Developer Eli Sasson filed for Chapter 11 protections to avoid foreclosure on a Beverly Hills mansion he listed for $88 million three years ago.
The octogenarian builder, known for his battle to redevelop the South Los Angeles site of the 1992 Rodney King riots, completed the meticulously designed eight-bedroom home at 620 Arkell Drive in the Trousdale Estates in 2020 and put it on the market in 2022, as The Real Deal previously reported.
But the listing was removed the following year and Sasson took out a $25 million bridge loan with a balloon rider against the home from Axos Bank. Axos then sold the debt — which came due in March — to a shell company tied to Daniel and Andrew Wrublin’s New York-based Dalan Real Estate, according to L.A. County property records and state business filings.
Dalan initiated foreclose proceedings against the home in April, citing a past due balance on Sasson’s debt of $28.6 million, according to pre-foreclosure information provided by title company First American Title. An auction date is set for Aug. 5.
Sasson — who immigrated to the United States from Israel and founded the Los Angeles-based firm Sassony Commercial Real Estate — is putting up a fight. He filed for bankruptcy to halt the auction last Friday, according to federal bankruptcy court records in the Central District of California.
Axos never should have sold the debt, Sasson argued in court filings. He said he’s facing a wrongful foreclosure based on a false claim of default.
“They said it defaulted without any evidence at all,” Sasson told TRD. “He basically filed a notice of default and foreclosure because we didn’t pay $25 million four months before we owed it. It’s called a balloon payment.”
A spokesperson for Axos declined to answer specific questions from TRD, but contested Sasson’s characterization of the $25 million note as a bridge loan.
“What is the intent of the borrower? We don’t know,” the Axos spokesperson said. “Will they refinance it? They don’t tell us in advance. Maybe they intended to stay in the home for longer and now they want to sell it.”
A spokesperson for Dalan did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Paul McClean-designed mansion is still for sale, according to Sasson. He said he’s hoping it will fetch about $100 million.
Read more
