Palmdale, California
Palmdale's defining ground is federal: Air Force Plant 42, where Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Boeing build aircraft; Los Angeles County publishes owner names only for publicly owned parcels, so private owners here come from SEC filings and public-agency records.
10 buildings · 9 with an owner established · 20 sources · 5 tier B · 5 tier A · prepared 2026-10-15
Can you find out who owns it?
California has no public online land-title register. Palmdale lies in Los Angeles County, whose Assessor publishes the 2026 roll as open data — land and improvement values, floor area, use and the date of the last recorded deed for every parcel — with no owner-name field. The one exception is the Assessor's 'Publicly Owned Parcels' layer, which names the owning agency. Deeds are recorded by the LA County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, which states it 'does not provide online access to real estate records or indexes' and sells certified copies at $6 for the first page and $3 per page after. Under Prop 13 a sale resets the assessed value, but no price is published.
Is ownership public?Public, but one paid search at a time
Cost of one title search$6 for the first page and $3 for each additional page per document (certified copy)
Bulk ownership dataNone published
Sale pricesNo transaction data published
Sites that forbid taking their data
- grocerydive.com — “You may not ... (c) use any data mining, robots or similar data gathering or extraction methods”
1
The marquee buildings
The towers that set the tone of the core, and who holds them. A price is the price a document states, on the date it states — not an estimate of what the building is worth now.
| Building | Use | Owner | Owner type | Last price paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States Air Force Plant 42 North of Avenue P, south of Columbia Way (Avenue M), Sierra Hwy to about 50th St E, Palmdale 5,832 acres; 3.2M sq ft industrial space |
Industrial | United States (Department of the Air Force) Wikipedia: Plant 42 is 'owned by the United States Air Force', 5,832 acres; ownership passed to the federal government in 1954. Contractors 'either lease building space from the Air Force ... or own their own buildings outright (e.g., Lockheed Martin Skunk Works)'; the best-known are Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman (B-21, B-2, Global Hawk). The Assessor's public-parcels layer (s2) lists 26 'U S GOVT' parcels in Palmdale's tax-rate area, about 5,480 acres by our area sum, deeds from 1957-1975. Northrop's 10-K (s11) names Palmdale among Aeronautics sites and reports 3.4M sq ft U.S.-government owned/leased space company-wide, without a Palmdale split. |
Government | —B |
| Lockheed Martin Skunk Works (Plant 42 Site 10) 1011 Lockheed Way, Palmdale, CA 93599 1,044,890 sq ft (roll) |
Industrial | Lockheed Martin Corporation Wikipedia (s6): Skunk Works is at Site 10, 'actually private property with secure access to Plant 42's airfield'; its hangar dates from 1968. The 2026 County roll (s1) carries 1011 Lockheed Way as a taxable light-manufacturing parcel, 1,044,890 sq ft, built 1968, $469.1M, land base year 1995. The City ACFR (s5) ranks 'Lockheed Corporation' first among taxpayers at $765.4M (4.20% of the roll), up from $362.0M in FY2016, and lists Lockheed Martin as the 2nd employer (4,151). Lockheed's 10-K names Palmdale among Aeronautics sites but gives no per-site owned/leased split. Tier B: ownership joins Wikipedia, the taxable roll entry and the taxpayer list. |
Public company | —B |
| Palmdale Regional Medical Center 38600 Medical Center Dr, Palmdale, CA 93551 358,828 sq ft; 190 beds |
Institutional | Universal Health Services, Inc. UHS's 2025 10-K property table lists 'Palmdale Regional Medical Center, Palmdale, California, 190 [beds], Owned'. The 2026 roll (s1) shows the hospital parcel at 38600 Medical Center Dr: 358,828 sq ft, built 2008, $264.9M. The City ACFR's third-largest taxpayer is 'Lancaster Hospital Corporation' at $273.4M (1.50%); that it is the UHS subsidiary holding this hospital is a match of value, not stated in either document. The ACFR also lists the hospital as the 4th employer (1,081). |
Public company | —A |
| Palmdale Medical Plaza Beside the hospital, Medical Center Dr, Palmdale (roll: 38660 Medical Center Dr) 59,405 sq ft |
Office | Universal Health Realty Income Trust 100% UHT's 2025 10-K lists Palmdale Medical Plaza, Palmdale CA, MOB, 100%, class (D): owned by the trust or a 100% LLC with UHS-subsidiary tenants; 59,405 sq ft. Schedule III footnote (f.): 'We are the lessee with a UHS-related party on a ground lease for land' — the trust owns the building, a UHS party the land. Gross carrying amount $13.6M, built 2008. The roll's 59,577 sq ft professional building at 38660 Medical Center Dr, with only $160,710 of land value, fits a ground lease; the address match is ours, not the filing's. |
REIT | —A |
