Baker & McKenzie LLP Two Embarcadero Center, 11th Floor San Francisco, CA  94111-3802, USA   Tel: +1 415 576 3000 Fax: +1 415 576 3099 www.bakernet.com       Stephen J. Schrader Tel: +1 415 576 3028 stephen.j.schrader@bakernet.com   Via Edgar

Asia Pacific Bangkok Beijing Hanoi Ho Chi Minh City Hong Kong Jakarta Kuala Lumpur Manila Melbourne Shanghai Singapore Sydney Taipei Tokyo   Europe & Middle East Almaty Amsterdam Antwerp Bahrain Baku Barcelona Berlin Bologna Brussels Budapest Cairo Düsseldorf Frankfurt / Main Geneva Kyiv London Madrid Milan Moscow Munich Paris Prague Riyadh Rome St. Petersburg Stockholm Vienna Warsaw Zurich   North & South America Bogotá Brasilia Buenos Aires Caracas Chicago Chihuahua Dallas Guadalajara Houston Juarez Mexico City Miami Monterrey New York Palo Alto Porto Alegre Rio de Janeiro San Diego San Francisco Santiago Sao Paulo Tijuana Toronto Valencia Washington, DC April 1, 2009   Howard Efron, Staff Accountant Division of Corporation Finance United States Securities and Exchange Commission 100 F Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20549   RE:     Comment Letter to Essex Property Trust, Inc. dated April 1, 2009   Dear Mr. Efron:   We represent Essex Property Trust, Inc. (“Essex”).  We refer to the SEC’s comment letter, dated April 1, 2009, regarding Essex’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008, filed February 27, 2009 (File No. 001-13106).  Per a voicemail message to you, Essex would like an extension of time to May 1, 2009, by which to respond to that comment letter.  If such an extension of time is a problem, please contact me.   Sincerely,   /s/ Stephen J. Schrader   Stephen J. Schrader

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