Vista Investment Group has teamed up with the US arm of Japanese real estate firm Tokyu Land Corporation to buy a $91m (€80.3m) apartment community in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Los Angeles-based firm and Tokyu Land US Corporation (TLUS) have bought the Northridge Apartments from Equity Residential.

Equity Residential had owned the 221-unit garden-style apartment community in the San Francisco East Bay submarket of Pleasant Hill for more than 20 years.

Built in 1974, the studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment homes are situated in 16 low-rise residential buildings on a 6.63-acre site.

Vista Investment Group president Jonathan Barach, said: “Renters who have been priced out of expensive markets like San Francisco and Oakland are migrating to the East Bay in search of more affordable alternatives.

“They are finding that Pleasant Hill has a great school system, a robust amenity base and rents at a considerable discount to neighbouring cities Walnut Creek, Lafayette and Orinda.”

Nobuhide Kashiwagi, president of TLUS, said: “This acquisition fits well within our value-add investment strategy, and marks our first acquisition in the Bay Area.

“We are excited about the trajectory of growth in the market, and feel Northridge Apartments is well-positioned to capture that momentum.”