By Jason Chow 

After snapping up luxury condos and commercial properties in New York and Los Angeles, Asian investors are now training their eyes on U.S. apartment buildings.

Investment from Asia into U.S. multifamily real estate is set to reach record highs this year, according to a report released by real-estate firm CBRE. Asians have already snapped up $522-million worth of multifamily properties during the first eight months of the year, near the 2013 total of $537 million and surpassing the 2012 total of $356 million.

"Asian investors understand residential, especially those in dense, downtown areas," said Marc Giuffrida, executive director at CBRE Global Capital Markets.

Asian buyers now make up 18% of foreign investment in the asset class--an increase from 8%--while Canadian buyers remain the top foreign investors in the multifamily category. Asian buyers' purchases show that they are moving beyond deals for marquee office buildings and hotels and into more-mundane but often more-profitable areas of real estate.

Where are Asians buying? San Francisco ranked first, attracting $326 million worth of purchases since January 2013, while Los Angeles was second at $252 million, followed by New York at $175 million.

While investing more in apartment buildings, Asian investors still prefer to buy single properties, as opposed to portfolios of multiple buildings, Mr. Giuffrida said. He added that transactions were typically $10 million to $70 million.

"We haven't seen the sale with the big number yet," he said. "But we'll see the trend accelerate. The private wealth of the market is just starting to pick up. There are more to come."

Write to Jason Chow at jason.chow@wsj.com