{"id":66629,"date":"2025-11-23T16:11:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-23T16:11:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/66629\/"},"modified":"2025-11-23T16:11:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-23T16:11:17","slug":"father-son-flip-southern-california-industrial-space-into-luxury-car-condos-orange-county-register","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/66629\/","title":{"rendered":"Father, son flip Southern California industrial space into luxury car condos \u2013 Orange County Register"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Tony<\/p>\n

Tony Principe and his father Rick, the father-and-son duo behind Finish Line Auto Club, pose in the clubhouse of their third luxury garage condo development for car enthusiasts in Calabasas on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025. The company plans to expand into Palm Desert and Scottsdale, Ariz. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Tony<\/p>\n

Tony Principe and his father Tony, the father-and-son duo behind Finish Line Auto Club, pose in Tony\u2019s garage condo with plans for how he is going to build it out at the Calabasas development for car enthusiasts on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025. The company plans to expand into Palm Desert and Scottsdale, Ariz. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Rick<\/p>\n

Rick Principe and his son Tony, the father-and-son duo behind Finish Line Auto Club, pose in a luxury garage condo at their newest development for car enthusiasts on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025 in Calabasas. The company plans to expand into Palm Desert and Scottsdale, Ariz. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A car condo at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

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Tony Principe and his father Rick, the father-and-son duo behind Finish Line Auto Club, pose in the clubhouse of their third luxury garage condo development for car enthusiasts in Calabasas on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025. The company plans to expand into Palm Desert and Scottsdale, Ariz. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

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Fellow car lovers often approached Rick and Tony Principe, a father-and-son duo in commercial real estate, about finding high-end homes for their private collections.<\/p>\n

Such facilities didn\u2019t exist.<\/p>\n

And so, to meet the demand, the Principes launched Finish Line Auto Club in 2006. The concept that Rick Principe describes as \u201ca country club for car collectors\u201d began with the sale of customizable garage condominiums to those who could afford the $1 million-plus price tag.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany owners have huge collections elsewhere, but they elected to buy into the Finish Line concept because of the social aspect and the ability to share their passion,\u201d Rick Principe said. \u201cIf you go to any one of our Finish Line projects, you\u2019ll find that not only do these collectors have some of the most valuable car collections in the world, but that they also have more cars than what they keep at Finish Line. They rotate them in and out for different events.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like a residential condo, ownership at Finish Line includes the condo and an interest in the common areas.<\/p>\n

Condos range in size from 1,000 to 6,500 square feet. They can house a minimum of five or six vehicles or combined to create larger units, providing enough space to store and show vehicles in a 24\/7 museum-level secure, gated facility with on-site staff.\u00a0 All the units come with fire sprinklers and exhaust fans.<\/p>\n

The shared social amenities include clubhouses, lounges, game rooms and event spaces, which are site-specific to its three Southern California facilities.<\/p>\n

Finish Line\u2019s journey began in the Principes\u2019 hometown of Westlake Village.<\/p>\n

They bought, cleared out and renovated a 40,000-square-foot, 28-unit business park in 2005.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe put a condo map on it and sold them out as industrial spaces, but about 80 to 90% of them went to car people,\u201d son Tony Principe said. \u201cWe thought, maybe this is something we should pursue.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Rick<\/p>\n

Rick and Tony Principe, the father-and-son duo behind Finish Line Auto Club, have a third luxury garage condo development for car enthusiasts in Calabasas seen on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025. The company plans to expand into Palm Desert and Scottsdale, Ariz. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

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An aerial view of the Finish Line Auto Club in Costa Mesa. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

\"Finish<\/p>\n

Finish Line Auto Club in Costa Mesa recently opened its rooftop bar and pavilion. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The rooftop lounge at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The rooftop lounge and pavilion at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

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Rick and Tony Principe, the father-and-son duo behind Finish Line Auto Club, have a third luxury garage condo development for car enthusiasts in Calabasas seen on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025. The company plans to expand into Palm Desert and Scottsdale, Ariz. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz, Los Angeles Daily News\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

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In 2011, the Principes bought 7 acres in Calabasas and spent eight years designing and obtaining entitlements from the city of Los Angeles. They completed the 31,000-square-foot boutique facility with a clubhouse in October, pre-selling 95% of its 19 car condos to collectors.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a long-term project, and while we were designing that, we wound up buying a former Volkswagen regional headquarters building on 5 acres in the heart of Westlake Village,\u201d Tony Principe said.<\/p>\n

