Who's buying Los Angeles office space? A tale of two eras: Pre- vs. post-pandemic

Trends of increased owner-users and private buyers continue

By Catherine Yeh

CoStar Analytics

September 18, 2025 | 9:07 AM

The Los Angeles office market is still trying to find its footing since the pandemic disrupted the traditional workplace model five years ago. This uncertainty has led to a freeze in capital markets activity that is only now beginning to show the first signs of thawing.

Comparing the five-year post-pandemic (2021-2025 year to date) transaction volume of $3.4 billion to the five years pre-pandemic (2015-2019) transaction volume of $12.8 billion, sales volume has declined 74%. While 2015-2019 saw some of the highest levels of sales activity historically, comparing annual averages paints a slightly better but still similar picture. The 2021-2025 year-to-date annual average volume ($675 million) compared to the historical annual average transaction volume ($1.3 billion) declined 47%. Investors have been exercising caution given the uncertain outlook for office space demand.

Nevertheless, ambiguity surrounding office assets has not deterred all buyer groups. Notably, owner-users have increased their participation, accounting for a decade high of 49% of transaction volume in 2024. This year has seen that number come down — to 30% year to date — but it is still well above the five-year pre-pandemic annual average of 8%. The five-year post-pandemic average is 29%.

Private buyers and owner-users have capitalized upon this period of uncertainty to snap up distressed assets at extraordinary discounts. For example, Uncommon Developers' purchase from Brookfield of 601 S. Figueroa St. for $210 million, or $201 per square foot, amounted to a 40% discount on a building that was 72% leased at the time of sale. The County of Los Angeles purchased The Gas Company Tower for $137 per square foot, 53% occupied at time of sale, from Brookfield at over a 65% discount, with the intent of relocating its entire downtown headquarters. Other examples include Frame’s purchase of 331 Maple at $680 per square foot, Fashion Nova’s purchase of 407 N. Maple at $674 per square foot and DTLA Law Group’s purchase of the Lucky Building in the Arts District/Downtown LA at $369 per square foot.

This shift in buyer composition is primarily due to the withdrawal of institutional investors, real estate investment trusts and private equity activity. The five-year pre-pandemic transaction volume average for institutional investors was 30%, REITs 8% and private equity 9%, a stark difference compared to the five-year post-pandemic averages of 13% institutional investors, 4% REITS and 3% private equity. However, activity for these buyers has started to pick up in 2025 — most notably, institutional capital makes up 28% of 2025’s transactions year to date. This could be a signal of these buyers coming back into play in the post-pandemic world.