Friday, March 21, 2008

Press Apartments to be converted to condos

Press Apartments to be converted to condos
Carl sent me a note that the Press Apartments are now going to be the Press Condos and pointed me to this article in the Puget Sound Business Journal, :
Earlier this week, Wysong and Granite Peak paid developer Harbor and partner Heath $33.4 million for the Press 1 and 2 Apartments on Capitol Hill’s Belmont Avenue in Seattle.
Carl asks if I think I agree that these will be the most affordable units downtown. Taking a quick look at the math: $33.4 million / 141 units = $237,000 avg purchase price per unit and then grossing that up for marketing and profit I’d guess that it isn’t likely to be the most affordable downtown but it will be reasonable compared to new construction (not that I’m an expert).
Another interesting quote from the article:
The most recent Apartment Insights researchfrom Cain Inc. and RealData shows condo conversions in the second quarter of 2006 outpaced new apartment construction in the Puget Sound area, with 223 new apartment units built, compared with 401 units converted.
And as always, it’s fun to look at ApartmentRatings.com for these conversions. The Press Apartments are only recommended by 28%.
August 29th 2006 Posted to The Press

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Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Important Trends In Real Estate Marketing Photography: Photo Size Is Important

Fizber.com launches service with unlimited property photo capacity and support for massive photo sizes on their site.
Miami Beach, FL (PRWEB) November 26, 2007 -- Eighty percent of people across the country who bought a new home last year used the Internet while house hunting, and they rated photographs as the most useful tool in their search, according to a survey of buyers and sellers by the National Association of Realtors. Since property photos are meant to be a sales tool, Fizber.com, a premier FSBO website, has recently launched a service that is second to none for home sellers: there is now no limit on the total number and size of property photos that home owners can upload on their website.
In real estate marketing photos are important and convey the appeal of the property much better than words. Fizber.com allows home sellers to upload their property digital photos in high quality. The photos are presented in elegant, instant online slideshows. Fizber.com does not limit the number of photos and welcomes home owners to store as many property photos as they want. The impact of a photo is highly related to its size. Fizber.com does not restrict the photo size and encourages them to upload high resolution pictures of their property.
The Realtors' association survey found that when it comes to Web features that buyers considered "very useful," 83 percent cited pictures. In real estate, a picture can be worth more than a thousand words. When looking for properties online, buyers say that the pictures they see of houses and apartments for sale are often the first -- and sometimes the only -- chance for a seller to make a good impression.
"Good photos will grab people's attention and help you sell a home," says Julia Foster, a PR Manager for Fizber.com. "Not posting pictures at all is absolutely wrong because you won't have any calls on it, and nobody will come to see it. Visitors like to see photos of the lounge, dining areas, bedrooms and bathrooms. Outside, photos of terraces, balconies, gardens, BBQ area, pools etc. We encourage home sellers to post as many pictures as they like, we do not count."
Fizber.com has change the way property listings are presented on the Internet. Unlimited photos and no limits on photo sizes make placing a property listing on Fizber.com worth every dollar paid for it.
About Fizber.comFizber.com is a for-sale-by-owner website listing about 1,000,000 homes for sale. Listings are available for homes all over the United States. Find a perfect neighborhood with Fizber Drive Score. For more information, please visit www.fizber.com.

Monday, December 3, 2007

JPI Tops Out Two Luxury Apartment Buildings With Nearly 700 Units In The Ballpark District of Washington, D.C.

