. "After successful lease-ups of each asset, Cityview sold Baker Block for one of the highest price-per-unit sales for mid-rise multifamily rental product in Orange County and sold The Pearl for a record-breaking price per square foot in Koreatown."
CORRECTION, Jan. 2, 3:10 P.M. PT: A previous version of this story mischaracterized the sale of The Pearl and its acquisition price. The story has been updated.
