It’s hard to believe, but with a lot of downtown developments, developers are not maximizing a huge area of square footage that they have. I’m talking about the roof. Developments that have planned for and provide the rooftop terrace amenity generally sell faster than developments that don’t have a rooftop terrace. Buyers moving from the burbs miss their outdoor spaces. If you are downtown, you may be lucky to get a small balcony, but no true socializing and entertaining outdoor space.

A rooftop terrace should be contemporary in style, and be the ultimate extension of a modern interior. To fit into its urban environment, low-maintenance plants are ideal. I’m personally fan of light colored pavers, large planters, and nice modern loungers and tables, also there’s nothing like a water feature to help drown out noise and provide a beautiful backdrop at night. Here’s some examples of other properties around the country and what they have done.

There’s lots more examples inside… Read the rest of this entry »

2010 is starting off with good sales so far. Let’s hope our housing market turns around this year, last year was pretty dismal, only 33 units sold downtown. Our city leaders should be doing whatever possible to help recruit people to move downtown.

2010 Year-to-Date Downtown Condo Sales:

2009 has been a pretty dismal year for downtown condo sales. In 2008 59 units were sold, and to-date we have only sold 31 in 2009. Let’s hope 2010 the downtown housing market turns around and our city leaders do whatever possible to help recruit people to move downtown.

2009 Year-to-Date Downtown Condo Sales:

There was a great article in yesterday’s Des Moines Register about how state tax credits impact the downtown Des Moines housing market. Below are just a few excerpts from this article, you can find the full article at: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20091012/BUSINESS/910120323.

The state has been advised to stop providing tax credits that sparked affordable housing in downtown Des Moines. A recent market analysis completed for Iowa Finance Authority says the affordable rental apartment market in Des Moines’ downtown area soon will be saturated and the state agency should halt issuing tax credits for created low-income housing.

Any new affordable rental projects would push downtown vacancy rates above 7 percent, the mark of a balanced market, and could harm projects that have already received federal housing credits, the report said. One concern for the group was for-sale condos being leased to renters.

The recommended moratorium on affordable housing tax credits is one of several hurdles Des Moines has encountered in its efforts to revitalize downtown. The city has spent millions of dollars trying to bring entertainment – restaurants, bars, music venues – and housing downtown. In 2002, the city sought to add 6,000 housing units by 2010, but it will only have met about a third of the goal next year. Despite mounting setbacks, developers say the city should continue pushing downtown housing as Des Moines recovers from the recession that has gripped the city and state for about a year.

There was a great article in Sunday’s Des Moines Register by David Elbert that talked about the redevelopment efforts that have been going on downtown. You can find the full text of the article here. The sidebar to the article had the biggest meaning to me, here’s what was included in it:

Des Moines’ downtown still faces a number of challenges, including:

COMPLETING THE RIVERFRONT: The biggest piece missing from the riverfront plan today is the World Food Prize Headquarters. City officials expect next month to turn over the keys of the former riverfront library to the World Food Prize organization, which plans to spend nearly $30 million to convert the century-old building into a headquarters that will include elaborate riverfront landscaping. The group still needs to raise about $5 million, but construction is expected to begin before year’s end.

HOUSING AND RETAIL: Retail development traditionally follows housing, so the emphasis is on housing. In 2002, a goal was set to add 6,000 downtown housing units. So far, the total is fewer than 1,500. New developments are being planned for an area south of Court Avenue called the Lower East Village and another location called Gray’s Landing between Southwest Ninth and 16th streets south of the MLK bypass. With the current economy, it could be years before either development begins.

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Not sure if you are aware or not, but Trulia provides a quick listing of downtown condos that have recently lowered their asking price. If you are in the market, it’s a great place to start. Some of these have been reduced as much as $40,000! Wow! It looks like nows a pretty good time to get in on downtown living. Just visit:
http://www.trulia.com/for_sale/50309_zip/365_pr/reduceddt;d_sort/.

Here are a few that caught my eye:

Also don’t forget you can check out our Downtown Housing page for the most recent updates.

Condo sales have continued at a slow pace when compared to 2008, there have been 27 units sold this year compared to 44 during the same first eight months last year.

The big winners for 2009 continue to be an old stand by, The Plaza, and the new contender, 4th & Court Condominiums.

