Apartment giant Greystar along with development firm Cityview have completed the sale of a Mountain View, California, multifamily and retail property in the area’s largest transaction in nearly five years.
The deal, valued at $101.1 million, according to CoStar data, involved a single property across three addresses on a corner lot in downtown Mountain View. The multifamily property, Elan Mountain View located at 1030 Castro St., consists of 164 units ranging from studios to three bedrooms. The development sits less than a mile from the Mountain View Caltrain station and the convergence of three highways providing access to San Jose, San Francisco, and the rest of the peninsula.
Greystar and Cityview broke ground on Elan in May 2016 and construction was completed in June 2018. Essex Property Trust has now purchased the property for roughly $405 per square foot, according to CoStar data.
“The strong rental demand in Mountain View, along with the uniqueness of this asset and its prime location provided a desirable disposition environment to drive pricing,” Sean Burton, Cityview’s chief executive, told CoStar News. “We were very happy with the level of market engagement and based on where the bidding ended up, we thought it was the right time to transact.”
Average asking rents at Elan have risen 3% over the past year, outperforming the overall market by roughly 100 basis points, to nearly $4,200. The property currently maintains a 6.5% vacancy rate, according to CoStar data.
Apartments at Elan include smart thermostats, keyless entry, and full-sized washers and dryers. Select units include private patios and balconies. The property also offers 164 storage units, secured access parking, a fitness center, a two-level club room with a billiards table, an edible garden and a private business center. Downtown Mountain View is home to more than 50 restaurants, bars and shops, as well as more than 1 million square feet of corporate tenancy.
The other two addresses included in the deal, 801 W El Camino Real and 1032-1044 Castro St., comprise roughly 11,000 square feet of occupied retail space. Current tenants include an international market, alterations services, a hair salon and a macaroon bakery.
Charleston, South Carolina-based Greystar is the largest apartment owner, operator and developer in the county according to rankings by the National Multifamily Housing Council. The company operates more than $300 billion in real estate assets across 249 global markets accounting for more than 893,000 units with offices in the Americas, Europe and Asia.
Cityview is a vertically integrated real estate investment and development firm in Los Angeles focused on opportunistic and value-add multifamily properties. Since its founding in 2003, the company has participated in more than 130 projects.
