181, 185 & 187 Monterey Road presents a fully entitled, 53-unit condominium development opportunity in South Pasadena — one of the most supply-constrained, high-demand submarkets on the Eastside of Los Angeles County. The City has approved the tract map for the project; the property is being delivered without building permits, allowing a buyer to control the permitting and construction process from the ground up.
The approved program totals 53 units across a thoughtful mix of market-rate and moderate-income condominiums, with a modeled gross sellout of $59,190,000. Recent South Pasadena condo comps confirm the underlying exit pricing assumptions, with new-construction product trading at $800–$950+ per square foot.
The City has approved the 53-unit tract map. A buyer steps into a fully entitled for-sale condo project without discretionary approval risk.
The seller is not delivering building permits, giving the buyer control over plan finalization, value engineering, and GC selection before breaking ground.
Recent South Pasadena condo sales at $807–$953/SF validate the model's $900–$1,000/SF market-rate exit assumptions for this submarket.
South Pasadena is one of the most land-constrained cities in LA County with minimal new condo supply — new product commands a significant premium over resale stock.
The table below reflects the approved 53-unit mix and the modeled exit value for each unit type, based on current South Pasadena new-construction condo pricing.
| Unit Type | Bedrooms | Qty | Avg Size (SF) | Exit $/SF | Total Exit Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moderate Income | 2 Bedroom | 1 | 1,044 | $400 | $417,600 |
| Moderate Income | 3 Bedroom | 6 | 1,344 | $400 | $3,225,600 |
| Market Rate | 2 Bedroom | 10 | 996 | $1,000 | $9,960,000 |
| Market Rate | 3 Bedroom | 36 | 1,407 | $900 | $45,586,800 |
| TOTAL | 53 | 70,351 | $59,190,000 |
Recent closed sales of new-construction condominiums in South Pasadena directly support the project's modeled exit pricing for both the 2-bedroom and 3-bedroom unit types.
| Address | Beds/Baths | SF | Year Built | Sold Price | Sold $/SF | Sold Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 820 Mission St #211 | 2 BR / 2.5 BA | 1,520 | 2016 | $1,400,000 | $921.05 | 03/17/2025 |
| 820 Mission St #208 | 3 BR / 3 BA | 2,160 | 2016 | $1,745,000 | $807.87 | 08/04/2025 |
| 1978 Huntington Dr | 3 BR / 3 BA | 1,730 | 2023 | $1,650,000 | $953.76 | 08/26/2025 |
| 191 Monterey Rd #I Next Door | 2 BR / 2.5 BA | 1,277 | 2020 | $980,000 | $767.00 | 03/19/2021 |
| 191 Monterey Rd #C Next Door | 2 BR / 2.5 BA | 1,268 | 2020 | $960,000 | $757.00 | 03/09/2021 |
| 191 Monterey Rd #B Next Door | 2 BR / 2.5 BA | 1,274 | 2020 | $958,000 | $751.00 | 10/13/2020 |
| 191 Monterey Rd #D Next Door | 2 BR / 2.5 BA | 1,274 | 2020 | $950,000 | $745.00 | 11/02/2020 |
South Pasadena is a small, highly desirable city bordered by Pasadena, Los Angeles, and Alhambra — known for its walkable downtown, top-rated schools, and Metro A Line (Gold Line) access into Downtown LA and Pasadena. New condominium supply is exceptionally limited due to the city's compact footprint and restrictive zoning, which has historically supported premium per-square-foot pricing for new construction relative to surrounding submarkets.
The development cost build-up below reflects hard construction, subterranean parking, $3.6M of modeled soft costs (A/E documents + permit fees), and closing costs of sale used to derive the supportable land price.
The recommended list price of $8,000,000 is derived from a land residual analysis: working backward from the modeled $59.19M gross sellout, net of development costs (now including $3.6M of modeled soft costs), construction loan carry, and property tax/insurance carry, to solve for the land price that supports a developer profit margin.
| List Price Scenario | $/Unit | $/Acre | $/Land SF | Developer's Profit | Profit % of Net Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $8,000,000 Suggested List | $150,943 | $6,359,820 | $146.00 | $7,440,134 | 13.23% |
| $7,800,000 | $147,170 | $6,200,825 | $142.35 | $7,661,074 | 13.62% |
| $7,600,000 | $143,396 | $6,041,829 | $138.70 | $7,882,014 | 14.02% |
| $7,400,000 | $139,623 | $5,882,834 | $135.05 | $8,102,954 | 14.41% |
| $7,200,000 | $135,849 | $5,723,838 | $131.40 | $8,323,894 | 14.80% |
| $7,000,000 Bottom of Range | $132,075 | $5,564,843 | $127.75 | $8,544,834 | 15.20% |
The $3.6M modeled above is the verifiable floor (A/E documents + permit fees). It excludes legal, title, builder's-risk insurance, developer fee/overhead, marketing, and design contingency — which push realistic all-in soft costs toward $5M–7M+ for a 53-unit for-sale condo. Each $1.4M of additional soft cost reduces developer profit dollar-for-dollar and pressures the supportable land price.
| Soft-Cost Assumption | Total Development Cost | Developer's Profit @ $8.0M | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| $3.6M — CD's + permit/impact fees Modeled | $37.66M | $7,440,134 | 13.2% |
| $5.0M — + legal, title, builder's risk, contingency | $39.06M | $6,040,134 | 10.7% |
| $6.5M — full developer-fee & overhead load | $40.56M | $4,540,134 | 8.1% |
Buyer will need to obtain building permits post-close. While the tract map is approved, permit timing, plan check comments, and final cost certainty are not locked in at this stage.
$3.6M of soft costs are now modeled (A/E construction documents + So. Pasadena permit/impact fees). This is a floor — it excludes legal, title, builder's-risk, developer fee/overhead, marketing, and contingency. Full soft costs run 10–20% of hard cost (~$5M–7M+) and compress developer margin into single digits at $8.0M; underwrite the full load before finalizing an offer.
The $300/SF hard cost assumption should be validated against current GC bids for South Pasadena condo construction, which may run higher given site conditions and subterranean parking scope.
The $59.19M gross sellout assumes all 53 units sell at modeled pricing. Absorption pace and any softening in the South Pasadena luxury condo market could affect realized pricing and timeline.
The 7 moderate income units carry deed-restricted pricing and likely resale/occupancy restrictions per the City's affordability covenant — buyer should confirm exact terms and compliance requirements.
The 8% construction loan rate assumption should be re-confirmed against current lender quotes at time of acquisition, as financing costs directly affect the supportable land price.
The LAAA Team at Marcus & Millichap is one of the most active development land teams in Los Angeles — 15 development listings, 1,582 buildable units, $75M in volume currently across greater Los Angeles and Southern California. The full land book is below; click any property for its offering.















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