Benedict Canyon Equities buys two West Hollywood apartment buildings for $30 million
Two Palm Avenue apartment buildings in West Hollywood, with 72 units, sold to Benedict Canyon Equities for nearly $30 million. It is the largest multifamily sale in West Hollywood this year.
By LA This Weekend Team · November 10, 20260 views
Benedict Canyon Equities, a Century City multifamily investment firm, bought two apartment buildings on Palm Avenue in West Hollywood for nearly $30 million, the Los Angeles Business Journal reported. The properties at 884 and 939 Palm Ave. have 72 units combined. The sale is the largest multifamily deal by dollar value in West Hollywood this year, according to CoStar Group data cited in the article.
What to know
- The buildings. 939 Palm Ave. is a four-story building with 42 units, built in 1990. 884 Palm Ave. is a three-story building with 30 units, built in 1989. Both have parking, fitness centers, swimming pools, spas and private decks.
- The location. The buildings sit near the Sunset Strip, Santa Monica Boulevard and the Pacific Design Center, the article notes.
- The seller. A private family investor sold the properties. Calabasas-based brokerage Marcus & Millichap's Tony Azzi and Rabbie Banafsheha of The Azzi Group represented the seller.
- The buyer's side. Azzi, Banafsheha, Arteen Zahiri and Ian Habbestad of The Azzi Group represented the buyer.
- The financing. Jake Vitta, Brian Eisendrath and Cameron Chalfant of IPA Capital Markets arranged acquisition financing for the buyer.
- The renovation plan. Brokers said the buildings require significant renovation, which the article calls a value-add opportunity.
- Occupancy. Units in the area were 94% occupied over the last year, and no new units were delivered last quarter, according to CoStar data cited by the article.
- Rents. Asking rents average more than $3,800 per unit, the same data shows.
- Earlier sales. Smaller West Hollywood sales this year include 733 Huntley Drive, which sold in October for $3.4 million, 939 Larrabee St., which sold for $2.8 million in September, and 1266 N. Flores St., which sold in September for $1.7 million.
What the deal says in the brokers' words
Tony Azzi, one of the brokers, said in a statement:
“West Hollywood consistently experiences high tenant demand driven by limited housing supply, walkability, and access to major employment hubs throughout the Westside and Hollywood. Opportunities to acquire 72 units on Palm Avenue in a single transaction are exceptionally rare and these are irreplaceable assets in a market where new supply is effectively constrained.”
Rabbie Banafsheha described the properties as “generational-quality assets that require significant renovation, creating a compelling value-add opportunity for a proven operator like Benedict Canyon Equities.” He added that Palm Avenue “is widely regarded as one of the premier streets in West Hollywood.”
These statements come from the brokers who worked the deal, so they describe the sale from the seller's and buyer's side. The article does not include a statement from Benedict Canyon Equities or from tenants.
What the numbers say about renting here
The CoStar figures paint a picture of a tight rental market. Occupancy of 94% means few units sit empty, and the report notes that no new units were delivered in the last quarter. Average asking rents above $3,800 per unit come from the same CoStar data, and the article does not compare them with other neighborhoods. Taken together, the figures suggest that owners of older buildings with limited new supply have strong demand to work with.
How the buildings fit the block
The buildings sit near the Sunset Strip, Santa Monica Boulevard and the Pacific Design Center, according to the Los Angeles Business Journal. Rabbie Banafsheha, one of the brokers, called Palm Avenue “widely regarded as one of the premier streets in West Hollywood.” That is the broker’s view, not an independent measure, but it explains how the seller and buyer’s side are pitching the location.
The 939 Palm Ave. building dates from 1990, and 884 Palm Ave. dates from 1989. The brokers’ pitch rests on renovation. They describe the buildings as needing significant work, which is what a value-add buyer looks for. In real estate, a value-add buyer expects to raise a property’s income through renovation or better management. Whether the buyer follows that path here is not described in the reporting.
The amenities listed in the article are parking, fitness centers, swimming pools, spas and private decks. Those are the features renters often look for, and they are the features that a renovation plan would need to protect or upgrade.
The sale also stands out against the rest of West Hollywood’s recent deals. The article lists 733 Huntley Drive, which sold in October for $3.4 million, 939 Larrabee St., which sold for $2.8 million in September, and 1266 N. Flores St., which sold in September for $1.7 million. Each of those is far smaller than the Palm Avenue purchase, which is why the article calls it the largest multifamily sale of the year so far.
Frequently asked questions
How much did the buildings sell for? The two properties sold for nearly $30 million, according to the Los Angeles Business Journal.
How many units are involved? The two buildings have 72 units combined: 42 at 939 Palm Ave. and 30 at 884 Palm Ave.
Who bought the properties? Benedict Canyon Equities, a Century City-based multifamily investment firm, bought them.
Who sold them? A private family investor sold the properties.
Will tenants be affected? The article does not say. It describes the buildings as needing significant renovation, but it does not describe any plans for current tenants.
Our take
An older apartment building in a tight market is the kind of property that changes hands often and sometimes changes quickly afterward. The buyer's plan is renovation, and that can mean better buildings for future renters and higher rents for current ones. Neither outcome is confirmed by the reporting. What is clear is that West Hollywood has little new supply, high occupancy and rents that already sit above $3,800 on average.
Are you a renter or a neighbor on Palm Avenue? Tell us in the comments what you have seen, and what you would want a new owner to know.
Sources
File photo: 884 Palm Avenue in West Hollywood, by Glenn Cooley, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
What do you think? Tell us in the comments below, or post about it on the community board.
LA This Weekend Team