Looking to invest elsewhere, GPR Ventures has sold a three-building portfolio in Sacramento’s Point West area for $10.9 million.
Escrow closed Thursday on the properties, which total about 73,000 square feet at 1540, 1555, and 1565 River Park Drive. Davis-based Kevlyn Investments was the buyer.
Phil Rolla, a co-founder and managing principal at GPR, said his firm bought the buildings at an auction four years ago after they’d fallen into foreclosure. Records indicate GPR paid about $5 million at the time.
“We feel like the new buyer still has some upside because we think rents are still on the rise,” Rolla said.
When GPR Ventures bought the buildings, occupancy was about 45%, Rolla said. The company put an improvement strategy into place with components such as new paint and updated landscaping, renovated lobbies and an upgraded on-site deli for tenants. Occupancy is now 92%, he said.
It made sense to sell because GPR Ventures is turning its attention to a wider area and more industrial properties, said Rolla and co-founder, Glen Yonekura. Even so, Yonekura said, there was a lot of internal debate about pulling the trigger because they liked the property.
“I think our strategy over the last 24 months is that once we’ve executed our business plan, we want to make sure to sell non-core assets,” he said. “In expanding our footprint, it made sense to take this off the table.”
“You never want to sell something where we’ve achieved all the rental growth,” Rolla said.
Kevlyn Investments, which didn’t return a message left for comment Friday, owns other properties in Point West, he said.
Cushman & Wakefield brokers Sean Mullen, Kevin Partington, and Spencer Nielsen worked on the property for both leasing and the sale.