The three-story building at 180 Main St. in Annapolis has been sold to real estate developer Carrollton Enterprises for $3.025 million, MacKenzie Commercial Real Estate, which represented the seller and brokered the deal, said.

The property is just over 7,400 square feet and holds a mix of street-level retail, apartments and office space. The sale was announced Wednesday.

The building’s previous owner, Annapolis Business Park, originally hired MacKenzie around two years ago to fill vacant office space, according to its vice president, Morgan Wimbrow. Due to changing market conditions, MacKenzie recommended instead selling the property as a whole to someone who would be able to fill the space themselves, an owner-user.

“It depends on the buyer and their sophistication, but what we call owner-user sales are loved by banks because they’re less risky,” said David McClatchey, MacKenzie’s senior vice president and principal. “A sophisticated owner realizes the benefits of owning real estate versus leasing, which takes into account not only appreciation, but depreciation.”

As for the price, though McClatchey and Wimbrow said that owner-users typically pay more than a normal buyer, as opportunities to do so are generally in short supply, putting the price towards the top relative to the rest of the Downtown Annapolis market. Nearby, about a week ago, 188 Main St. sold for $3.3 million.

McClatchey said that the building’s mixed-use is one thing that made it so attractive, as well as the seller’s installation of modern amenities. Usually, older buildings like the ones on Main Street don’t have modern heating, sprinklers and HVAC systems, so “second-floor office spaces” end up being difficult to market to businesses. Annapolis Business Park installing those amenities, plus an elevator, along with converting some of the office space into apartments, makes it so that a premium rent can be charged, but McClatchey said that renters will pay it for the novelty of living on Main Street.

He said that these older building conversions are becoming more common, citing 86 State Circle, which opened last month. The commercial market downtown is competitive at the moment, the pair said, especially as traditional stores move out of the way for more tourist-oriented ones.

“The tourist population is increasing,” said Wimbrow. “We’re seeing a lot more boutique hotels come about in the area, which are able to accommodate the guests … The bars, the restaurants, the food service retailers that are downtown want to be downtown because they want that foot traffic.”

The Naval Academy is also a major driver for tourism, with many graduates returning regularly to visit.

“Commercial real estate is anything but static,” said McClatchey. “It is constantly changing and creating opportunities, as well as problems, that we have to solve as the markets continually evolve. So we have to be very nimble, pay attention to these trends.”

Carrollton Enterprises did not respond to a request for comment.

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