The construction of more HOV and Lexus lanes may have an impact on Atlanta’s traffic some time in the future, but for a significant slice of the home-buying market, waiting for that day won’t ease their long commutes.
Instead, they’re taking their households inside the Perimeter, where they’re fueling a hot condominium market by snapping up properties where they can walk, bike or bus to the office.
“Because of traffic, the intown condo market is hot,” said David Tufts, president of The Marketing Directors sales and marketing firm. “But there are few new products being delivered. That lack of supply makes a great opportunity for sellers who have seen prices increase.”
Combine increasing prices with a limited inventory, and buyers will find there’s stiff competition for properties as soon as the for-sale notices go up. “There have even been bidding wars on the resale market,” said Tufts.
The fervor even extends to some condo projects that are barely out of the ground. Buildings in Buckhead and Midtown with only renderings to show prospective owners are enjoying an active pre-sale business. Buyers have already formed a queue at Seventh Midtown, 867 Peachtree Street, where prices for 20 units in the 9-story building start in the $700,000s. Already, 11 are under contract. A few blocks farther north at One Museum Place, directly across from the High Museum, 15 of the 44 planned units have sold in the $800,000s. Both properties boast high-end and custom finishes and some have more space than some single-family homes.
“The low end at One Museum Place is about 1,200 square feet, and that climbs to about 5,000,” said Kevin Grieco with Atlanta Fine Homes/Sotheby’s International Realty. “Seventh Midtown has some units with three bedrooms and almost 3,000 square feet. For a buyer coming from a 7,000-square-foot house in the suburbs, that means not having to buy two units and knock down walls. Owners can still get two or three bedrooms and the lifestyle they want because these spaces live like a house.”
Creating condos with the space and appointments of single-family homes is a distinct change from the way condominiums have been built here in the past, Grieco points out. “We’ve had a lot of buildings with apartment-like finishes, but as the economy and market continue to improve, people downsizing want these higher-end products.”
Buyers are opting for finishes such as granite or Silestone counters, exotic hardwood floors and gourmet gas appliances from Wolf and Sub-Zero. They’re looking for integrated technology with the capability of adjusting the thermostat, turning up the speaker volume or raising the blinds by the touch of a smartphone or iPad. And some buyers are looking for features beyond their unit. At hotels such as the St. Regis and Mandarin in Buckhead, Loews in Midtown and the W downtown, owners enjoy the same amenities as the hotels’ guests.
“I recently sold a three-bedroom unit at Loews where prices are in the $600,000s, and the hotel services were a selling point,” said Grieco. “The gym, the spa, the room service — it’s all right there, along with a 24-hour concierge who can get the dog walked and the dry cleaning delivered. A lot of that kind of service is becoming more expected.”
With more buyers willing to pay for amenities and conveniences, prices are climbing out of range for many young and first-time buyers. “Builders have been building to empty-nesters who have the money to buy right now,” said Tufts. “I think millennials are ready to buy, but there’s not enough product that suits them available for sale.”
One sign of a shift in the more affordable market might be the conversion of apartment buildings into condominiums, but that’s a few years off, said Tufts. “I think the city is ready for conversions; I think the buyers are ready. But we’re still product-starved. I think it will be three to five years before we may see rental properties converted.”
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