The buyer, Villa Escondido LLC, has shelled out $2.5 million forthe property, known as 44th Street. Encompassing 21,120 sf, thecomplex houses all two-bedroom, one-bath units encompassing 880 sfeach. It stands at 3215 44th St., within the City HeightsRedevelopment Zone and in close proximity to some new schools, aretail center and a community park.

Steve Huffman and Jules Arthur of the local office of Hendricks& Partners acted on behalf of the seller, Grey Eagle Trust ofValley Center, and locally based Villa Escondido LLC.

Condo conversions such as the one planned for the 44th Streetcomplex continue to be a popular trend in the metro region, due toa variety of factors including the high cost of new constructionand the soaring prices of single-family homes. New home prices haverisen 11.4% to $487,935, while the median price in the resalemarket should increase by 16.5% to $408,010, according to amid-year forecast published by the Los Angeles Economic DevelopmentCorp.