Downtown Condos

[Ripper]

Is buying a downtown condo still a good investment oppurtunity? Prices seem to have soared lately, can they continue to rise? Will they fall?

More specifically I'm looking at the newer buildings in west end downtown.

[Weapon_R]

Downtown will always be a good investment, as long as its a decent size. People will always need to rent, so even if you don't make any cash through appreciation you'll always be able to make it through equity paid by renters.

Just don't be one of those idiots who buys an overpriced place with the intent that renters will cover it, because you'll be in for a surprise once you see that a condo costs at least $1500/month and the housing market catches up with demand.

[pinoyhero]

Looking like the condo's are staying on the market a bit onger and more are coming up for sale, keep your eye on it, may be leveling...but of course anyone's guess

[djayz]

its not longer a short term investment so if your going into it for the long haul 5-10 years or more than yah itll be a great investment but dont try and flip the place 2 months later and expect to make a killing. The housing markets are starting to cool...no body can afford to pay 300k for a 1 bedroom condo and if they can afford it then they are smart enough not to waste their money on it.

downtown is generally good tho.

[adamc]

any links for nice new developments?

I might just say "fuckit" to renting and buy a condo, I work away from calgary most of the year, so no sense renting and throwing cash out the window.
:guns:

[?????]

www.condolivingmag.com

[kaput]

.

[HRD2PLZ]

Downtown condos like Weapon_R said will always be a good investment. The new condo's in Nova were being sold from $400 sq.ft. We bought a brand new 2 bedroom unit in Union Square 5 months ago and paid $400K for it. But to echo what some others have said, at this point, a re-sale or condo conversion might be the way to go, especially if you plan on renting it out. I just rented out my 1 bedroom condo on Riverfront for $1100/mo plus I have rented the underground stall out for an additional $250/mo.

[adamc]

this is insanity, I'm gonna buy back in Kelowna.

:cry:

[HRD2PLZ]

Originally posted by adamc
this is insanity, I'm gonna buy back in Kelowna.

:cry:

From what I hear, Kelowna isn't a whole lot better... my parents are building a vacation home on Okanagan Lake and a current comparable home is $125K more than it was when they signed papers last year.

[Fivewayradio]

There are several hundred units coming up for possession within the next six months. I'd be interested to see if this floods the market enough to meet demand and stall prices out a bit.

Chocolate, Vantage Pointe, Stella and Sasso should all be ready for move-in the near future.

[koopkoop2]

Originally posted by Fivewayradio
There are several hundred units coming up for possession within the next six months. I'd be interested to see if this floods the market enough to meet demand and stall prices out a bit.

Chocolate, Vantage Pointe, Stella and Sasso should all be ready for move-in the near future.

You can scratch Sasso off your list. Sasso is already 95% occupied.

[Ripper]

The investment will be longterm. Probably won't be rented out off the hop, but in the future potentially.

I think I'll just keep a close eye on the market of the next 6 months and see if things cool down a bit.

Thanks for the comments guys.

[djayz]

^
i thought about buying a condo as well beginning of this year ripper but when i compared house prices to what they were over a 20 year span and it seems this boom is really a boom and bust will follow shortly...its only been 3-4 years since prices really started to pick up and it just looks like its going to come down hard when it does.

[Weapon_R]

Originally posted by djayz
^
i thought about buying a condo as well beginning of this year ripper but when i compared house prices to what they were over a 20 year span and it seems this boom is really a boom and bust will follow shortly...its only been 3-4 years since prices really started to pick up and it just looks like its going to come down hard when it does.

Historically, since the 1960s, homes have NEVER come down in price except for a very small blip in the 80s, which quickly recovered.

Home prices are here to stay as long as we have a booming economy (oil) and thousands of people moving to Calgary to fill the jobs we need. These people need homes.

We also have a homeless problem because people cannot find or cannot afford the rental rates that some people are asking. If rates do come down, they will spur investors to purchase at lower rates, eating up supply and the saga repeats itself.

The market right now has shown some signs of slowing down, but I attribute that to the summer months where many people have the added expenses such as family vacations and are deferring their purchases til fall.

[djayz]

^
its very true what you say and i completely agree but the way things have run up in the last few years i see a different ending.

not only have house prices gone up so have labour and material costs so regardless prices are going to either stay where they are...go higher and no body will be able to afford one or they will come crashing down.