| Mershops Antelope Valley Mall (Antelope Valley Mall) 1233 W Avenue P / Rancho Vista Blvd, Palmdale, CA 93551 about 1M sq ft; main parcel 449,135 sq ft (roll) · 1 floors |
Retail | Mershops (formerly Bridge Group Investments), with Steerpoint Capital Shopping Center Business: Bridge Group Investments and Steerpoint Capital bought the 1M sq ft mall (Dillard's, Macy's, JCPenney, 16-screen Cinemark) for $60M. Wikipedia (s15): Bridge Group rebranded as Mershops in 2025; a $10M renovation and a Round 1 in the former Forever 21 were announced. Forest City developed it (1990). The City ACFR's 4th taxpayer is 'Antelope Valley Shop LLC', $179.7M; in FY2016 'MGP X Properties LLC' was $111.2M. The roll shows a new deed recorded 19 Aug 2025 on the main and cinema parcels; what it conveyed is not published. No foreclosure or distress found. Tier B: rebrand from Wikipedia. |
Private company | $60M 2022-12 Shopping Center Business, 12 Dec 2022; trade-press figure, no deed read. B |
| Palmdale Regional Airport passenger terminal and LAWA land 2825 E Avenue P, Palmdale, CA 93550 terminal parcel about 126 acres; 1,005,124 sq ft of buildings on the roll |
Civic | City of Los Angeles (Los Angeles World Airports) The Assessor's public-parcels layer names 'L A CITY LAWA ACCOUNTS PAYABLE' as owner of AIN 3022029273 at 2825 E Avenue P (deed 19 Aug 1976), and 'L A CITY' on 118 parcels in Palmdale's tax-rate area, about 1,130 acres by our sum, besides 4 LADWP parcels. Wikipedia (s7): LAWA bought about 17,750 acres east and south of Plant 42 in 1970-83 for a 'Palmdale Intercontinental Airport' — mostly in unincorporated county land — and never developed beyond the small terminal; the City took over airport operations at the end of 2013 via the Palmdale Airport Authority. The terminal shares Plant 42's runways. No scheduled service since December 2008. |
Government | —A |
| Avenue M and Sierra Highway site (future airport and AVCC industrial land) Southeast corner of Avenue M (Columbia Way) and Sierra Hwy, Palmdale 616 acres |
Land | City of Palmdale The City's Gov. Code 52201 report: 'The City of Palmdale acquired 616 total acres of vacant land at the southeast corner of Avenue M and Sierra Highway for $18,000,000.00 or $0.67 per square foot' (no date stated, so no acquired entry). An amended PSA sells a Primary Tract — Phase A, about 123 acres at $2.30/sq ft, or Phase C, about 110 acres at $3.50/sq ft — to AVCC Master LLC, 'an affiliate of Covington Investments, LLC', for industrial or flex buildings; appraisals of 6 Aug 2021 ($1.43/sq ft) and 8 Feb 2025. The City's airport page (s8) says a future passenger airport is planned there 'on 600-acres owned by the city'. Whether escrow has closed is not stated. |
Government | —A |
| DryTown Water Park and Palmdale Amphitheater Palmdale (street addresses not stated in the ACFR) |
Civic | City of Palmdale The City ACFR FY2025: the Water Park fund 'accounts for the operation of the City owned Dry Town Water Park'; DryTown admissions were 77,384 in the latest year and amphitheater attendance 47,507. The ACFR's capital-asset statistics list one 'Amphitheatre' and one 'Aquatics Facility - Water Park' among City cultural and recreational assets, alongside 21 parks (576 developed acres). City ownership of the amphitheater rests on that asset count, not a statement in terms. |
Government | —A |
| Trader Joe's distribution facility 700 W Columbia Way (Avenue M), Palmdale, CA 93551 (roll) 1,047,904 sq ft (roll) |
Industrial | Not established a paid title search would answer it The most valuable parcel on Palmdale's 2026 roll: 700 W Columbia Way, coded 'Food Processing Plant', 1,047,904 sq ft, built 2025, $609.5M, deed recorded 27 Jun 2023, land base year 2024. The City ACFR FY2025 reports 'continued planning for phases two and three of the Trader Joe's facility, totaling more than one million square feet'. Trade press found by search says Trader Joe's bought a 117-acre site at Avenue M and 10th St W for $15.75M, but the publishers' terms bar automated reading (Grocery Dive) or the host is Cloudflare-blocked (Connect CRE), so neither the buyer entity nor the price is claimed. Linking the parcel to Trader Joe's is ours. |
Not established | —B |
| Palmdale Transportation Center and high-speed-rail station area 39000 Clock Tower Plaza Dr, Palmdale, CA 93550 |
Civic | City of Palmdale The City's page calls the PTC a regional multimodal hub for AVTA buses and Metrolink; the ACFR's capital-asset statistics count one 'Transportation Center' among City public-services assets. The public-parcels layer shows dozens of 'PALMDALE CITY' parcels around Sierra Hwy and Palmdale Blvd (most deeded 9 Dec 2002) beside LACMTA rail-corridor parcels (LA Metro holds 19 parcels in the city). The City is planning the station area with the California High-Speed Rail Authority (s19). Who will hold Brightline West or High Desert Corridor station land was not found in any document read. Tier B: the PTC parcel itself was not singled out. |
Government | —B |
2
The core land
The most valuable ground in the city, and what the public record says about it.
