48 hours to close: How ULA supercharged a mansion sale

With the deadline looming on L.A.’s mansion tax, real estate agents and escrow officers are hustling to close escrows in a few days.

Case in point: 425 South Plymouth Boulevard in the Windsor Square neighborhood. The house  sold for $16 million on March 29. The escrow closed in a speed-of-light two days. 

Escrows typically take more than a month to close, in order to slog through paperwork, said Gracie Jaramillo, a senior escrow officer and branch manager with Corner Escrow. She was not connected with the deal for 425 South Plymouth, but she has worked on escrows that closed in five days. 

“A two-day escrow is record-breaking,” she said.

The need for speed came from Measure ULA, the city’s so-called “mansion tax,” which levies 4 percent on property sales above $5 million and 5.5 percent for deals above $10 million. The tax goes into effect on April 1.

The escrow for 425 South Plymouth opened on March 27 and closed March 29, according to listing agents Brent Watson and Marco Salari of Watson Salari Group at Coldwell Banker Realty, and Tyrone McKillen of Official. McKillen also served as the seller of the mansion. 

McKillen’s company, Plus Development Group, and McKillen’s cousin Kane Olszowski bought 425 South Plymouth for $7.5 million in 2021. Olszowski and Plus Development did an extensive remodel on the home, which was built in 1917. The remodel included the addition of 3,000 square feet to the main house.

Benjamin Illulian of Illulian Realty represented the buyer, whose identity was not disclosed.

Illulian’s client confirmed that he wanted to make an offer on the house Sunday night, March 26. Illulian contacted McKillen and the two hashed out the deal over a few phone calls. Since the ULA deadline was looming, the parties knew that speed was of the essence.

“If there were other agents, I don’t think this deal would have happened,” Illulian said.

This month, Plus Development closed five separate deals with escrows in a matter of days, McKillen noted. “It has been a frenzy with this tax coming,” he said. 

The deal for 425 South Plymouth would have been canceled if it did not close by March 31, according to contract provisions, or there would be an increase in the purchase price of 5.5 percent. 

The undisclosed buyer got a deal. 425 South Plymouth was initially listed at almost $20 million on Feb. 2. However, the listing agents said that the $16 million closing price still represents a neighborhood record for Windsor Square. 

A few conditions supercharged the escrow process. First, the buyer paid in cash. There was no paperwork from lenders to get through, Watson said. “Normally, someone would want a 17-day contingency on a house like this — it’s a lot to look at,” he said of the 11,000-square-foot property.

Waiving inspections was part of the deal. However, the buyer had seen a number of Plus Development Group’s listings, and the buyer was comfortable enough with the house to waive such contingencies. The buyer and McKillen did an informal walk-through of the house after the buyer made an announcement of the offer.

In case the buyer did want to see inspections, all the reports on the condition of the mansion were readily available since Plus Development wrapped up a remodel just prior to the sale. 

The house features amenities such as a 75-foot lap pool with a spa, a guesthouse and a cinema, as well as a renovated speakeasy bar, where the Jazz Age first owners of the mansion drank alcoholic beverages during Prohibition.

Comps for 425 South Plymouth provided by the listing site Redfin include a 7,000-square-foot home at 226 South Windsor Boulevard, which was sold for $10.5 million.