LeFraks' Sudden Craving For L.A. Real Estate

On a sunny day in June, a hundred Los Angeles brokers gathered for an open house at the LeFrak Organization's recent acquisition: a 12-story office building on Hollywood Boulevard. The LeFraks, big landlords from New York, gave each agent a crisp $100 bill. A handful of guests won free nights at the Malibu Beach Inn, a $500-a-night resort owned by entertainment mogul David Geffen. "Come bring us tenants," said Jamie LeFrak, managing director of the real estate firm. "We want to own several million square feet in your city."

While many players are retreating amid an industrywide slump, the LeFraks are gearing up for their biggest expansions in decades. The real estate group, which controls 13 million square feet of office and retail space and 25,000 apartments around New York City, wants to be bicoastal. In the past year it has plunked down $185 million on three office buildings in Los Angeles after largely hibernating during the recent buying frenzy.