The County's 2026 roll is open and gives values for every parcel but names no owners; the City's audited report reprints the ten largest taxpayers. Values are Proposition 13 roll values, not market prices; the taxpayer figures include business (unsecured) property and possessory interests at Plant 42.
City taxable assessed value, FY2024-25$18.21B
Up from $10.97B in FY2015-16. City ACFR FY2025, Principal Property Taxpayers schedule (HdL Coren & Cone).
2026 roll, Palmdale tax-rate city48,915 parcels; $19.22B land + improvements ($5.59B land)
Our sum over the County's Assessor Parcel Data Roll 2026 (TaxRateArea_CITY = PALMDALE), read Oct 2026.
Ten largest property taxpayers, FY2024-25$2.20B, 12.10% of the roll
Lockheed Corporation $765.4M; Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation $593.9M; Lancaster Hospital Corporation $273.4M; Antelope Valley Shop LLC $179.7M; Walmart/Sams Club $91.4M; Hastings Ranch Shopping Center LP $71.1M; Spectrum Pacific West LLC $69.1M; Allegra Palmdale LLC $62.1M; Golden Spectrum Property LLC $49.5M; 2018 1 IH Borrower LP $47.3M. FY2015-16 top ten: $1.21B (11.05%). City ACFR FY2025.
Highest-valued parcel, 2026 roll$609.5M (700 W Columbia Way)
1,047,904 sq ft 'Food Processing Plant', built 2025; next 1011 Lockheed Way $469.1M and 38600 Medical Center Dr (hospital) $264.9M. County roll 2026.
City land at cost, 30 June 2025$151.2M
Governmental activities, capital assets not depreciated; plus $3.25M land held for development. The Successor Agency's remaining former-redevelopment land is carried at $146,788 after sales under its Long Range Property Management Plan. City ACFR FY2025.
3
Who owns the town
At this scale the significant owner is rarely a trust or a fund: it is one or two local holding companies, a family in its second or third generation, and often the land around the town rather than the buildings in it.
Public bodies hold most of Palmdale's large tracts. The County Assessor's public-parcels layer names them: the United States (Plant 42), the State's Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy (open space in the south), the City and its Housing Authority, the City of Los Angeles (LAWA and LADWP), the county sanitation district, school districts and water agencies. Acres are our sums of parcel areas in the layer for Palmdale's tax-rate area, Web-Mercator corrected, so approximate. Private holders are known only from the City's taxpayer list. Southern California Edison and Union Pacific are not in the public layer, and no filing read gave their Palmdale holdings.
