Concessions Coming
Condo buyers in formerly hot markets are finding deals.
For persuasive evidence that the condo circus is finally folding, just check out newspaper ads in markets that used to be hot, like Miami, Washington, D.C., and Las Vegas. Condo converters and developers are advertising concessions such as upgraded kitchens, big rebates, and a year’s worth of association fees. Now that apartment owners finally kicked their concession habit, it looks like their brethren on the condo side have picked it up as sales have slowed.
“For the [condo] buyers, we’re seeing everything from the first year’s mortgage payment and first year’s HOA dues paid to discounts off of prices to upgraded appliances, cabinetry, and woodwork,” says Jack McCabe, president of McCabe Research and Consulting, a real estate consulting firm in Deerfield, Fla. “Maybe they’ll have a limousine that will pick you up and take you to the airport. We’ve seen all types of very expensive and very luxury types of concessionary buyer’s incentives.”
Developers and converters are also courting a group that they used to shun–brokers–in order to sell their existing inventory. “We have developers offering brokers everything from exotic sports cars to 4 [percent] to 7 percent commissions,” McCabe says. “One condo converter lets you make up to an extra $60,000 in bonuses based on the level of buyers they bring in.”
While concessions are not as common in Las Vegas, they’re still creeping in, says Las Vegas-based Restrepo Consulting Group principal John Restrepo. “It depends on the inventory the developers have,” he says. “Some developers have little inventory and they aren’t giving concessions. The ones who built more than they should are giving concessions.”
–Les Shaver
Services in Spanish
Enterprise Community Partners, with a $750,000 grant from Freddie Mac, launched a Spanish version of Resident Services online tools to connect affordable housing residents with social services. For kids, the services include after-school tutoring, school readiness, and summer employment. For adults, the programs offer training in financial literacy, job readiness, computer skills, and leadership development.
–Les Shaver
Border Patrol
Two communities on opposite sides of the map–San Bernardino County, Calif., and Hazelton, Pa.–have considered measures that would criminalize landlords if they rented to illegal aliens. For now, a judge has shot down the San Bernardino proposal that was to appear on the ballot this fall. The Hazelton version passed on June 11, but it only fines landlords who knowingly rent to illegal immigrants.
–Les Shaver
Failure to Launch
Related Las Vegas is 0 for 2 in the Las Vegas market. The company (the local development arm of the Related Cos. in New York and the Related Group of Florida) recently scrapped plans to build the George Clooney-backed condo-hotel project Las Ramblas and sold the site to Edge Group, developers of the adjacent W Las Vegas project, according to the Associated Press. Earlier this year, Related canceled its Icon condo project.
–Rachel Z. Azoff
Architect’s Challenge
Think it’s impossible to buy a piece of land in New York City cheaply? There is a way: Enter the New Housing New York Legacy Project design competition, sponsored by the City of New York and the American Institute of Architects. The contest seeks to encourage new forms of design in developing a mixed-use, mixed-income project on a 40,000-square-foot site in the south Bronx. The site is valued at more than $4 million but will be sold to the winning architect-developer team for a nominal fee. In exchange, the team must build low-, middle-, and moderate-income housing in the form of condos, co-op apartments, or affordable rental housing.
–Rachel Z. Azoff
Meet the Ruppies
Urban planner Kyle Ezell is working to lure suburban empty-nesters and retirees to live downtown. Ezell, who refers to retired urban people as “ruppies,” has developed an adult education course (to be offered so far at a Columbus, Ohio, community college) that teaches this demographic everything from how to pick a city retirement destination to how to hail a cab and to get around on a motor scooter. Ezell plans to host a series of parties around the country to promote the “ruppie” lifestyle.
–Rachel Z. Azoff
The Who’s Who Returns
Is your company included in the 2007 Who’s Who Sourcebook? Don’t miss out on the opportunity to list your company in this comprehensive directory for the multifamily industry. There is no charge to be included. Follow the link to the Who’s Who for more information. Questions? E-mail mfewho@hanleywood.com.