Tower Fund Buys Apartment Complex

The Tower Fund, a pension account controlled by Metropolitan Life Insurance, said Thursday that it has purchased the 349-unit Adagio Apartments in Santa Ana from Fairfield Residential for $42.3 million.

The apartment complex, in the 3100 block of South Main Street near South Coast Plaza, is Tower’s first residential holding in Orange County.

The White Plains, N.Y., company, which plans to acquire more apartment buildings here, owns industrial properties in Anaheim and Ontario.

Built in 1974, the Adagio was recently renovated for about $20,000 per unit. While repairs were made in kitchens and bedrooms, the occupancy rate dipped to around 80%.

But Tower portfolio manager Yvonne Compitello said she expects that units now will be filled quickly. The average monthly rent at the complex is $1,150, she said.

With fewer units being built and rents at record highs, the vacancy rate countywide has shrunk to about 2%.