BEVERLY HILLS, CA—An apartment complex in Beverly Hills has traded hands for nearly $1 million over the list price. A private investor buys the 22-unit apartment complex from an investor listed under the name 6401 Wilshire Blvd. LLC for $10.1 million, $875,000 more than the list price for the property. Located at 444-446 Oakhurst Drive, the property is zoned for condo development, which was a major driver of pricing on the property.

“The property is definitely a development site to eventually build condos,” Tony Azzi, president of Azzi Advisors of Marcus & Millichap, tells GlobeSt.com. “The seller was not planning to develop the property, so they decided to sell the property and place the proceeds into a more income-producing asset. We marketed it as an apartment building with the potential to be a development site, and we got a lot of bids from developers.” Azzi represented the seller in the transaction along with Rabbie Banafsheha of Azzi Advisors and Jordana Leigh of Rodeo Realty.

Azzi received 15 offers for the property, eight of which were over the list price. In the end, he says that there were two buyers competing for the asset, and the seller went with the highest and best offer. The final sales price on the property will give the seller 24.35 times the gross rent multiplier on the deal. As for the buyer, Azzi says he will hold the property as an apartment complex, and will develop it at the right time.

“Deals like this in Beverly Hills don't become available very often,” says Azzi, who notes that it was a combination of the location and the development potential that drove interest from investors. “It is a very tight market, so when something surfaces in Beverly Hills investors pay special attention to it.”

Not every property in Beverly Hills gets this much competition, however. A joint venture recently secured a $30 million loan to acquire the Beverly Hills Country Club, but found it difficult to find a lender willing to provide the funding. Ultimately, Bradford Allen partnered with Security Benefit Life Insurance Co. to supply the funds because of the inherent value of the land.