SAN JOSE — Robust real estate activity in downtown San Jose and the “Google village effect” around the Diridon Station area might be factors behind the nearly $134 million purchase of an apartment tower in the city’s urban heart, real estate experts said.

The 360 Residences, a 23-story tower with apartments and ground-floor retail, was bought on Aug. 22 by an affiliate of San Mateo-based Essex Apartment Homes, called 360 Residences.

“This shows the strength of the market, because Essex is a shrewd buyer,” said Don Imwalle, president of Campbell-based Imwalle Properties, a development and realty investment firm. “The fact that the buyer is a local company that is purchasing existing assets in downtown San Jose speaks to the strength of the downtown market.”

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The Essex entity paid $133.5 million for the apartment high-rise, according to value derived from the San Jose city transfer taxes that were disclosed as part of the recorded deed. In 2012, Capri Capital paid $118 million for the 360 Residences.

Essex didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment about the purchase of the 360 Residences, which are located at 360 S. Market St. between West San Carlos and West San Salvador streets, across the street from the city’s convention center.

The seller, Gateway Nathaniel, an affiliate of Chicago-based Capri Capital Partners, had bought the property in 2012 on behalf of an undisclosed institutional investor.

The apartment tower consists of 213 residential units and roughly 11,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, according to information provided by the seller.

“We actively invest across the real estate cycle by identifying assets with strong, long-term income growth and liquidity characteristics,” said Dori Nolan, a Capri Capital partner and head of investments for the firm. “Capri was an early mover into San Jose and acquiring 360 Residences exemplified its core investment philosophy.”

A short distance from the apartment tower, Google and its development ally, Trammell Crow, have been purchasing properties on the western edge of downtown San Jose near the Diridon transit station.

Mountain View-based Google and San Francisco-based Trammell Crow have spent at least $141.7 million on a string of property purchases since late December 2016. Google also has begun negotiations with San Jose officials to purchase 16 city-owned parcels.

All of the property purchases, and numerous others in the works, are aimed at creating a Google village — a transit-oriented development that would consist of 8 million to 10 million square feet of offices where 15,000 to 20,000 employees of the search giant would work.

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“The Google effect is a factor here,” said Bob Staedler, principal executive with Silicon Valley Synergy, a San Jose-based planning and land-use consultancy. “Asset classes with good cash flow are going to be more in demand.”

Other tech companies have established new offices in downtown San Jose or have laid plans for expansion.

In July, Adobe Systems disclosed plans to buy a downtown parcel for an expansion of its corporate headquarters and offices where 3,000 Adobe employees would work.

Amazon unit Lab 126 in May began occupying two floors in an office building at the corner of East Santa Clara and North Second streets.

Plus, realty investors have bought buildings or actively laid plans for major developments next to or near the proposed Google village. Trammell Crow intends to break ground on a million-square-foot office complex on 8.3 acres near State Route 87 and West Santa Clara Street that would also include residences and retail. TMG Partners and Valley Oak Partners are planning a million square feet of offices near the corner of Julian Street and Autumn Parkway. This year, investors have bought the 303 Almaden Office Tower, the Westin San Jose hotel and the Hyatt Place hotel.

And as downtown San Jose attracts more young tech workers, that represents an opportunity for those providing housing.

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“The apartments are attractive because a lot of millennials are not buying homes,” Staedler said. “The demand for apartments in downtown San Jose will only increase.”