A San Diego-based real estate investment firm, Ranpac Commercial Properties, has paid $6.5 million for a small office building in the heart of Carlsbad Village.

Ranpac purchased the two-story, 11,800-square-foot office building at 390 Oak Ave. from Valley Center-based California Property Brokers in a deal that closed on June 28, according to CoStar records. The Spanish style wood and stucco structure was built in 1974 and sits two blocks from the beach.

The buyer plans to put substantial investments into upgrading the property's exterior and overall appearance, according to a news release from the San Diego office of Cushman & Wakefield, which represented both sides during the transaction.

The price works out to about $551 per square foot, well over the going market rate for office real estate in Carlsbad, which currently sits at about $333 per square foot, according to CoStar analytics.

In the statement, one of the brokers, Peter Curry, said the buyer was drawn to the property because it was "a stable asset in an irreplaceable real estate location." Carlsbad Village is known for its quaint shops, restaurants and ocean views.

The site is also well-connected to regional transit. The office also two-and-a-half blocks from a Coaster commuter line rail station, a route that runs between San Diego and Oceanside. It has easy access to Interstate 5, which extends south 35 miles to downtown San Diego and north 87 miles to downtown Los Angeles.

"The downtown district of Carlsbad Village maintains good momentum as a pedestrian-friendly, beachside community with easy access to multiple modes of transportation," said Peter Curry a stable asset in an irreplaceable real estate location

Carlsbad is an increasingly hot office destination in the San Diego area. It is one of the few where the vacancy rate has fallen when compared to the days before the coronavirus pandemic began, falling from 15.1% vacancy in the first quarter of 2020 to 11.5% now. On the sales side, investor activity in the Carlsbad office market has increased 291% over the last twelve months.

Cushman & Wakefield's Duncan Dodd was part of the team during the deal, in addition to Curry.