Five Apartment Communities Sell for Roughly $250 Million or More in 2024

Following record-setting sales in 2021 and 2022, investments in U.S. apartments plummeted in 2023 amid the rising cost of debt and economic uncertainty. However, sales picked back up in 2024. During the year, five apartment communities changed hands for roughly $250 million or more.

A total of 5,700 apartment properties changed hands across the U.S. at a value of nearly $146 billion during 2024, according to data from MSCI Real Capital Analytics. The overall sales volume in 2024 was up 22% year-over-year, but well below the record-setting sales that averaged $332 billion per year in 2021 and 2022, when a total of about 25,000 properties changed hands as the result of pent-up demand following the onset of the pandemic.

Recent activity was also below the $169 billion annual average logged during the five years leading up to the pandemic (2015-2019). The average price per unit was up 3.8% year-over-year, registering at $211,474 in 2024. While that was one of the lowest levels since 2020, it was well above the per unit pricing from 2015 to 2019 which averaged $151,000. Meanwhile, cap rates for apartment transactions in 2024 were up 24 basis points (bps) year-over-year, averaging 5.57%. That was the highest cap rate in eight years. Still, apartment cap rates during 2024 remained the lowest among major property types, keeping the asset class an attractive commercial real estate investment.

The five largest single-asset market-rate apartment transactions during 2024 sold for roughly $250 million or more, with all of these occurring along the East and West coasts.

20 Exchange Place

The largest single-asset apartment transaction during 2024 was the sale of 20 Exchange Place in New York. New York-based The Dermot Company partnered with Dutch pension fund service provider PGGM to acquire the asset in Manhattan’s Financial District. A partnership led by New York City-based developer DTH Capital sold the 57-story building with 767 units in July. The building, which traded for $370 million or roughly $482,400 per unit, was built in 1931 as the headquarters of City Bank-Farmers Trust, the predecessor of Citigroup. DTH Capital purchased the building in mid-2004 for $155 million and started converting the property into apartments. The conversion was done in three phases and took approximately a decade to complete. The new owners are planning to upgrade the building’s amenities and unit finishes. Amenities include 24/7 concierge service, a rooftop terrace with a sundeck, a fitness center, and a resident’s lounge with co-working space and gaming tables.

Parkside Esterra Park

In November, San Jose-based Lakevision Capital purchased Parkside Esterra Park in the Seattle market from a partnership between Daiwa House Texas and a Texas-based group of investors previously associated with Lincoln Property Co. Residential, now rebranded as Willow Bridge Property Co. The Parkside Esterra Park community sold for nearly $286 million, ranking as the second-largest apartment transaction in the U.S. during 2024. The sale price for the 664-unit project, which completed in 2021, came to roughly $434,000 per unit. The nearly five-acre property sits off Northeast Turing Street in Redmond and is part of the 28-acre mixed-use Esterra Park master-planned community near Microsoft’s headquarters. The four-building apartment project with five- to eight floors features two rooftop decks, lounge, game room, fitness center, electric car charging stations, private work-from-home spaces, pet wash station and pet lounge.

The Aire

The third-largest apartment transaction to take place in the nation during 2024 was the sale of an asset in the New York market. The Aire high-rise apartment building on Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan’s Upper West Side traded hands in early February. New York-based developer Gotham Organization and Washington, DC-based private-equity firm Carlyle Group purchased the 310-unit building for $265 million or roughly $854,800 per unit. The seller, New York-based A&R Kalimian Realty, completed construction on the 43-story tower in 2010. Community amenities include a 24-hour attended concierge lobby, party and event deck, fitness center with yoga room, indoor and outdoor children’s play areas, two private sound-proof rehearsal spaces, one with a Steinway baby grand piano.

Hillsdale Garden

Manhattan Beach, CA-based Ethos Real Estate purchased the 697-unit Hillsdale Garden apartments in the San Fransisco market in October from San Mateo, CA-based Essex Property Trust. The property on more than 30 acres at 3421 Edison St. in San Mateo within the Central San Mateo County submarket traded for roughly $252.4 million, the nation’s fourth-largest apartment transaction last year. The sales price came to about $362,100 per door. The community previously traded hands in 2006 for $97.3 million. Ethos, in partnership with The Vistria Group, plans to convert the garden-style community into affordable housing for households earning at or below 80% of the area median income. The development, which completed in 1948, features a fitness center, playground, picnic area, dog park and a pool.

The Royce Park Place

Ranking as the fifth-largest apartment transaction in the nation during 2024 was the sale of The Royce Park Place in the Anaheim market. In December, Newport Beach-based Sares Regis Group sold the 520-unit community to MetLife. The five-story apartment community sits on five acres off Michelson Drive in South Irvine. The transaction closed for approximately $247.5 million or about $476,000 per door. Sares Regis completed construction on the development in 2018. Apartment amenities include two rooftop clubrooms with full kitchens, fitness center, 18-hole golf simulator, conference center and pet spa.