L.A.’s Koreatown continues to attract multifamily investors. A joint venture of Beverly Hills firm TRG Investments and Century City’s Cresta Properties has bought a 49-unit, 36,925-square-foot Class C art deco apartment building and adjacent parking lot at 808 S. Hobart Blvd. for $8.4 million, or roughly $230 a square foot, from San Francisco’s Virtu Investments. The property last sold in 2005 for only $4.9 million, or $133 a square foot.

The new ownership group plans to complete a renovation program started by the previous owner that will include upgrading the lobby and common areas as well as refacing the building exterior.

The five-story property, dubbed the Ashby, includes 39 studios that are 650 square feet and rent for $1,129 a month, according to CoStar. It also includes 10 one-bedroom units that are just under 1,000 square feet and rent for $1,600 a month. Only one unit is vacant.

The buyers declined to comment on their plans for rents at the property.

Beverly Hills’ Concord Real Estate Services will manage the property and oversee capital improvements.

“Koreatown is rapidly becoming one of the most vibrant urban markets in Los Angeles,” said Reuben Robin, a principal of both TRG and Concord. “We have seen firsthand the influx of young professionals to Koreatown. Not only does the area benefit from an improving social infrastructure with its exciting and eclectic mix of entertainment and retail options, Koreatown is 10 minutes from Hollywood, downtown Los Angeles and the Westside.”

Kitty Wallace, an executive vice president at Colliers International, who with David O’Neil represented both the buyer and seller, said Koreatown’s multifamily scene has benefitted from $32 billion of development in the past decade.

“It’s during these times that we wish we had more of these buildings to sell,” she said.