Everyone is watching the Elon Musk and SpaceX story.
I wanted to know who was buying the Real Estate around them.
So I mapped $4.3 billion of commercial property sales from 2023 through 2026 across Hawthorne, El Segundo, Torrance, Gardena, Carson and Compton.
The biggest number was industrial.
Industrial and flex properties accounted for approximately $1.97 billion—about 46% of the entire dataset.
That was far more than any other property type:
- Industrial and flex: $1.97 billion
- Multifamily: $734 million
- Retail: $579 million
- Office: $371 million
- Land: $274 million
The rocket companies mostly lease
SpaceX is the anchor of this area.
Varda Space leased about 205,000 square feet in El Segundo.
Neros leased around 252,000 square feet in Torrance.
Anduril announced plans for a 1.18-million-square-foot manufacturing campus in Long Beach.
Many aerospace and defense companies lease their facilities.
For Brokers and Investors - Here are a list of buyers:
Clarion Partners made the biggest move in the selected transactions.
It paid approximately $412 million for a Compton industrial portfolio previously owned by LACERA, the Los Angeles County pension system.
Lift Partners acquired more than $86 million of Torrance industrial properties across multiple deals.
Universal Logistics appeared in approximately $80 million of purchases.
Access Services accounted for approximately $70 million.
GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, appeared in a $55 million transaction.
EQT Exeter also purchased the 76,007-square-foot Frito-Lay facility in Torrance for $51.5 million.
These buyers are not aerospace companies. They are investment managers and sovereign capital buying properties around one of Southern California’s strongest manufacturing corridors.
This is positive news for the South Bay.
The sellers :
LACERA sold the $412 million Compton portfolio.
Link Logistics, Blackstone’s industrial platform, appeared in approximately $202 million of selected sales.
Continental Development accounted for approximately $96 million.
Terreno Realty appeared in approximately $91 million.
Yellow Corporation’s bankruptcy pushed another $80 million of commercial property into the market.
It shows capital moving.
Pension funds, REITs and distressed operators are selling selected properties.
Private funds, logistics companies and sovereign investors are buying.
1. Industrial is the main story
Industrial and flex properties represented approximately 46% of the $4.3 billion mapped.
Multifamily was a distant second at $734 million.
The market is putting far more money into factories, warehouses and flex buildings than into office properties.
Aerospace, defense, manufacturing and logistics companies need Land and Buildings.
2. SpaceX is the big name, not the entire market
SpaceX alone is not increasing every property value.
The South Bay always was an aerospace and industrial market.
It has limited vacant land, major freeway access, close to two ports and LAX, and a manufacturing workforce.
3. Investors are buying
The aerospace companies build rockets, drones, satellites and defense systems.
The real estate investors own the facilities where that work happens.
If the companies continue leasing, the property owners receive the rent and retain the long-term land value. They do not need to predict which rocket or defense company ultimately wins.
They are betting that the South Bay remains one of the places where the industry must operate.
4. Building price and land price tell different stories
The Frito-Lay property sold for approximately $678 per building square foot, but about $122 per land square foot.
Ducommun’s Carson factory traded for approximately $466 per building square foot and $194 per land square foot.
The Rexford/Susana properties traded around $455 per building square foot and approximately $245 per land square foot.
I do not think the lesson is simply to buy anything near SpaceX.
The properties still need to work as real estate.
The rent must support the price. The building must serve modern tenants.
The land must have enough value to protect the downside.
Most importantly the Location is the Key.
I will watch this corridor closely.
I am going to continue to track sale-leasebacks where established high credit tenants want to sell and lease back.
The most interesting opportunity might be an ordinary factory five or ten miles away that can serve the next aerospace supplier, logistics company or Ai manufacturer entering the South Bay.
Most people are looking at the SpaceX Stock price which at the time I am writing this is making a new 52 week low at $115. Other investors are playing the real estate surrounding them.
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Send OMs to David@AtlasBrief.La