Asking rents for apartments in the San Fernando Valley continued to soar in the second quarter, rising an average 7.4 percent in the past year, according to a report just released by RealFacts, a tracking service for the multifamily market. As of the second quarter of 2006, rental rates in the San Fernando Valley averaged $1,498 a month, up from $1,395 per month in the second quarter of 2005, the report data revealed. The largest increases were seen in two-bedroom, one-bath units, where rents rose 10.8 percent. On average, rents for one-bedroom, one-bath units rose 7.2 percent. The submarket seeing the largest rent increases was Woodland Hills, where asking rents rose 10.7 percent year over year to $1,644 a month. Studio City saw the smallest rent increases, 1.5 percent on the year over year basis to $1,682 a month, followed by Valencia where rents rose just 2.3 percent to an average $1,624 per month. Thousand Oaks also experienced double digit rent increases. Rents in that community rose an average 10.5 percent to $1,658. As of the second quarter, the community with the lowest average rents was Reseda, where monthly rates averaged $1,048. (Rental rate averages include units ranging from studios to four-bedroom apartments. RealFacts does not survey properties with fewer than 100 units.) Perhaps not surprisingly, multifamily sales have decreased as interest rates and property prices have risen. According to RealFacts, just three properties changed hands so far in 2006, compared to nine in 2005 and 12 in 2004. (Here again, RealFacts data is limited to large complexes with at least 100 units). The average price per square foot for 2006 so far was $275.31 compared to an average per square foot price of $224.40 for Valley multifamily sales in 2005. Woodland Hills Sale A 51,396-square-foot office building in Woodland Hills has sold for $9.5 million. The property, at 21731 Ventura Blvd., sold to Beverly Hills-based developer Black Equities Group. Roger L. Beck, a broker with Colliers International, represented the buyer. Jeff Resnick, a broker with First Property, represented the seller, Woodland Park Development Co. Valley Village Sale A Valley Village shopping center has been sold for $5,050,000. The buyer, Agora Realty & Management Inc., is the development company that built Plaza del Valle and is currently renovating other shopping center properties in the Valley. The 41,000-square-foot center, Bellingham Valley Plaza, at 6418-6446 Bellingham St., was built in 1955. Agora plans to renovate it to accommodate retail and office tenants. “This is a great opportunity to restore and enhance the utility of a centrally located building,” said Cary Lefton of Agora. Yubin Tao, Collin Plume and Warren Berzack at Investment Real Estate Associates, represented Agora in the transaction. The seller, a private investor, was represented by Chuck LeRoy with Anchor Management Services. Cleaning Sylmar Tony Torres, the owner of B & W; Towing in Pacoima, has acquired an industrial site in Sylmar. The 66,000-square-foot parcel, which includes 21,000 square feet of buildings at 13151 San Fernando Road, sold for $3.7 million. Torres said he hopes to rehab the site, which he called a “blight,” but has not yet determined how he will use it. “We’re trying to decide what would be best at this point,” said Torres, who has been active in improvement projects in Pacoima. “The first thing we want to do is clean it up.” George Stavaris, a broker with Colliers International, represented Torres. Adam Comora, a broker with Delphi Business Properties, represented the seller, a private investor. D & J; Expands The principals of D & J; Rock Products Inc., a supplier of import automotive engine parts, have acquired a 19,500-square-foot facility in Chatsworth to expand their plant capacity. The property, at 8960 Lurline St., sold for $2.9 million. It includes about an acre of land. D & J;, currently located in Pacoima, expects to employ 20 people at the Chatsworth site. David Hoffberg, a broker with Delphi Business Properties Inc., represented the buyer and seller, Container Components. Correction & Omissions Due to incorrect information supplied by Lee & Associates-LA North/Ventura in a press release announcing the sale of a 51,000-square-foot Newbury Park building (Real Estate Column, July 17) the brokers representing the seller in the transaction were misidentified. Lee Black, with Newmark Knight Frank, represented the seller in the transaction, Newbury Park Associates. Jim McDonald with Group100 represented the buyer, B-M Properties, along with Bob Flink and Bob Shafer, both with Lee & Associates-LA North/Ventura. In the same issue, one of the brokers involved in the sale of Warner Business Park East in Canoga Park was omitted from the item. Scott Silverstein, a broker with Lee & Associates LA North/Ventura, represented the seller, a private investor.