In the us the housing market is already starting to fall and i can see canada following pretty closely it has already slowed down in the east the west is just peaking out .

only thing we can do is wait and see.

[googe]

first tip is not to ask beyond for real estate advice ;)

as ive said in other threads, calgary is still cheap. i was looking at a 397 sq ft 0 bedroom studio condo in downtown vancouver for 300k. you dont even go near downtown if you want a decent 2 bedroom and dont have over half a million.


also fwiw, july is always a slow time. thats why most realtors take their vacations in july (or so ive been told). the market surely didnt "stop". it starts going crazy again around september.

[gkAeris]

Originally posted by HRD2PLZ
We bought a brand new 2 bedroom unit in Union Square 5 months ago and paid $400K for it.

i heard that union squares condo development got scatched? like they not building it anymore and returnint depoists. it was in the news?

[HRD2PLZ]

Originally posted by gkAeris


i heard that union squares condo development got scatched? like they not building it anymore and returnint depoists. it was in the news?

When was this? We haven't heard anything from Apex... and as far as developers go, Apex is pretty big :dunno:

[in*10*se]

Beltline project put on the shelf
Company cites city delays and rising costs

MARTY HOPE Calgary Herald Saturday, July 08, 2006

Development of the first phase of a 340-unit Beltline condominium project has been postponed.

Because of delays in clearing the city's approvals process and cost pressures associated with construction, Union Square by Union Square Development LP has been put on the shelf.

But company president Frank Boyd is confident the project, located on First Street S.W. between 13th and 14th Avenues, will eventually be resumed.

"The project is currently under appeal, 19 months after we submitted our land use application to the city on Dec. 1, 2004, resulting in delays beyond what we would consider acceptable based on our original timelines," Boyd says in a news release.

The company had originally anticipated a one-year time frame for the necessary approvals.

During that time, there have also been "tremendous" construction cost pressures in the current residential marketplace, says Boyd, who estimates that costs have risen between 30 and 40 per cent in the past year.

"We still don't have a development permit, and without a DP, we can't get our building permit," he says. "Meantime, the economics of the project are totally different now than when we started the project. Costs are going through the roof."

All of the 113 sales agreements for Union Square were conditional on the removal of the several conditions prior to June 30 -- and this didn't occur. As a result, all deposits held in trust will be returned to buyers and the sales are terminated, says Boyd.

"Although the agreements did not provide for the generation of interest on deposits, we have decided to calculate and forward interest to the purchasers as good will," he says.

Boyd was unable to give any timelines for the beginning of development, but he adds: "Pending a favorable appeal decision and given the importance of this site and our intense desire to deliver a wonderful project, we believe it is our responsibility to the city, Parks Foundation, the Beltline and Connaught community associations, the Victoria BRZ, our contractors -- and ultimately our clients -- to ensure all contingencies and matters of importance are fully reconciled before we proceed."

This currently isn't the case, says Boyd. More time will be required to resolve all of the outstanding issues before the development can go ahead, he says.

"We expect the existing purchasers, and those with future interest in Union Square, will understand our difficult position in this regard as we continue to work with diligence on finalizing all necessary development issues," he says.

© The Calgary Herald 2006

[benyl]

haha, they did that with Montana. I guess they don't think they will make enough money, so back go the deposits (interest free of course) and then they sell the same project for WAY more money.

[HRD2PLZ]

HAHA time to keep an eye on the mailbox I guess :D

[Weapon_R]

Originally posted by benyl
haha, they did that with Montana. I guess they don't think they will make enough money, so back go the deposits (interest free of course) and then they sell the same project for WAY more money.

I've always thought this was an awesome way to make a lot of money.

Collect 1 million dollars in deposits, hold it for a year in a high interest bearing account, collect the interest and cancel the project.

Easy way to make 120k for a person while securing buyers for a project.

[TDA]

I second the apex thing. They screwed us (and me ) over.

They used and escape clause to get out of the contract. 6 days later, they get their development permit (they had in the contract, they needed to get the DP by a certain date or its null and void.)

its obvious they did it on purpose. And the project is going to go ahead - and be resold to about 2x original prices.