Amenitized Buildings Flood into Koreatown

LOS ANGELES—Koreatown is on fire. Value-add investors are scooping up every last opportunity in the submarket since TruAmerica Multifamily‘s historic $283 million purchase of the Vermont last year, and now, developers are raising the bar. Century West Partners is set to deliver K2LA, which they are calling the most amentizied multifamily property in the submarket. The 476-unit mixed-use complex will be complete in March of 2016, with the second phase of units delivered this month.

“Our vision for our projects in Koreatown is to develop the most amenity rich, transit oriented apartment communities there,” Steve Fifield, co-founder and principal of Century West Partners, tells GlobeSt.com. “”Until recently, Koreatown was one of the best kept secrets in Los Angeles. It has three times the population of downtown LA and a host of restaurants, clubs and spas. Yet Century West and JH Snyder are the only developers to add significant buildings to this vibrant submarket in the last seven years. Like downtown LA, Koreatown has attracted a lot of millennials, Hipsters and now generation Z renters who want easy access to all the amenities. With the subway two blocks away, you can even give up your car if you work in the mid Wilshire, Hollywood or downtown markets. And yes, we compete for renters with those same markets.”