L.A. County Investment Sales Jump 28% in July Thanks to Multifamily
More than $2.1 billion of commercial real estate traded last month. Office remained the laggard.
By Greg Cornfield August 20, 2026 5:20 pm
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Commercial real estate investment sales accelerated across Los Angeles County in July, with multifamily accounting for the majority of capital deployed.
About 7.25 million square feet of commercial property traded for $2.1 billion last month, NAI Capital reported Thursday, citing CoStar data. Compared to July 2025, almost 22 percent more square footage traded hands during July to make for a 28.5 percent jump in dollar volume. Compared with July 2024, sales volume climbed 75 percent.
The gains came despite elevated borrowing costs, with long-term Treasury yields remaining near multiyear highs.
Multifamily dominated, with 3.43 million square feet changing hands for $1.22 billion — accounting for 58 percent of all investment during the month in L.A. County. Sales volume increased 55 percent since last year, and almost 166 percent compared to July 2024. Average pricing rose 28.7 percent to $376 per square foot.
Retail also posted broad gains. About 1.23 million square feet sold for $402 million, pushing dollar volume up 40 percent from a year ago, and nearly doubling the July 2024 total. Retail square footage traded has climbed 135 percent over the same two-year period.
Industrial faces a more complicated environment. About 1.33 million square feet traded in July, which is almost 71 percent higher since 2025, but dollar volume remained about flat at $214 million, and average pricing fell 3.6 percent to $273 per square foot.
Office was the only major property type to decline in both sales volume and square footage. About 1.26 million square feet sold for $262 million, down 9.7 percent and 23.4 percent, respectively, from July 2025. Average pricing dropped 23.5 percent to $250 per square foot. Compared with July 2024, the amount of office space traded has fallen by roughly half.
“As we head into the fall, the key question is not simply whether investment activity is increasing, but where the capital is going, how much space is trading, and what the relationship between square footage, dollar volume and pricing is telling us about the Los Angeles County investment market,” NAI Capital said in the report.
Gregory Cornfield can be reached at gcornfield@commercialobserver.com.
