Prices in the Los Angeles office market continue to steadily increase, and the Wilshire Corridor was no exception in the third quarter despite rising vacancies especially with the market’s major landowner actively raising rents.

Jamison Services Inc., owned by South Korean-born internist Dr. David Lee, owns more than 100 properties with a portfolio about $3 billion in value that is based in the Wilshire Center area of the corridor.

“Jamison owns about 90 percent of the buildings and has made a concerted effort since the beginning of the year to raise rental rates,” said Chris Runyen, senior managing director of Charles Dunn Co. “Tenants have to take it. LAX is the only other market that competes in price but it’s just not as central a location so it doesn’t compete for value.

Of course, pricing is all relative.

Asking rents rose 8 cents in Wilshire Center since the second quarter, but that still put average asking rents at only $1.79 per square foot, making it the second cheapest submarket in the county. Indeed, the area still has plenty of room for further increases, despite a bump in the third quarter vacancy rate to 6.5 percent, from 5.3 percent at mid-year.

“There’s really no sign that rental rates anywhere you throw a dart are coming down anything soon; they’re all going up,” Runyen said.

Farther west in the Park Mile and Miracle Mile areas rents shot up 15 cents, to a far pricier $3.26. The Miracle Mile is undergoing a revitalization of its own that is making it a more attractive place for tenants. Condos are under construction, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is being expanded.

MAIN EVENTS

– from Copperfield Investments for $39.2 million, or about $232.50 per square foot. The 34-year-old building was renovated in 1992 and spans 168,680 square feet.

– Jamison Services Inc. purchased a 216,000-square-foot office building at 3540 Wilshire Blvd. for $37 million in an August off-market transaction. The Class B building has assorted professional tenants, and offices of the Costa Rican Consul General.

– Marian College, a nursing school, renewed its lease at 3325 Wilshire Blvd. in a five-year deal worth about $1.5 million. The school leased 16,500 square feet on the building’s tenth floor.

– The Marlborough School leased 5,000 square feet at 4401 Wilshire Blvd. to use while renovating buildings on school property. The rental price was above $2 per square foot with an option to renew.

– Construction is under way on a four-story, 60 unit condominium complex off Wilshire Boulevard. Hanover Co. is building the complex on a 38,530 square foot lot bounded by a high rise, Masselin Avenue, Hauser Avenue and Eighth Street. The site was a former parking lot.

– The Broad Contemporary Art Museum, part of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s expansion, is slated for completion in February. The three-story museum building, designed by the Renzo Piano Building Workshop, will include 60,000 square feet of exhibition space. Billiionaire Eli Broad donated $60 million to the project.

Anne Riley-Katz