| Name | Type | Parcels in city / approx. acres |
|---|---|---|
| United States (Air Force) Plant 42; deeds 1957-1975 ('U S GOVT'). |
Government | 26 parcels, about 5,480 acresA |
| State of California — Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy 'STATE OF CALIF SANTA MONICA MTNS CONSERV', deeds of 19 Jul 1996, south Palmdale hills. Other State of California parcels: 39, about 810 acres. |
Government | 9 parcels, about 4,090 acresA |
| City of Palmdale 'PALMDALE CITY' and variants. Includes the 616-acre Avenue M / Sierra Hwy site bought for $18M (s9). The Palmdale Housing Authority holds 35 more (about 170 acres); land at cost from the ACFR. |
Government | about 704 parcels, about 2,200 acres; land at cost $151.2MA |
| City of Los Angeles (LAWA) 'L A CITY' / 'L A CITY LAWA ACCOUNTS PAYABLE', deeds of 1973-1977, plus 4 LADWP parcels (about 130 acres). Most of LAWA's roughly 17,750 acres lie outside city limits (s7). |
Government | 118 parcels, about 1,130 acresA |
| County Sanitation District No. 20 of Los Angeles County Name variants combined. County of Los Angeles proper (incl. Waterworks Districts 4, 34, 40 and Flood Control) holds 48 parcels, about 270 acres. |
Government | 180 parcels, about 620 acresA |
| Palmdale School District Name variants combined. Antelope Valley Union High School District: 14 parcels, about 320 acres; Westside Union School District: 7, about 75 acres; Antelope Valley Community College District: 3 vacant parcels, about 60 acres near Barrel Springs Rd and 25th St E (deeds Feb 2008). |
Government | 88 parcels, about 400 acresA |
| Palmdale Water District Plus Antelope Valley-East Kern Water Agency (22 parcels, about 150 acres) and small irrigation districts. |
Government | 48 parcels, about 205 acresA |
| Lockheed Martin Corporation The largest private holder by value on the City roll (ACFR FY2025). Acreage not stated. |
Public company | $765.4M taxable valueA |
5
Who builds the houses
New-home building in this market: the volume, and the firms behind it. Ownership of a builder matters as much as its volume — a private-equity platform and a family firm behave differently.
New homes in Palmdale come from tract subdivisions on the city's west side (Anaverde, Joshua Ranch, Ritter Ranch community facilities districts) and east side. The City's Planning page lists active tracts with lot counts by builder; it is undated and is not a units-completed count. No public builder reports Palmdale separately.
| Name | Type | Lots in active tracts (City list) |
|---|---|---|
| Pacific Communities TR 54058 between 20th and 25th St W south of Ave P-8 (492 lots); TR 69651 at Palmdale Blvd and 60th St E (75). |
Private company | 567 lots (492 under construction; 75 under review)A |
| City Ventures TR 60028 at 65th St E and Avenue R. |
Private company | 162 lots under constructionA |
| Homes 4 Families TR 52200/69169 at Elizabeth Lake Rd and Joshua Ranch Rd (105) and TR 73740 south of Palmdale Blvd east of Division St (56). |
Private company | 161 lots under constructionA |
| Richmond American Homes (M.D.C. Holdings) TR 54209 at Avenue R and 35th St E. Parent ownership is general knowledge (MDC was acquired by Sekisui House in 2024), not stated on the City page. |
Public company | 95 lots under constructionB |
| Frontier Homes TR 60789 at Noll Dr and 40th St E. Also listed without counts: Global Premier (TR 74927) and Ravello Holdings (TR 61611/61981). |
Private company | tract listed, no lot countA |
6
Commercial landlords
The commercial side, counted separately from housing: who holds the office, retail and industrial floor area.
Palmdale's commercial base is aerospace at Plant 42, then retail and a growing logistics belt on Avenue M. The figures are the City ACFR's taxable values (land, buildings, equipment and possessory interests together), with floor area where a filing states it. The City says more than 13 million sq ft of industrial space is in development, including the 9.4M sq ft Antelope Valley Commerce Center and the 3.0M sq ft Palmdale Logistics Center (s17); their owners were not established.
| Name | Type | Taxable value FY2025 / floor area |
|---|---|---|
| Lockheed Martin (Lockheed Corporation) 4.20% of the City roll, up from $362.0M (3.30%) in FY2016. Includes Skunk Works at 1011 Lockheed Way. 4,151 employees. |
Public company | $765.4M taxable value (rank 1)A |
| Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation 3.26%, up from $148.6M in FY2016 — the B-21 build-up. Largest employer in the valley (9,476). Northrop's 10-K (s11) does not say which Palmdale space it owns versus leases from the Air Force. |
Public company | $593.9M taxable value (rank 2)A |
| Universal Health Services (Lancaster Hospital Corporation) UHS's 10-K lists Palmdale Regional Medical Center as owned. The tie between UHS and 'Lancaster Hospital Corporation' rests on matching value, not a stated link. |
Public company | $273.4M taxable value (rank 3); 190-bed hospitalB |
| Mershops / Steerpoint Capital (Antelope Valley Shop LLC) The mall bought for $60M in December 2022. That 'Antelope Valley Shop LLC' is their vehicle is a match of names, not stated. |
Private company | $179.7M taxable value (rank 4); about 1M sq ftB |
| Walmart (Walmart/Sams Club) City ACFR FY2025; three supercenters employ 1,199. |
Public company | $91.4M taxable value (rank 5)A |
| Invitation Homes (2018 1 IH Borrower LP) Single-family rental homes; that the LP is an Invitation Homes securitisation borrower is inferred from the name pattern, not stated in a document read. |
REIT | $47.3M taxable value (rank 10)B |
?
