Levin Johnston of Marcus & Millichap, one of the top brokerage teams in the U.S. specializing in wealth management through commercial real estate investments, announces the closing of the sale of Archer Gardens Apartments, a 32-unit multifamily building located in the Monterey Bay Area city of Salinas, California.
“The buyer of Archer Gardens Apartments recognized the value of a legacy asset in a region with a significantly constrained supply of new multifamily projects,” says Robert Johnston, Executive Managing Director of Levin Johnston. “The seller is indicative of the current trend of investors looking to trade up from smaller properties to larger, high-quality assets in rapidly growing emerging areas to hedge against inflation.”
The proceeds are expected to be invested in a 50+-unit multifamily asset as part of an adjustment to the seller’s portfolio, adds Adam Levin, Executive Managing Director of Levin Johnston.
“Thanks to our positioning within Marcus & Millichap, we have wide network of buyers and sellers that enables us to identify the best transactions for our clients and their unique investment objectives,” continues Levin. “This transaction is an example of the kinds of value-adding transactions investors want from their real estate advisors.”
Though less than an hour from the technology world of Silicon Valley, Salinas is a predominantly agriculturally driven economy. Agriculture in the Salinas Valley generates over $12 billion in economic value for the area. However, though rents in Salinas are typically less than Bay Area communities, the city marked some of the highest rent growth in the country in 2024 according to apartment research site RealPage. Limited supply in the area continues to impact the rate of rent growth.
“Market forces in multifamily investing can change rapidly as we have seen in Salinas over the past couple of years. At Levin Johnston, we focus on helping clients execute their investment strategy and evaluate each acquisition in line with the market’s current reality and long-term potential,” says Joshua Velo, Investment Associate at Levin Johnston. “On the selling side, this transaction reflects a strategic reallocation of capital for the investor as they seek to expand into new markets with both momentum and long-term resilience. For the buyer, they see opportunity in a small market with few new apartments going up and an investment-friendly local government. The asset’s central location and uniform unit mix create an attractive investment opportunity in a supply-constrained rental market.”
Archer Gardens Apartments is a 32-unit multifamily property consisting exclusively of two-bedroom, one-bathroom units within a 24,912-square-foot building on a 1.12-acre lot. Built in 1972, the complex features well-designed, spacious floor plans and covered parking. It is located near key transportation corridors such as US 101, CA-183, and CA-68. Hartnell College is just a block from the building, and Oldtown Salinas is only a five-minute drive away, providing residents with walkable access to restaurants, shops, cafes, art galleries, and public transit, including the proposed Caltrain extension at the nearby Salinas Rail Station.
Levin, Johnston, and Velo represented the seller and procured the buyer in the transaction. The total consideration of the sale was $8.25 million.
