A LA Multifamily success story in Downtown Los Angeles
Historic 60-Unit DTLA Building Sold for $14.75M
424 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90013
The Judson, a historic 60-unit building in Downtown Los Angeles, sold for $14.75M after a strategic relaunch and buyer repositioning effort.
Offering Price
$14,750,000
City
Downtown Los Angeles
Current CAP
7.05%
Price per unit
$245,833
Lot Size
9,148 SF
The Judson
Offering Price
$14,750,000
Number of Units
60 Units
Bldg. Size
74,624 SF SF
Price per Foot
$198
Year Built
1906 & 2006
Market CAP
7.63%
Zoning
LAC4
Background
Historic buildings in Downtown Los Angeles are easy to admire and harder to underwrite.
The Judson was one of those assets. It had scale, architecture, Mills Act benefits, RSO exemption, and a location in one of the city’s most recognizable historic corridors. It also sat in a submarket where buyer perception has been uneven.
Before our involvement, The Judson had been listed with another experienced multifamily team with the goal of achieving a premium outcome. The asset was strong, but activity was limited. Ownership wanted a relaunch that did not simply bring the building back to market. They needed the market to understand the asset differently.
The approach was built around presentation, narrative, and buyer behavior. Not in a flashy way. In a disciplined way. For a building like The Judson, the marketing needed to reflect the quality of the asset and give serious buyers a reason to re-engage.
Challenge
Downtown Los Angeles remains one of the most debated multifamily submarkets in the country.
Higher interest rates, more conservative underwriting, and continued questions around the pace of Downtown’s recovery have made many investors cautious. The issue was not whether The Judson was a quality asset. The issue was how to get buyers to separate the building’s actual fundamentals from broader submarket perception.
We built a fully custom marketing package centered on the history of the building and the district it anchors. The wordmark was derived from original tile lettering at the entry. The emblem pulled from Beaux Arts detailing found throughout the façade and lobby. The goal was to create an identity that felt authentic, true to the building’s period, and credible to serious buyers.
Result
The relaunch attracted an international buyer who was willing to underwrite The Judson based on its income, historic character, Mills Act benefits, RSO exemption, and long-term position in Downtown Los Angeles. The property closed at $14,750,000.
The transaction was positioned as the first adaptive reuse apartment sale in Downtown Los Angeles in nearly 3 years, based on the market review available at the time. Most multifamily trades in DTLA during that period had been either new construction or affordable housing assets, making The Judson a distinct sale within the submarket.
In a market where Downtown perception continues to shape buyer behavior, the result reinforced a simple point. Historic assets still need the right buyer, but they also need to be presented with the level of clarity and discipline the asset deserves.
View our closed sales page for a broader look at recent Los Angeles multifamily transactions and how similar assets have moved through the market.
