Harbor Group International Buys Koreatown's The Vermont
TruAmerica Multifamily has sold its Koreatown apartment complex, The Vermont, for an undisclosed price to Virginia-based investor Harbor Group International.
The property’s two towers hold 464 apartment units and 31K SF of retail space overlooking the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and Vermont Avenue and the Metro D Line subway station.
“The Vermont received interest from around the globe by investors that recognized the compelling cost basis versus new construction, the prospects for accretive additional property upgrades and the strong support for above national average rent growth driven by the numerous ‘knowledge’ based employment centers that surround the asset,” Cushman & Wakefield Capital Markets Group Executive Vice Chair Marc Renaud said in a statement.
Multifamily's appeal to CRE investors boomed during the pandemic, as rent growth soared. More recently, that atmospheric rent growth has tapered off and resumed something closer to the seasonal ebb and flow that it had pre-pandemic. Last month, the national median asking rent still rose 7.8% compared to October 2021.
“Through this acquisition and investment, we see a significant value-add opportunity, positioning the community to better compete with newer, Class-A properties in the neighborhood,” HGI Managing Director Greg Heller said in a statement.
HGI has invested more than $1B in properties on the West Coast in the last 12 months, according to the company. That includes the July purchase of three multifamily buildings in Long Beach for $180M from Sares Regis Group.
The Vermont, developed by JH Snyder, opened in 2014 and sold that same year to TruAmerica and Capri Capital Partners for $283M, or nearly $610K per unit.
