131-Unit Apartment Complex Commands $16M

PICO RIVERA, CA-A joint venture of New York's Praedium Group and Hermosa Beach-based Coastline Capital Partners has sold the Rosemead Garden Apartments to a private investor for $16.3 million. The property is a 131-unit complex at 7711 Rosemead Blvd. The Praedium-Coastline joint venture bought the property, which was built in 1973, in April 2004. The JV then renovated 45 units, improved the tennis courts and landscaping and updated the leasing office at the property, which includes 215 parking spaces. Rosemead Garden was 95% occupied at the time of the sale, in which the selling entity was represented by Chris Thompson of Encino-based Investment Real Estate Associates. The buyer was a locally based private investor. Chris Hughes, a principal at Praedium, says the property benefited from economic growth in the City of Pico Rivera and surrounding neighborhoods. In addition, according to Praedium principal Steve Ludwig, the renovations to the complex increased its appeal both to tenants and to prospective buyers, creating a value-added play for Praedium and Coastline Capital Partners.When Praedium and Coastline bought the property in 2004 for $13 million, GlobeSt.com reported that the buyers were attracted to the complex by its high occupancy rate, which was 94% at the time, along with its location within a densely populated area of Los Angeles. Additionally, the Pico Rivera area is currently undergoing an aggressive improvement program that has resulted in the economic growth that Hughes cited. Within blocks of the Rosemead Garden complex, several large new business and retail centers have been developed, including projects with national retailers as anchors. The deal was Coastline's second investment with the Praedium Group, following their March 2003 acquisition of the 170-unit Summer View Apartments in Sherman Oaks.