Investor bankruptcy staves off auction of Beverly Hills mansion

Investor Cody Holmes has filed for bankruptcy on a Beverly Hills mansion in an effort to block one of his lenders from foreclosing on the property. 

Holmes, who controls a company called Holmes Capital, filed a Chapter 11 petition for 9301 Cherokee Lane, a seven-bed, 11-bath mansion, on Sept. 25, court records show. The bankruptcy filing staved off a foreclosure sale scheduled the next day by PMF CA REIT, a Calabasas-based entity managed by Edward Fischer. According to court records, PMF holds a first priority lien on the property for $9.1 million in debt. PMF did not respond to a request for comment. 

BMO Harris Bank holds a second priority lien on the asset. In his bankruptcy petition, Holmes declared the claim as “disputed” with the total amount declared as “unknown.” 

The property, which is described in listings as a “ luxurious estate reminiscent of (a) Santa Barbara-style resort,” spans 11,900 square feet and includes a two-bedroom stand-alone guest house, a gym and a pool. The property was sold in July 2022 for $13.4 million, listing sites show. In a court filing, Holmes’ lawyer estimated the value of the property at more than $25 million.

According to a case status report on Oct. 17, Holmes’ lawyer claimed that 9301 Cherokee Lane LLC, the Holmes-controlled entity that owns the mansion, is looking at a “2-track approach” on the asset that involves either refinancing or selling the property. Holmes has already “obtained initial expressions of interest for financing,” according to the filing.

The bankruptcy adds to the growing list of distressed luxury properties in wealthy enclaves of Los Angeles. In July, investor Kaysan Ghasseminejad filed for bankruptcy on a Beverly Hills mansion that sits adjacent to the Los Angeles Country Club. In September, Linda Kerkorian Kemper, the daughter of late billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, allegedly defaulted on $867,932 in debt in relation to a mansion in the affluent enclave of Malibu Colony.