Mark Mueller
Editor
Mark Mueller covers commercial and residential real estate for the Orange County Business Journal. His beat also includes title insurers and mortgage lenders, as well as government stories that relate to real estate. He can be reached at mueller@ocbj.com.
Phone: 949-833-8373 Extension: 226
Recent Stories
OCBJ INSIDER
Home Sales
LoanDepot becomes OC’s sixth-largest public company by market value; CoStar Group Inc. 'stunned' to read of CoreLogic buyout; Yucaipa Cos. of Los Angeles takes heavy equity stake in Steinberg Sports and Entertainment
Luxe Candle Co. Finds Growing Customer Base
RETAIL: Family affair in Laguna
2020 proved to be a breakout year for candle companies, as stay-at-home orders brought more attention to home décor and shoppers looked for comforting products.
Growth in the Billions
Palmer Luckey’s nearly $2 billion-valued Anduril Industries isn’t the most valuable tech-focused company at Irvine’s 2722 Michelson building—for now.
OCBJ INSIDER
Abundance of Investments
Irvine’s PE-backed firm Interior Logic Group will be sold to Blackstone for $1.6B; Stone Point Capital and Insight Partners will pay $6B for Irvine’s CoreLogic; Chicago ratings agency affirms AAA ratings for CMBS-loans backed by Irvine Co. office properties
OCBJ INSIDER
New Homes
Irvine’s First Foundation Inc. moves holding company to Dallas; new H Mart to open in Irvine; local businessman Sir Torben Aaskov, Chapman U grad, knighted by Queen Margrethe II
EV Truck Maker Lordstown Picks Irvine
AUTOS: Opens first center outside Midwest
Irvine’s base of electric vehicle makers got another energy boost last week, as Ohio’s Lordstown Motors Corp. established a new service center in the Spectrum area of the city, in preparation for the launch of its first vehicle later this year.
Apria Ditches OC HQ as IPO Beckons
FINANCE: Indy base; Blackstone bought in 2008
Apria Inc., one of the country’s largest home healthcare companies, is poised to go public again, 13 years after it was taken private by a unit of Blackstone Group LP
OC Insider
Legal Scores
Keller/Anderle LLP trial lawyer Jennifer Keller ranked No. 1 attorney by SoCal Super Lawyers; Evan Moore, former NFL tight end, scores apartment complex via Stratford Capital investment firm; Jeff Moorad's Newport Beach MSP Sports Capital bought soccer clubs in Spain and Portugal since 2019
Olen’s Southeast Rental Portfolio Now Tops $2B
REAL ESTATE: Charlotte push; office buy near Nashville
Olen Properties Corp.'s late-year acquisition spree in the Southeast pushed the value of the Newport Beach-based real estate investor’s growing apartment portfolio past $2B
Home Design Studio Chain Interior Logic Plans IPO
REAL ESTATE: Serves top 20 builders in US
Irvine’s Interior Logic Group Holdings Inc. plans to build a much bigger national footprint
OCBJ INSIDER
New Drives
What’s ahead for Foothill Ranch’s loanDepot; Tesla's $800B plans to expand in Irvine; Irvine’s Rivian is nearing another funding round, valuing the company close to $25B
Tesla Sales Center in Works for Irvine
AUTOMOTIVE: Would be first spot in city
City planning and permitting documents indicate a Tesla sales facility is in the works for a 58,000-square-foot building fronting Jamboree Road in Irvine
OCBJ INSIDER
Scenes from a Riot
Rep. Lou Correa shares firsthand account of Capitol takeover; New ghost kitchen restaurants sets up in Anaheim; Irvine’s Fitness International LLC remains country’s largest health club
OCBJ INSIDER
Battle of the Bands
A love for music runs deep among our collection of Business People of the Year winners, profiled in this edition.
OCBJ INSIDER
Year-End Predictions
Chapman President Emeritus and economist Jim Doti predicts 5.7% GDP growth for 2021; luxe home brokers predict continued strong area sales in 2021
OCBJ INSIDER
Ingram’s Future, and Past
Ingram Micro is set in Irvine after Platinum Equity's 7.2%B acquisition; ImmunogenX CEO and co-founder Jack Syage tracks COVID, supports shelter-in-place order
OCBJ INSIDER
Future Focused
Funds from author Dean Koontz' $9M donation to Hoag Hospital has gone to new MRI-guided radiation therapy system
Hoag Hospital Considers Major Irvine Expansion
HEALTHCARE: Plans Include Women’s Hospital
Adding 240 beds, 432K SF
Residential Development Near JWA Pushes On
REAL ESTATE: 800+ units in the works
The final significant phase of development at Irvine’s Central Park West community has begun, and a pair of additional large residential sites planned in the vicinity of John Wayne Airport are up for sale, which in total could add more than 800 new apartments and homes to the airport area.
Westminster Mall Apartment Project in Works
REAL ESTATE: Deal would bring in $50M+ for REIT
The owners of the Westminster Mall say they’ve found an apartment developer to build a substantial mixed-use project on a portion of Orange County’s 13th-largest shopping center by taxable sales.
Luxury’s Allure
Buyers, Brokers on What the Super Wealthy Want
The location, location, location of Bill Gross
Ranks of OC’s Wealthiest Rise
ECONOMY: 20th edition counts 47; 31 billionaires
Locals, weekenders — $111B
Loan Designers
Local PPP Recipients Get $50M+, Docs Show
Orange County’s cluster of architecture, design, and tenant-improvement focused construction firms are among the largest local beneficiaries of the Paycheck Protection Program, according to newly released federal documents.
Steinberg Sports Strikes Record NFL Contract
SPORTS: Gets $500M for Chiefs star Mahomes
The money’s been shown.
Montrose Enviro Preps for $160M IPO
FINANCE: Has bought 50 firms since 2012
Environmental consulting firm Montrose Environmental Group Inc. is looking to join the ranks of Orange County’s publicly traded companies.
Amazon Eyes Cypress Site as New Logistics Hub
E-COMMERCE: Project at former Mitsubishi HQ
Amazon.com Inc. is looking into building a last-mile logistics facility at the former campus of Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc. in Cypress.
FivePoint Selling Broadcom Offices for $355M
REAL ESTATE: Will be top OC sale of year
PRP Real Estate Investment Management, a Washington, D.C.-based real estate investor backed in part by overseas funding partners, plans to buy the two largest buildings at Irvine’s FivePoint Gateway office campus.
Prev Next