Mike Lawrence of Marcus & Millichap, who represented the buyer and the seller, tells GlobeSt.com that the business park, which is fully occupied, attracted more than a dozen prospective buyers.
"We had a small number of instititutional investors bidding on it, but mainly the buyers were limited partnerships and individuals," Lawrence tells GlobeSt.com. He says the number of bidders illustrates the strong and growing demand for industrial properties in Southern California from investors as well as owner-users.
"Industrial properties are in as much demand as I've seen in 12 years," Lawrence tells GlobeSt.com. He says the volatility of the stock market is one factor, bringing in prospective buyers who have taken money out of stocks. Low interest rates help drive demand, too, Lawrence says, but he says low interest rates also are one reason that relatively few industrial properties are on the market.
"A lot of would-be sellers can refinance and take the equity out of their buildings rather than having to sell," he explains.
The dollar volume and number of transactions are actually down from their peak in 1998, Lawrence says. "There are fewer properties for sale," he says, "but the properties in play are getting a lot of activity."
The Park La Habra business park was built in 1986 and underwent a remodeling two years ago. It is a single-story, concrete tilt-up, four-building development with 18 tenants. The largest tenant is Mercury Casualty Insurance Co., which has a records storage facility at the site.
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