Sales of large multifamily properties are relatively rare in San Diego, where apartment rents have been steadily rising for the past decade and escalating demand continues to outstrip supply amid historically limited construction in the most popular neighborhoods.
That’s especially the case in the high-traffic Mission Valley enclave, located in the city’s geographic center and where nearly every major freeway in the San Diego region passes through at some point. For its rarity and nearly $300 million price, the sale of a two-property apartment portfolio — consisting of buildings known as Bradbury and Felix within a complex called The Society — garnered a 2023 CoStar Impact Award for the sale/acquisition of the year in San Diego, as judged by a panel of local real estate professionals.
The buildings were completed in 2021 and total 455 units at 310 and 610 Del Sol Drive North. Developer North America Sekisui House sold the buildings to Pacific Life Insurance for approximately $296.5 million in one of the San Diego region’s largest apartment deals of 2022 by total price, according to CoStar and public data.
Developer Holland Partner Group, the original project partner with Sekisui House, retained a minority stake in the buildings. Brokers at Walker & Dunlap, which represented the buyer and seller, said the sale closed in October 2022. That was a time when challenging market conditions, including rising interest rates, were beginning to cut into sales transactions locally and nationwide.
Brokers said the deal for The Society could set new price benchmarks for Mission Valley. The neighborhood has high barriers to entry for apartment builders, including sometimes prohibitive costs for the scarce land still available after decades of development by retail, office and residential builders.
Apartments are expected to be in increasing demand in coming years in Mission Valley, with several upcoming projects including Hines’ mixed-use redevelopment of Riverwalk golf course and San Diego State University’s mixed-use satellite campus being built on the former site of the stadium that once housed the NFL’s Chargers.
About the Deal: Pacific Life Insurance acquired two apartment buildings in a complex known as The Society, with 455 units completed in 2021, for approximately $296.5 million. The seller was North American Sekisui House, the original developer with Holland Partner Group.
What the Judges Said: Liza Strom, executive vice president at brokerage Strom Commercial Real Estate, called the deal “a breakthrough transaction” that demonstrated the core value of the city’s central and southern suburban neighborhoods. “This deal made its mark trading as one of only two new-construction assets in the Mission Valley submarket over the last decade,” Strom said.
They Made It Happen: The buyer and seller were represented by Hunter Combs, Blake Rogers, Javier Rivera, Mark Grace, John Montakab, Justin Nelson, Jeff Burns and Alexandra Caniglia of brokerage Walker & Dunlop.