Owner/User Report
Firstly, our monthly Owner/User report is now available for March. This is For Sale Availability in the three major size segments in LA, OC, and the IE.
90 Day Comp Analysis
Secondly, we look back 90 days in this weeks newsletter to read the tea leaves on market pricing, volumne and how the market is evolving. There were 327 closed transactions totaling $2.85 billion across Los Angeles County, Orange County, and the Inland Empire in the 90 days ending March 16, 2026. Owner users and investors competed actively across all three markets, with buyers paying a measurable premium to own rather than lease, a signal that long-term confidence in the asset class remains intact.
-- Owner Users Are Paying Up Across all three markets, owner users consistently outpaid institutional investors. In Orange County, owner user buyers closed at a median of $409 PSF versus $305 for investors, a 34% gap. The spread holds in Los Angeles ($319 vs. $253) and the Inland Empire ($250 vs. $208). For a business owner evaluating a purchase, that premium reflects real competition from motivated buyers who understand what ownership is worth.
-- Orange County Pricing Is Driven by Land, Not Buildings OC industrial closed at a market-wide median of $388 PSF, 76% above the IE at $220 PSF and 35% above LA County at $287 PSF. What makes OC unique is that the premium does not compress with size. Buildings in the 25,000 - 50,000 SF range traded at a median of $404/SF, nearly identical to the sub 10,000 SF band at $411 PSF. Age shows the same pattern: pre-1980 and post-2010 product both cluster between $393 - $401 PSF. In OC, you are buying the zip code.
-- Clear Height Commands Real Dollars in the Inland Empire In the IE, ceiling height is one of the clearest value drivers in the dataset. Buildings under 16' clear sold at a median of $217 PSF. The 16 - 24' band moved to $241 PSF, and buildings with 24 - 32' clear ceilings reached $255 PSF. That is a $38 PSF spread which is roughly $1.2 million in additional value on a 32,000 SF building, purely based on functional ceiling clearance. For operators evaluating which buildings to pursue, the data supports prioritizing clear height even at a higher asking price.
-- The IE Rewards Newer Product; OC Does Not In the Inland Empire, building vintage is a meaningful price driver. Post 2010 product traded at a median of $255 PSF compared to $181 PSF for pre 1980 buildings, a $74 PSF gap that reflects both functional utility and deferred capital expenditure risk. In Orange County, the same analysis produces almost no spread with all four vintage cohorts land within $8 PSF of each other. The takeaway for buyers is in OC, even older functional product holds its value, while in the IE, quality of construction and year built should factor directly into underwriting.
-- Transaction Volume Is Holding and Pricing Is Moving Up The 90-day window averaged roughly 100 closed transactions per month across the three markets, with consistent activity in December, January, and February before March data began to accumulate. Median pricing trended upward through the period from $251 PSF in December to $279 PSF in February, with the partial March sample already running above $360 PSF. The deal volume and upward price movement together suggest a market with active buyers, limited distress, and no meaningful softening in demand for well located industrial product.
Southern California industrial ownership continues to attract a deep, competitive buyer pool. Whether you are a business owner evaluating a purchase to lock in occupancy costs, a landlord considering a disposition, or an investor looking to deploy capital in a supply constrained market, the data from the past 90 days tells a consistent story, sale pricing is firming, demand is real, and the window to transact on favorable terms will not stay open indefinitely. Contact our team to understand what this market means for your specific situation.
Justin
Justin Smith, SIOR 949.400.4786 jbsmith@lee-associates.com (mailto:jbsmith@lee-associates.com)
P.S. We also have a new team website rebrand. Check it out, https://smithcre.com/, and let me know your thoughts.
Southern California Industrial
Sales Comps Report
90 Days Ending March 16, 2026 | 327 Closed Transactions
Market Overview
Total transactions
327
3 markets
Total consideration
$2.85B
IE + OC + LA
Owner user sales
157
48% of total
Investment sales
141
43% of total
Market Summary Market Sales Total Vol. Median PSF Median SF Orange County 52 $450M $388 11,528 Los Angeles County 172 $1.47B $287 6,610 Inland Empire 95 $933M $220 10,554
OC trades at a 76% premium to the IE on a per-SF basis. Outlier service/telecom assets excluded from medians.
Median Price Per SF by Size Band Size Band Deals OC LA IE Under 10,000 SF 173 $411 $301 $229 10,000 - 25,000 SF 68 $390 $286 $245 25,000 - 50,000 SF 37 $404 $227 $178 50,000 - 100,000 SF 24 $279 $289 $280 100,000 - 200,000 SF 13 $236 $188 $195 200,000 - 500,000 SF 6 -- $410 $111
OC shows virtually no PSF compression as buildings scale in size. In the IE, PSF falls sharply as footprint grows beyond 100,000 SF.
Owner User vs. Investment - Median PSF by Market
Owner User
Orange County
$409
Los Angeles
$319
Inland Empire
$250
Investment
Orange County
$305
Los Angeles
$253
Inland Empire
$208
Owner users paid 26-34% above investors depending on market. OC owner users closed at $409/SF vs. $305 for investors.
Median PSF Trend by Month
December 2025 113 sales
$251
January 2026 98 sales | $1.52B volume
$274
February 2026 100 sales
$279
March 2026 16 sales (partial month)
$361
Median PSF trended upward through the period. March is a partial sample (16 sales through 3/16) skewed toward smaller OC product -- watch for normalization as the month closes.
Hottest Submarkets by Median PSF (5+ Sales) Submarket Market Sales Med. PSF Total Vol. Westside LA 8 $468 $11.1M City of Industry LA 8 $460 $40.3M Burbank LA 6 $438 $22.5M Santa Ana OC 6 $387 $23.4M Anaheim OC 6 $383 $16.2M East San Fernando Valley LA 22 $341 $109.7M West San Fernando Valley LA 10 $327 $101.9M Commerce LA 9 $325 $62.6M South Riverside IE 10 $260 $54.1M Riverside IE 18 $214 $214.6M Moreno Valley/Perris IE 6 $203 $260.6M
Notable Single-Property Sales (Over $20M) Property City SF Price PSF Type 588 Crenshaw Blvd Torrance 265,418 $123.0M $463 Inv 1001 Columbia Ave Riverside 507,000 $111.5M $220 OU 26313 Golden Valley Rd Santa Clarita 172,483 $60.0M $348 Inv 1500 Francisco St Torrance 76,007 $51.5M $678 Inv 12100 Dronfield Ave San Fernando 91,968 $32.6M $354 Inv 731 Ramona Expressway Perris 165,307 $32.2M $195 OU 9089 8th St Rancho Cucamonga 129,704 $31.7M $244 Inv
The 1001 Columbia Ave Riverside sale at $111.5M is the largest owner-user transaction in the dataset -- a 507,000 SF cold storage facility demonstrating continued demand for owner-occupied industrial at scale in the IE.
Smith Industrial Partners
Lee & Associates | Irvine, CA
Data: CoStar. 90-day closed sales through 3/16/26.
Outliers excluded. For informational purposes only.
Charts & visuals
