Harbor Associates, Roxborough Buy Discounted Office Campus in Pasadena
The deal represents renewed investor interest, as well as the new normal for Southern California office real estate
By Greg Cornfield August 8, 2025 6:15 pm
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An office property in Pasadena, Calif., has traded hands at a major discount from an era of peak pricing. The deal represents renewed investor interest in office real estate, but is also another sign of the new normal in Southern California as buyers and sellers are finally coming closer on post-pandemic office valuations.
Harbor Associates and the Roxborough Group put down about $120 million, or roughly $252 a square foot, for a two-building property with 477,101 square feet known as Pasadena Towers, Commercial Observer has learned. The seller, CBRE Investment Management, acquired the asset for $256 million in March 2016, records show, at nearly $537 a square foot.
Sources familiar with the deal confirmed the transaction with CO as well as the ballpark sales price. Representatives for CBRE Investment Management were not immediately available to comment. Harbor Associates declined to comment. Roxborough, and representatives for the brokerage side of CBRE, which managed the leasing efforts, have not responded to requests for comment. Newmark brokered the deal but declined to comment.
Pasadena Towers includes two Class A office buildings connected by a courtyard at 55 South Lake Avenue and 800 East Colorado Boulevard. It also features a 3,000-square-foot fitness center, a 2,000-square foot conference room and a seven-level garage.
CBRE’s marketing materials show asking rent at $4.35 a square foot per month.
The acquisition is one of the largest office investments in Greater L.A. so far this year in terms of square footage. It’s also Harbor Associates’ largest-ever investment, based on the portfolio of assets and a list of acquisitions on the company’s website.
Albeit for lower prices, office investment sales activity has significantly increased in 2025 from what seemed like a near standstill after the pandemic and the surge in remote work sent upended demand. Greater L.A. closed $1.4 billion in office sales in the first half of the year — enough for fourth-highest by dollar volume in the U.S. — according to a recent report from CommercialCafe. Last year, L.A. reported just $287 million in office sales after six months.
Gregory Cornfield can be reached at gcornfield@commercialobserver.com.
