Los Angeles Apartment Building and Land Investment Sales

Los Angeles has a permanent housing shortage, strong rental demand driven by population density and job growth, and limited new supply due to high construction costs and regulatory barriers. These fundamentals support stable occupancy rates and long-term rent growth for multifamily investors.

Cap rates for LA apartment buildings typically range from 4.0% to 6.5% depending on location, building age, unit count, and rent control status. RSO buildings in prime Westside locations trade at lower cap rates (4.0-5.0%), while value-add properties in emerging neighborhoods can reach 5.5-6.5%.

Los Angeles has two main rent regulation frameworks: the City's RSO (Rent Stabilization Ordinance, for buildings with a certificate of occupancy before October 1978) and statewide AB 1482 (rent caps and just-cause protections for most apartment buildings more than 15 years old). LA County's separate RSTPO applies only in unincorporated county areas. Rent-controlled buildings are valued based on current and projected allowable rent increases, vacancy decontrol potential, and operating expense ratios.

Glen Scher, Filip Niculete, and the LAAA Team at Marcus & Millichap have closed 495+ transactions totaling over $1.55B+ in sales volume since 2012. Our 8 investment professionals, backed by 3 support staff, cover all of Los Angeles County, with particular depth in the San Fernando Valley, Westside, Koreatown, and Hollywood submarkets.

The ULA (United to House LA) transfer tax, also known as Measure ULA, imposes a 4% tax on property sales over $5,400,000 and under $10,900,000, and a 5.5% tax on sales of $10,900,000 or more, within the City of Los Angeles (thresholds effective July 1, 2026, CPI-indexed annually from the original $5,000,000/$10,000,000). This additional cost significantly impacts transaction economics and has led many owners to explore 1031 exchanges, installment sales, or entity-level transfers as alternatives.

The typical marketing period for a well-priced LA apartment building is 60-120 days from listing to accepted offer, with an additional 30-60 day escrow period. Total timeline from listing to closing is usually 3-6 months. Factors affecting timeline include pricing, property condition, rent roll strength, and market conditions.

We are proactive marketers, not reactive. For every listing, we call 100+ probable buyers directly, including 1031 exchange buyers, recent purchasers, and local apartment building owners. Our 36,000+ contact database with 23,500+ active email subscribers instantly exposes your property to thousands of investors and brokers simultaneously, creating competition among buyers. Every listing receives premium placement on CoStar, LoopNet, Crexi, MLS, Redfin, and Marcus & Millichap, averaging 10,000+ views per property.

Return on Equity (ROE) measures how hard your current equity is working. If you bought a building for $500,000 that is now worth $1.5M and generates $50,000/year in cash flow, your ROI appears to be 10%, but your ROE is only 3.33%. Many long-term apartment owners have significant equity earning below-market returns. A 1031 exchange can redeploy that equity into higher-yielding investments, with our clients averaging a 75% increase in net cash flow post-exchange across our 25 documented case studies.

No. We never put for sale signs on apartment buildings and we never hold open houses. Selling multifamily investment properties is fundamentally different from selling single-family homes. The buyer pool is smaller, more targeted, and investor-based. We proactively reach buyers through direct outreach and our 36,000+ contact database. We also minimize disruption to tenants throughout the entire marketing and sale process.

On our on-market multifamily listings from 2019 through mid-2022, sellers achieved an average 97% of list price and about 1 in 5 sold at or above asking, with a median 18 days from listing to open of escrow and 3.5 signed offers per listing. Across all 340 apartment sales since 2012, our final asking price averages 96.7% of the original list price, and our median time from listing to accepted offer is 34 days. These results reflect our proactive marketing approach and deep buyer relationships.