Purchased in 2016 for $12 million, the original property spanned 60,000 square feet with a 27,000-square-foot office building, which was then sold to a car collector.<\/p>\n

The Principes developed Finish Line in the existing space, completing two phases of construction, as buyers bought the car condos before the project was even finished. Phase three will bring Westlake Village up to 88,000 square feet and a total of 40 car condos.<\/p>\n

\u201cFinish Line really started to gain some horsepower and attention, and so we directed our focus down to Orange County,\u201d Tony Principe said.<\/p>\n

In 2020, they bought an 80,000-square-foot building for $21 million next to the John Wayne Airport in Costa Mesa. After renovating and redeveloping the building, it opened in 2021.<\/p>\n

Finish Line completed its second phase in October, expanding it into a 103,000-square-foot amenity-rich facility with 41 car condos, a 6,000-square-foot clubhouse and a 2,500-square-foot rooftop lounge overlooking the airport.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe try to take advantage of the location where we\u2019re building in and design the project around that,\u201d said Tony Principe. \u201cWestlake backs up to some of the best driving roads in the world, with Mulholland (Drive) and Decker (Road) and Kanan (Road), so that one is a very open-air type of facility, and we\u2019re getting ready to break ground on phase 3 there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Plans for facilities in Palm Desert and Scottsdale are simultaneously in the works.<\/p>\n

Southern California News Group caught up with the Principes to talk cars, luxury car storage and where they see the vision taking them. The interview has been edited for clarity and length.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The entertainment loft in a car condo at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The entertainment loft in a car condo at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

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A car condo at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

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A Cars & Coffee gathering at the Finish Line Auto Club in Costa Mesa, with nearly one hundred vintage Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwings on display. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

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A gathering of vintage Mercedes-Benz 300 SL at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

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The entertainment loft in a car condo at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)\n<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe try to take advantage of the location where we\u2019re building in and design the project around that,\u201d said Tony Principe. \u201cWestlake backs up to some of the best driving roads in the world, with Mulholland (Drive) and Decker (Road) and Kanan (Road), so that one is a very open-air type of facility, and we\u2019re getting ready to break ground on phase 3 there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Plans for facilities in Palm Desert and Scottsdale are simultaneously in the works.<\/p>\n

Southern California News Group caught up with\u00a0Rick and Tony Principe to talk cars, their luxury car storage and social club concept and where they see the vision taking them. The interview has been edited for clarity and length.<\/p>\n

Q: Do both of you collect cars?<\/p>\n

Tony: My dad has a larger collection. I\u2019m more of an enthusiast than a collector.<\/p>\n

Q: Before Finish Line, did you store your cars in a warehouse or at home?<\/p>\n

Rick:\u00a0I was storing my cars in a couple of garages, but I was really interested in creating a bigger collection. I took my tennis court and converted it into car storage, and joined a tennis club down the street. When my friends came over, I had all my cars together in one place and space to entertain.<\/p>\n

Tony:\u00a0My experience was different. I had my cars in warehouses I rented, and I also stored a motorhome, Jeeps and dirt bikes at a large indoor RV storage facility. I hated it. I felt like people were getting inside my things and touching them.<\/p>\n

Q: How did you develop the concept for Finish Line?<\/p>\n

Tony: We realized people wanted to own their space versus rent. If they owned it, they would invest in it and customize it \u2014 trick it out. But we also wanted to create a country club environment that made them feel part of a community of like-minded enthusiasts. It\u2019s social, it\u2019s events \u2014 there\u2019s a lot more to it than that \u2014 but the ownership was one of the catalysts that really set it apart at the time, because when we did this, nothing like this existed. Now people are doing them around the country.<\/p>\n

Q: Were there elements or concepts from other sources that influenced your vision?<\/p>\n

Tony: It came out of a need. At the time, my dad kept his collection at his home, and within that space was a lounge \u2014 like a bar and a seating area \u2014 where he could have people over to spend time. For somebody who maybe had a smaller collection like me \u2014 a handful of cars \u2014 I didn\u2019t want to dedicate an entire space in my garage or warehouse to a lounge area, so we thought, Why don\u2019t we create a common-area clubhouse and patios where people could congregate?<\/p>\n

Q: When you launched Finish Line, how did you build trust with collectors?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tony:\u00a0When we started our first Finish Line, there was nothing else like it. It was an exclusive car condo project. But people saw we weren\u2019t just developers, we were also garage owners at that facility.<\/p>\n

We run, operate, manage, curate and participate in events. We\u2019re the ones leading the drives.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve built up our management and staff to a level with the Four Seasons, so people feel their experience is elevated the minute they walk in the door. That\u2019s a long-term business versus a transactional real estate play.<\/p>\n

