LOS ANGELES—A local investor has purchased a 36-unitapartment building in the MacArthur Park area ofDowntown Los Angeles with plans to convert the building into amixed-use complex by addingretail space. Closing in an incredible 17 days,the transaction illustrates the high demand for mixed-useconversion properties in the downtown market.

Because this is a distressed asset, it presented a series ofchallenges. Sperry Van Ness Rich Investment Real EstatePartners' Shiva Monify, who representedboth the buyer and the seller in the transaction, had to resolve $2million in existing debt on the property. Additionally, theproperty had excessive code violations from the City of Los Angelesthat had to be resolved before the sale of the property. Despiteall of these hurdles, the Monify was able to close the transactionin less than a month.

Located at 800 S. Burlington Ave. in Los Angeles, the propertyis in a high-demand area where 1,600 units are currently underconstruction just blocks away. The buyer purchased the property for$3.4 million, buy plans to invest significant capital to repositionthe asset and add retail space. Currently, the building is 90%occupied.