Month: November 2020

Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson and 4820 Alla Road (Getty, Del Rey Campus) Even companies thriving during the pandemic are cutting office space. That’s true in Los Angeles, where video game developer Electronic Arts has left its 100,000-square-foot space in Playa Vista to ink a long-term lease for 58,000 square feet in Del Rey. The…

(iStock) Upending a long-standing norm, it’s now cheaper to rent an apartment in Los Angeles County, but pricier in San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Recent data from Apartment List found estimated rents for vacant apartments in L.A. are down 5.3 percent from the beginning of the year, according to the Los Angeles Times. Conversely, rents…

Hippo founders Assaf Wand and Eyal Navon (LinkedIn) Home insurance startup Hippo has raised $350 million from Japanese insurance giant Mitsui Sumitomo. The deal comes just four months after the online insurance firm raised $150 million, valuing the company at $1.5 billion. The companies did not disclose a new valuation, but said the fresh capital…

A rendering of the project and an aerial view of the property (AXIS/GFA via NoHo Neighborhood Association, Google Maps) A hotel could rise on Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood. Agoura Hills–based developer Napa Industries filed plans late last week for the 171-room project, according to Urbanize. It is slated for 5041-5057 North Lankershim Boulevard at…

Prices increased 6.6 percent year-over-year in September (iStock) Housing prices continue to soar into the fall. Prices increased 6.6 percent year-over-year in September, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller home price index, which tracks the housing market in 20 cities including New York City, Los Angeles, Miami and Chicago. In August, the price index jumped…

(Getty, iStock) Pasadena is choosing to ignore Los Angeles County’s three-week ban on outdoor dining that came in response to the spreading coronavirus. The Pasadena City Council said it would allow restaurants to continue outdoor dining service, according to the Los Angeles Times Times. The city has its own health department and the authority to…

(iStock) The short-term dive in office demand is not likely to continue far into the 2020s, according to a recent report form MetLife Investment Management. In fact, the cities where demand for office space is falling most — including San Francisco, Washington and San Jose — may attract the most demand over the next decade,…

Redfin’s Glenn Kelman In his one year as a Redfin agent in San Diego County, Jason Bell said the brokerage failed to pay him minimum wage or overtime and did not allow for meal and rest breaks as guaranteed by the state. Those are among the California labor law violations Bell is accusing Redfin of…

Between April and June, when the pandemic went from a shocking jolt to a daily reality, a record number of people fell behind on their home loans. “The Covid-19 pandemic’s effect on homeowners’ ability to make their mortgage payments could not be more apparent,” said Marina Walsh of the Mortgage Bankers Association, noting that the…

Howard Schwimmer and Michael S. Frankel with 3629-3963 Workman Mill Road (top) and 13943-13955 Balboa Boulevard (Google Maps) Rexford Industrial Realty has picked up a pair of Los Angeles County industrial properties — one in Whittier and another in Sylmar — for a combined $339.2 million. The investment adds 1.1 million square feet to Rexford’s…