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Colonial Revival building holding Mills Act Historic Designation brings $270,000 per unit

(San Diego, Calif.) April 22, 2020 – San Diego-based commercial real estate investment firm SENTRE announces the sale of The Sterling, a 27-unit apartment building at 470 20th Street, San Diego, CA 92102 in the historic Sherman Heights neighborhood near Downtown San Diego. Sold for $7.3 million or $270,000 per unit, the property’s buyer is Highlands REIT, Inc., which represented itself. In this transaction, SENTRE as the seller was represented by Berkadia Real Estate Advisors including Ed Rosen, John Chu and Tyler Sinks.

The Sterling, a Colonial Revival mid-rise building known as Sophie’s Arms prior to being renamed after its original architect William “Sterling” Hebbard, offers 27 studio and one bedroom units. Built in 1908, The Sterling holds a Mills Act Historic Designation as part of the Historic Sherman Heights District, and from its location at the corner of 20th Street and Island Avenue offers immediate access to Downtown San Diego’s East Village and Petco Park.

The property was originally acquired by SENTRE in April 2016 for $5.3 million as part of SENTRE’s “Living” brand, which has included investments in nearly a dozen other properties throughout San Diego County.

“The Sterling embodies our investment thesis to source highly differentiated opportunities in high demand or path-of-progress locations with strong value-added upside potential. We are pleased to have executed successfully on our investment strategy,” said Doug Arthur, President and CEO of SENTRE.