Pacific Property Closes $24M Apartment Buy

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, CA-A joint venture of Pacific Property Co. of Palo Alto and GMAC Commercial Mortgage has acquired two apartment complexes totaling 90 units for $24.2 million, adding to a growing portfolio of L.A. area multifamily assets for the Palo Alto firm. The two complexes are the 57-unit Ocean View and the 33 unit Ocean Crest, which sit adjacent to each other at the intersection of Ocean Crest Drive and Hawthorne Boulevard on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean.The JV plans $1.5 million in upgrades to the properties, according to Rory Gardner, Pacific's managing director. Gardner says the new owners will change the names of both properties and will complete comprehensive interior and exterior renovations. Gardner calls the transaction "the rarest of opportunities" to acquire coastal assets in a prime location with rent upside potential through renovations and improved management. The Pacific-GMAC venture acquired the two properties, each of which is a one-building complex, from a Los Angeles-based private investor.Gardner says that in addition to the location and the potential upside it offers, the buyers were attracted by the large floor plans, unobstructed ocean views and features like the full size washers and dryers in each apartment. The units average 1,140 sf.Constructed in 1970 and 1973, Ocean Crest and Ocean View were 99% occupied at the time of the sale. Both properties include swimming pools, elevators, and covered parking. Pacific was represented by Tony Solomon of ReMax Commercial in West Los Angeles in the deal, with the seller represented by Ron Losch of Coldwell Banker. The new owners have named Stratus Real Estate to manage both properties.