EXCLUSIVE: JPMorgan to Buy Fox Interactive Office for $300M

In one of the biggest real estate deals in Los Angeles in years, the asset management arm of JPMorgan Chase & Co. has agreed to pay about $300 million for a large office development in Playa Vista that is leased by Fox Interactive Media, the News Corp. unit that includes MySpace, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the transaction.

The sale of the 501,000-square-foot, two-building complex at 12121 and 12181 Bluff Creek Drive by Lincoln Property Co. and ASB Real Estate Investments breaks down to a robust price of about $599 per square foot. The deal for the property, called the Horizon at Playa Vista and located in the recently developed office portion of the Playa Vista community, went under contract in late December and is expected to close next week.

“This deal continues to validate Playa Vista -- that if you build quality buildings, you will attract superior tenants, institutional lenders and long-term investors,” said Cushman & Wakefield Inc. executive vp Carl Muhlstein, a commercial real estate broker who has long done business in the Playa Vista area. The broker said he was  “aware” of the transaction but declined further comment.

Buyer JPMorgan Asset Management - Real Estate, which is part of New York financial services firm JPMorgan Chase’s asset management division, also owns 2000 Avenue of the Stars, CAA's Century City headquarters.

Fox Interactive and Lincoln Property declined to comment; JPMorgan and ASB Real Estate did not return phone calls seeking comment.