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Sales have been a little slow the first six months of 2009, only 18 units selling this year compared to 33 during the same first six months of the year in 2009, but with the recession and financing difficulty in some complexes, this is still proving that people are wanting to move downtown.

The average selling price was $210,038 and median sales price was $194,400. In my opinion very affordable prices for a downtown condo. The biggest project bringing in the buyers for 2009 thus far is 4th & Court Condominiums, with 33% of all downtown buyers choosing 4th & Court Condominiums as their choice for living.

Sales have been a little slow the first four months of 2009, only 10 units selling this year compared to 19 during the same first four months of the year in 2008. To help catch up in May, it appears that 20 properties in 50309 have reduced their asking price.

Earlier this week a new iPhone applications hit the app store, the new Zillow iPhone App that made its debut Tuesday night is truely amazing, especially if you are into real estate or looking to find a new place to call home downtown.

The free Zillow app displays a bunch of information about nearby condos, including their previous sales price, current property tax, Zillow’s estimate of their value and what the owners would take for the place, if they’ve listed a “make me move” price on Zillow.

It also displays a list of comparable properties nearby for comparison though I found this a little misleading when looking at the downtown Des Moines market.

Using the iPhone’s built in GPS, you can walk around downtown and instantly see what condos are available for sale, see pictures of them inside and even has the Realtor’s name and phone number. And since it’s an iPhone app, just click on the number and the phone will call the Realtor to request a showing.

There is brand new map-based housing search engine that covers downtown Des Moines. Housing shoppers can find long term rentals, homes for sale, and even hotels on HotPads.com map-based search.

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4th & Court Condominiums

119 4th Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50309
Phone: 515-453-6604
Sales Agent: Jill Creveling, Iowa Realty

Website: www.desmoinesdowntownliving.com/projects-courtavecondos.html

Open House: Saturdays 1:00 – 4:00 PM, Sundays 1:00 – 4:00 PM.

Pricing: $178,000 to $330,000

Units in Project: 48 / 9 sold
Floors in Building: 5

Property Features:
• one and two bedroom condos
• 12-16 foot high ceilings
• unit areas from 985 sq. ft. to 1,606 sq. ft.
• balconies
• underground parking

Right in the middle of the Court Avenue Entertainment District, 4th & Court Condominiums provides easy access to restaurants, bars, festivals, even the Saturday morning Farmer’s Market can be viewed from your window. What a great location to be in.

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Sales have been a little slow the first quarter of 2009, only 8 units selling this year compared to the first quarter of 2008, but with the current economy and tighten lending policies, what can you expect. It does however look like 4th & Court Condominiums are the happening spot right now. The last four sales are theirs.

I’ve just completed compiling downtown housing sales results for 2008 and here’s some of the stats I was able to compile.

2008 Sales Totals

• Dollars Sold: $12,504,830
• Units Sold: 59
• Average Monthly Sales: $1,042,069 / 5 Units per Month
• Median Monthly Sales: $1,031,37 / 5 Units per Month
• Average Unit Sales Price: $211,946
• Median Unit Sales Price: $187,120

High-End / Low-End

Most Expensive Unit Sold in 2008 03-27-2008 $528,000 Brownstones on Grand

Most Affordable Unit Sold in 2008 06-13-2008 $96,500 Capitol Village Lofts

Best Selling Projects

First Place The Plaza 14 Units Sold

Second Place Midtown Heights 7 Units Sold

Third Place Park Place Condos  6 Units Sold

Fourth Place 4th & Court Condos 5 Units Sold

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A lot of recent studies show that a short commute is a major key to happiness. It’s not only about saving time, its about less social connections. Robert Putnam, a Harvard political scientist, said “There’s a simple rule of thumb: Every ten minutes of commuting results in ten per cent fewer social connections. Commuting is connected to social isolation, which causes unhappiness.”

Commuting to work has been reported to be the least enjoyable activity of one’s day. With so many housing options available downtown, there’s no reason not think seriously about moving downtown.

Just look at all the rental properties (with red balloons) and purchasing (with orange balloons) choices that are available downtown.

For more information on downtown housing, check out our Downtown Housing page which includes the latest real estate listings and news.