Hot West OC Industrial

Now's the time to buy industrial--in the right SoCal markets, CT Realty Investors' Carter Ewing says. West Orange County's a good submarket to be in, if you can get in, he says. (Seems like everything in Southern California has a VIP list.)

Carter tells us that West OC is a desirable industrial market because of its port proximity, highly skilled work force and corporate HQs--while at the same time, the submarket's supply constrained. (Everybody wants to be there and there's not enough room, it's like Elton John's Oscar party.) "These dynamics are driving value growth for well-located, functional product," he says. Recently CT Realty Investors acquired the 210k SF 12131 Western Ave in Garden Grove for $26M from a family trust. The property is in the master-planned Garden Grove Business Center near the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

Direct marketing company Money Mailer LLC leases the entire facility and has used the property as its corporate HQ since 2007. The cross-dock property offers about 50k SF of two-story, open-plan office space and 160k SF of manufacturing, warehouse and distribution space. The property is also rail served by Union Pacific and includes upgraded power. Colliers International EVP Clyde Stauff of that firm's Irvine office and Voit SVPs Michael Hartel and Mike Bouma, both of that firm's Irvine office, repped the seller, while CT repped itself. The building is the ninth industrial acquisition for CT Realty in 2013.