November 2007

Here are the top 10 best performing housing markets, according to Forbes magazine, their third quarter median home sales prices and the percentage that prices have risen compared to third quarter 2006    

Salt Lake City: Median Home Sale Price $246,700; Percent Change 14.1 %

Charlotte, NC $220,000, 11%

San Jose, CA $852,500, 9.4%

San Francisco, CA $824,400, 8.6%

Raleigh, NC $229,500, 7.5%

Austin $188,200, 7.2%

Pittsburgh, PA $127,700, 6.1%

Seattle, $394,700, 6%

San Antonio, $154,700, 5.7%

Portland, Ore. $299,700, 5.2%

If you are wondering what that skeleton of a building is around St. Clair and E. 12th, let me help you out.  That is the beginnings of the next phase of the much anticipated The Avenue District.  Two townhouses are left from the 1st phase and ready for the final touches prior to taking possession.  

 

The next phase seems to be pre-selling at an alarming rate and will feature townhomes, lofts, and penthouses starting in the mid 300 thousands.  Possession for these units are still about 6-8 months out but the investment potential is high.  Prices are still at pre-sale levels and have not yet increased. 

 

The vision for this project comes from Zaramba who has brought us recent developments such as Woodhaven and Millcreek.  They received a 15 year

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The housing market is soft. Hard times for some can mean opportunity time for others. Could now be a good time to step into the housing marker and pick up a bargain? Generally, it is a better time to be a buyer than a seller, but this is not so in every market. In San Francisco, for example, there are still more buyers than sellers for prime upper-end properties. You're not likely to pick up a bargain there. Many more markets are suffering from too much inventory and too few buyers. These markets would seem to offer the best opportunities. However, this is not necessarily so. Even though the price you pay is relatively low, it could take some time before the value of your investment increases. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the best housing investments…

 A really good new building puts everything around it to the test.

Neighbors with flair take on fresh luster, whatever their architectural genre might be. The claptrap nearby seems to shrink, left more hollow and thin than before.

Best of all, really good buildings nudge us to remember that cities are never done. A neighborhood that keeps evolving can end up better as a result.

That's why Stanley Saitowitz's relatively small building at 1234 Howard St. in San Francisco is such a big deal. It's a startling addition to the city's South of Market landscape, yet it feels right at home. It understands its place - and what that place can become.

The newcomer is a block west of the much-ballyhooed Federal Building, and in some ways the two could be

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HOA (Home Owners Association) dues are used for the general maintenance of the building's common areas and exteriors. In general, HOA is responsible for the care of the common/shared areas of the property, such as lawns and landscaping, recreational facilities, lobby, elevator, hallways, roof, etc. The association also saves money in reserve to help pay for any special assessments that may arise in the future(Painting or replacing exterior siding, replacing a roof, etc.) .An annual budget and regular Reserve studies evaluate these costs and help the condominium’s Board of Directors to determine the amount that owners need to contribute in monthly dues.
Many building include other regular expenses in their HOA dues including, gas, cable TV, internet…

There has been a great many inquiries lately regarding the Walker Weeks Building and why people can't get in to look at condo space.  I thought I would shed some light on the situation.

 

At this point, the project has been put on hold, according to Amy L. Sheeler, the listing agent for the condominium project.  According to Amy, the developers of the project are re-evaluating which direction they want to move forward and have taken condos off the market until that decision is made. 

Stay tuned to my blog in the future and I promise to keep everyone up to date as information becomes available.

 

If you are not familiar with the Walker Weeks condominium project, it involves the conversion of one of Cleveland’s most historic buildings right

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Sept. 07' Statistics are in for the Downtown San Jose market and seems to indicate a leveling out. The downtown San Jose condo, townhomes and lofts inventory numbers increased showing signs that many are still needing to sell their homes. The trouble is finding the buyers.  The following stats represent the downtown San Jose condo, townhomes and lofts only.

2007             |  Inventory  |  Closed Sales  |  Median Sales $  |  Total Sales Volume

September   |       162      |               12         |       $490,000        |  $5,986,500

October   |       172     |               12         |       $430,000       |  $5,943,700

The housing market will continue to be slow through Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's holidays. Traditionally a slower time…

If you were considering a condo at the Park Building in Public Square, my suggestion would be to “get on it before it's too late!”  

 

This building is quickly becoming one of the most popular among my clients and for good reason.  At only 27 units, the window of opportunity gets drastically smaller with every unit sold.  What is so great about the opportunity you ask?  Not only will you own a piece of prime real estate in the center of Cleveland but condo owners at the Park Building own a piece of history too!

 

I was able to sit down with the Howells this week, the father and sons, make up the development team for the project, Howells & Howells LLC.  Matt Howells, the father and construction manager on the project, made it abundantly clear

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Have you seen everything that is going on along West 7th Street near Fort Worth’s Cultural District lately? Montgomery Plaza has nearly sold out of their 240 luxury condos, and has begun construction with move-in dates planned for early 2009.
So7 just broke ground on their retail/commercial development (see the blog and rendering from last week) and are putting the finishing touches on their Arthouse. They have prices starting at $229,000 for a large one bedroom with very reasonable home owner’s association dues. 
Just down the street Cypress Equities is still clearing out blocks of land for their sprawling development of mixed use buildings with retail, commercial and condos. Looking over their site plans and renderings is quite revealing. Let me know…

 

 

As if the 100% 15year tax abatements for many of the new construction condo projects downtown weren’t enough, how about taking 1.5% of the prime interest rate?  Sound like a scam?  It's not.  Through cooperation with the city, National City Bank has been able to offer special rate financing in areas where the National City Community Development  Corporation has made a direct equity investment.  The NCHAMP mortgage, as it is called, is available for qualified buyers on many of the condos that I feature on this site.  

 

If you are starting to think that your buck may go a bit farther downtown, YOU ARE RIGHT!!! 

 

In a recent comparison that Scott Phillips Jr. of Cleveland City Living did, he shows that, with all else being equal, a person

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