MONTECITO, CA – The Old Firehouse building at 1486 East Valley Rd in Montecito was purchased by an unnamed investor with ties to the Santa Barbara area. The sale price was not disclosed, but the property was listed for $16 million.
Francois DeJohn, Kristopher Roth, and Caitlin McCahill Hensel of Hayes Commercial Group represented all parties in the transaction.
The 6,357 square-foot office building prominently fronts East Valley Road in the heart of Montecito’s Upper Village. It is currently leased by Union Bank with approximately nine years of term remaining. The landmark building, built in 1931 and originally serving as the regional firehouse, was designed in classic Spanish Colonial Revival style by award-winning architect Alexander Bertrand Harmer.
“This is one of our area’s unique and historic commercial properties, which don’t change ownership often,” Roth said. “That fact, combined with the existing long-term lease with a credit tenant, enabled the property to command a very high price.”
Hayes Commercial Group has completed 22 commercial and investment sales valued at $167 million to date in 2019, including four of the top five South Coast sales by price.
“This is the latest in a series of high-value office property sales on the South Coast,” DeJohn said. “Office has been the dominant property type among commercial sales so far this year, with both investors and owner-users playing an active role.”
“Commercial property in Montecito very rarely changes hands, especially in the Upper Village,” Hensel added. “Which makes pricing a trophy asset like this an interesting challenge.”