Expanding Distributor Has Space to Spare

A small Sylmar metal distributor has bought larger headquarters with extra space it plans to lease. High Temp Metals Inc. purchased a nearly 100,000-square-foot warehouse at 12500 Foothill Blvd. in Sylmar. The $9.9 million deal closed last month, said Brent Weirick, senior vice president at the Encino office of Colliers International, who represented the buyer. “The client needed to expand in a tight market. High Temp was able to sell their existing building and close on their new facility within a 30 day window,” he said. The building was up for lease but High Temp was able to arrange a sale of the large industrial building near the Ronald Reagan (118) and Foothill (210) freeways, a rarity in the tight East Valley industrial market. The company, founded in 1972, is headquartered at a 40,000 square foot warehouse just a few miles away at 12910 San Fernando Road. High Temp sold that building for about $4 million in December, but plans to remain there through April as offices are built at the Foothill Boulevard building. High Temp will only occupy about 60,000 square feet of the new building, with the remainder being marketed by Colliers at about 62 cents a square foot, which was unexpected. “It’s really about being able to expand, it just happened to work out that way,” said Ben Edwards, president of the metals distributor. Gian Starita, vice president with Colliers, also represented High Temp, and Ross Thomas at Delphi Business Properties Inc. represented the seller, 102 Percent Group Investment Co. of Sun Valley. American Nuts Inc., a roaster and manufacturer of domestic and imported nuts and dried fruits, has signed a lease to take over the San Fernando Road building, moving from a slightly smaller facility nearby. NoHo Living A small collection of detached single family homes has opened for sale in North Hollywood. MBK Homes of Irvine showed off plans for its $10 million Vineland Metro project this month. The development of 27 small-lot, two-story homes ranges from 1,600 to 1,900 square feet, with up to three bathrooms, five bedrooms and two-car garages. Houses start in the low $400,000 for the project at Vineland Avenue and Kittridge Street about two miles from the core of NoHo Arts District. With 20 percent down at current interest rates that means monthly mortgage payments could total about $1,825 for a 30-year loan. That is highly competitive with new high-end apartments closer to the district. For example, monthly rental rates at the recently completed upscale Hesby, 5031 Fair Ave., start at about $1,900 for a studio. Rick Fletcher, vice president of sales and marketing for MBK, said more than 500 people came out to see the project opening weekend and all six homes up for sale were reserved. Fletcher said the developer has released an additional seven thus far, six of which were also picked up. “If you think about the area and what you can buy for this price, you think about a condo, obsolete home, or an old bungalow that needs work,” he said. “This project is so close to major employment centers and there is so little inventory. There’s a lot of pent-up demand.” The houses will feature amenities such as stainless steel appliances, granite countertops and interior laundry with gas hook-ups. MBK is owned by Mitsui & Co. Ltd. of Tokyo, a multinational firm that owns companies in diverse industries. MBK has other Southern California home developments in Signal Hill, Costa Mesa and Stanton. Debt Deal Owners of Fickett Towers, a 200-unit low-income senior housing development in Van Nuys, have secured a long-term loan to pay down acquisition and renovation costs. California Commercial Investments of Thousand Oaks received an $18.4 million loan arranged by Johnson Capital, an Irvine real estate capital advisory firm. The Conejo Valley firm had taken out a short-term bridge loan when it bought the 18401 Sherman Way property for more than $15.3 million in February 2012. Since the acquisition, California Commercial has installed a new roof, made other improvements. “There’s a shortage of affordable housing and this building has demonstrated high occupancy with a lengthy waiting list, so it’s a smart investment for us,” said Jeff Kearns, vice president at Johnson Capital. The 12-story, 135,000-square-foot tower was built in 1974 and is fully leased with Section 8 tenants. Staff Reporter Elliot Golan can be reached at (818)316-3123 or [email protected].