Looked for and not found
Claims this page would have made if a source could be opened. They are left out rather than guessed.
- Northrop Grumman B-21 production site (Plant 42 Site 4) and Boeing's Palmdale site: whether the buildings are Air Force-owned (GOCO) or contractor-owned is not stated in either company's 10-K.
- Trader Joe's facility at 700 W Columbia Way: buyer entity and the reported $15.75M land price come from trade press that could not be read under its terms.
- Antelope Valley Mall: what the deed recorded 19 Aug 2025 conveyed; whether 'Antelope Valley Shop LLC' is the Mershops/Steerpoint vehicle.
- Who stands behind Hastings Ranch Shopping Center LP, Spectrum Pacific West LLC, Allegra Palmdale LLC and Golden Spectrum Property LLC (ACFR top taxpayers).
- Antelope Valley Commerce Center (9.4M sq ft) and Palmdale Logistics Center (3.0M sq ft): owners not established; whether the AVCC Master LLC escrow on City land has closed.
- Brightline West / High Desert Corridor / California HSR station land: no acquisition by those agencies found in a document read.
- Large solar and battery projects in or near Palmdale: none verified to an owner and a location inside city limits.
- Antelope Valley College Palmdale Center: the district's Palmdale parcels are vacant land; the operating centre's site and tenure not read.
- Southern California Edison and Union Pacific land in Palmdale: not in the public-parcels layer and not itemised in any filing read.
- Palmdale Regional Medical Center: that 'Lancaster Hospital Corporation' is UHS's owning subsidiary is a value match, not stated.
§
Sources
- Assessor Parcel Data Roll 2026 (feature service) — values, use, recording date; no owner field — Los Angeles County Office of the Assessor / LA County eGIS · openA
- Assessor Publicly Owned Parcels (Current) — names the owning public agency per parcel — Los Angeles County Office of the Assessor / LA County eGIS · openA
- Real Estate Records — General Info: 'Our office does not provide online access to real estate records or indexes' — Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk · openA
- View Real Estate Records — 'The fee for a certified copy of a document is $6 for the first page and $3 for each additional page per document' — Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk · openA
- City of Palmdale Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, FY ended 30 June 2025 — Principal Property Taxpayers (p.200), Principal Employers (p.210), land held for development, capital-asset statistics — City of Palmdale · openA
- United States Air Force Plant 42 — Wikipedia · openB
- Palmdale Regional Airport — Wikipedia · openB
- Palmdale Regional Airport — future airport 'on 600-acres owned by the city' adjacent to Plant 42 — City of Palmdale · openA
- Summary Report pursuant to Gov. Code 52201 on the Amended and Restated PSA between the City of Palmdale and AVCC Master LLC (an affiliate of Covington Investments, LLC) — City of Palmdale · openA
- Lockheed Martin Corporation Form 10-K for 2025 — Item 2 Properties — SEC EDGAR · openA
- Northrop Grumman Corporation Form 10-K for 2025 — Item 2 Properties — SEC EDGAR · openA
- Universal Health Services, Inc. Form 10-K for 2025 — Item 2 Properties (acute care hospitals, owned/leased) — SEC EDGAR · openA
- Universal Health Realty Income Trust Form 10-K for 2025 — property table and Schedule III — SEC EDGAR · openA
- Bridgepoint Group Investments, Steerpoint Capital Acquire North Los Angeles Shopping Center for $60 Million (12 Dec 2022) — Shopping Center Business (France Media) · openA
- Mershops Antelope Valley Mall — Wikipedia · openB
- Housing Development — residential tracts, lots and builders — City of Palmdale Planning · openA
- Industrial Leasing Opportunities — '13 million square feet of industrial space in development'; AVCC 9.4M sq ft; Palmdale Logistics Center 3,001,712 sq ft — City of Palmdale Economic Development · openA
- Palmdale Transportation Center — 39000 Clock Tower Plaza Drive — City of Palmdale · openA
- Palmdale Multimodal High Speed Rail Station Area — station area planning with the California High-Speed Rail Authority — City of Palmdale · openA
- Terms of Use (governs grocerydive.com): '(c) use any data mining, robots or similar data gathering or extraction methods' — Informa TechTarget · openA