The market has churned through most of these broken projects, particularly those located on LA’s Westside. Still, we see them once in a while, coincidentally closing two of them on this July date – the other being located in a fashionable neighborhood of La Jolla.
The challenge is always the same – look past the turbulence and eyesore, sensibly underwrite to current market conditions, and do this while providing immediate deal certainty. In this case, we had a late week phone call about a long-stalled multi-family project, an expired permit, lost Inspection Card, no approved plans, the need to back up before advancing construction, a narrowing, irregular lot and a highly impatient, unrealistic seller. The good news, however, was location, zoning and strong, experienced sponsorship – in the end, it was that simple.
Seattle Funding Group of California provided the immediate deal certainty required for this one-week closing, performed the site inspection on a Sunday morning, rolled-up our sleeves, underwrote the loan to land value…and got it done. Responsive bridge financing made easy by a common-sense, portfolio lender with a 27 year track record. Thanks again to our old friend Mickey Hedges of Coldwell Banker Previews International, one of LA’s Westside brokerage professionals. Mickey works weekends, too, and is always helpful in sharing his insight on current market conditions and values on the Westside.
