How SoCal's Largest Industrial Buyer is Hunting for Tech Tenants

The LA commercial RE industry is booming, with new developments and creative makeovers aplenty. We'll hear more about the latest trends in the market, from office leasing and real estate investment crowd funding to parking, at Bisnow's Future of Real Estate: Design, Innovation & Tech, tomorrow at 4pm at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood.

Among our speakers will be Rexford Industrial chairman Dick Ziman, who tells us industrial buildings are basically bread-and-butter when it comes to construction. Other than things like ceilings heights and environmental issues, not much has changed since the advent of the concrete tilt-up. Where innovation has taken place, however, is in the uses of buildings and adapting them to modern warehousing and distribution. Landlords are raising roofs and increasing the number of truck wells, he says. Especially in infill areas, Dick sees industrial buildings becoming more office-like with multiple tenants--Rexford has no buildings over 400k SF. As you know, he grew Arden Realty into SoCal's largest office landlord, but he's owned industrial real estate throughout his career.  

One of Rexford's recent acquisitions is 9401 De Soto Ave in Chatsworth. Dick says the company underwrites buildings not only on the feasibility of the one or two existing tenants, but what the value and costs would be in dividing the building into 10 or more spaces for smaller tech users--the guys with the roll-up doors in back, "a small office in front, and maybe some warehouse and assembly in the middle." Since its IPO a year and a half ago, Rexford has increased its size by 80% and nearly doubled its headcount. In 2014, the company was the largest buyer of industrial real estate in SoCal. Join us tomorrow to hear from Dick and the rest of our all-star panelists at Bisnow's Future of Real Estate: Design, Innovation & Tech Summit at the Pacific Design Center in WeHo. It's not too late to sign up here.