Q: How much does a car condo cost, and what does the price include?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tony:\u00a0In Southern California, they start at $1 million and go up to about $4 million. That delivers them a nice finished shell with polished concrete floors, finished walls and automatic garage doors.O<\/p>\n

From there, the owners come in and they\u2019ll invest to customize it.<\/p>\n

Q: Are the re-sales handled in-house?<\/p>\n

Tony: We\u2019ve handled 95% of re-sales because we have a Finish Line realty service, and we\u2019ve sold about 20 or so over the years. The average appreciation rate on those has been about 25% per year, so it\u2019s a strong appreciation. It\u2019s all about what you\u2019re delivering and the barriers to entry.<\/p>\n

We spend a lot of money building these places for collectors who are used to a certain lifestyle.<\/p>\n

\"AA car condo at the Costa Mesa facility. (Courtesy of Finish Line Auto Club)<\/p>\n

Rick:\u00a0Car collectors also look at this a little bit differently. I always use the analogy: if, all of a sudden, you had the Hope Diamond and needed a place to store it, you wouldn\u2019t be concerned about the cost. You just want to make sure it\u2019s safe and secure, and that you can access it anytime.<\/p>\n

These car collectors want these car units because when they go to auctions and other places, they want to be able to buy collector cars, invest in them and have a place to put them when they bring them back, again, knowing they\u2019ll be be safely stored. It\u2019s their passion, and this completes it.<\/p>\n

Q: You mentioned a future facility in Palm Desert. Are there any plans to expand into other parts of California?<\/p>\n

Tony: We don\u2019t want to stay static. We recognize that this started as a storage option and has grown into more of a social club. The more energy we put into the social aspect, the more interest we get from buyers.\u00a0 We decided with Scottsdale that we would take it to the next level.<\/p>\n

Our goal is to get that developed and then roll it out around the country, in Dallas, Nashville, Miami, New York, Vegas and here, again, in California.<\/p>\n

Scottsdale will be a 200,000-square-foot facility with 67 car condos and a 16,000-square-foot clubhouse with a coffee shop, meeting rooms and a full club upstairs with a bar, lounge, food and a rooftop patio. We\u2019re also integrating a 60,000-square-foot car storage building into that facility, which will have individual car storage and events.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re continuing to build on the experiences we have to really enhance them so that people who are coming to Finish Line aren\u2019t just there to store their cars.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re plugging into a community with reciprocal rights to all the clubs, so that if you\u2019re a member of Orange County and you want to come up and grab a coffee in Westlake or you\u2019re out in Palm Desert or Scottsdale, you\u2019re welcome there.<\/p>\n

Q: Do you have to be a condo owner to enjoy the events and some of the other amenities you mentioned?<\/p>\n

Tony:\u00a0Generally, the answer is yes. We do host some events, and we\u2019ll invite some collectors from around that particular region, but for all intents and purposes, Scottsdale will be the first time we integrate an actual outside membership aside from the car condo owners. Maybe they don\u2019t need a garage or they\u2019re from somewhere that doesn\u2019t warrant one, so, from that standpoint, they can join and be part of it.<\/p>\n

But right now, it\u2019s purely, you own a garage and have 24\/7 access to the facility and all the services.<\/p>\n

Rick and Tony Principe.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ages: Tony is 59. \u201cI\u2019ll never tell,\u201d says Rick.<\/p>\n

Hometown:\u00a0Westlake Village<\/p>\n

Favorite car in their collections: \u201cWhatever that car is that day,\u201d Rick said.<\/p>\n

Bonding over cars: \u201cWe\u2019ve always done stuff together, whether it was racing go-karts, doing rallies, track days,\u201d Tony said, adding that his father \u201ccustomized his own cars, like many people do, when he was younger and I did the same thing. So, we\u2019ve always had a common interest in it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tony Principe and his father Rick, the father-and-son duo behind Finish Line Auto Club, pose in the clubhouse…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":66630,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[387,19023,7,9,8,9548,3010,3372,1011,137,100,611,22579,612,213],"class_list":["post-66629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-california","tag-business","tag-calabasas","tag-california","tag-california-headlines","tag-california-news","tag-coachella-valley","tag-commercial-real-estate","tag-costa-mesa","tag-housing","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-news","tag-orange-county","tag-palm-desert","tag-riverside-county","tag-westlake-village"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66629","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66629"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66629\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/66630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66629"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66629"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66629"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}