Leading national and regional multifamily housing developer JPI has topped out construction of its first two luxury apartment projects in the new ballpark district of Washington, D.C.
(PRWEB) December 3, 2007 -- Leading national and regional multifamily housing developer JPI has topped out construction of its first two luxury apartment projects in the new ballpark district of Washington, D.C. The Jefferson at Capitol Yards, located at 70 Eye Street, will have 448 apartments in two towers. Located right next door at 100 Eye Street, Mercury at Capitol Yards will have 246 residences.
Both buildings will deliver in the summer of 2008 when the Washington Nationals play their first season in the new stadium. The two projects' 694 combined apartments will be the first new homes to deliver in the ballpark district, where some 6,000 additional multifamily residences are planned along with new office buildings, shops, restaurants and hotels.
The Jefferson and Mercury are the first of four projects with a total of 1,325 apartments that JPI is developing in its Capitol Yards neighborhood near the ballpark. The 909 at 909 New Jersey Avenue, with 237 homes and 6,000 square feet of retail space, is currently under construction for delivery in mid-2009. Next year, JPI plans to break ground for its final addition to Capitol Yards, Jefferson Half Street, with 421 units and 15,000 square feet of retail space. On December 1, 2007, JPI will launch its new Capitol Yards Web site at www.capitolyardsdc.com.
Capitol Yards is located just five blocks south of the U.S. Capitol and four blocks from the Washington Nationals Ballpark, and is served by the Navy Yard Metro station. The new Department of Transportation headquarters, the recently renovated Barracks Row shopping and entertainment district, the shops and restaurants of Capitol Hill, and the soon-to-be-redeveloped Southwest waterfront are all within walking distance.
JPI will have invested nearly half a billion dollars in the Capitol Yards neighborhood by the end of the decade. The total development cost for the three buildings currently under construction is approximately $320 million. Jefferson Half Street has an estimated development cost of $150 million. JPI also has invested millions of dollars in site environmental remediation based on prior uses (including a gas station, auto yards, and warehouses), street improvements and wet utility infrastructure improvements for the area.
"Rather than slowly building one tower at a time and gradually changing a eighborhood, JPI believes that by designing and building multiple distinct projects, we can create a critical mass that makes an almost immediate transformation possible," said Aaron Liebert, Senior Vice President and Area Managing Partner of JPI. "Capitol Yards has provided us with the opportunity to do just that."
The Capitol Riverfront neighborhood of Washington, D.C. is redeveloping at a rapid pace; new development projects announced to date will add more than 6,600 residential units, over 800 new hotel rooms, almost five million square feet of new office space and over a half million square feet of retail space.
The Jefferson at Capitol Yards is designed to reflect the integration of the area's historical industrial architecture with modern design and materials. The building façade is reminiscent of old historical warehouse buildings, such as those found in the old Navy Yard, with large windows and brick veneers, providing the look of a renovated warehouse converted for modern living. This design concept is carried indoors with open ceilings, exposed ductwork, and other dynamic features that combine to provide a warm, casual and comfortable living environment.
Mercury At Capitol Yards takes a different design approach, making a bold statement with its dark-colored brick, metallic bay windows, detailed metal rail accents and contemporary metal-framed bay caps. The impressive triple-height lobby will feature a dazzling glass staircase, gleaming white terrazzo marble flooring, and stylish décor. Apartments will have sleek frameless cabinets with stainless steel hardware, granite countertops and other "edgy" design elements for the most discerning and image-conscious residents.
Both apartment communities will have resort-style rooftop pools with sundecks and views of the Capitol and Nationals Ballpark, first-class fitness centers, business centers, conference rooms, movie theaters, underground parking and 24-hour concierge service. WDG Architecture of Washington, D.C. is the project architect for both of the recently topped-out structures.
About JPI: Founded in 1989, JPI is dedicated to "Building Quality for Our Customers" and committed to making quality investments and providing the highest level of real estate services. JPI operates regional offices in McLean, Virginia; Carlsbad, California; New York; Atlanta; Boston; Boca Raton; and Irving, Texas. JPI is one of the nation's largest and most successful multifamily real estate firms with 1,500 Associates, providing acquisition, development, construction, and asset management services for conventional multifamily and student living communities nationwide. JPI also provides property management and leasing services for over 40,000 multifamily units across the United States and is the preferred multifamily property manager for RREEF Asset Management Group. For more information, see the Company Web site at www.jpi.com.

Online Exposure Enhanced by Using Unconventional "Drafting" Technique

www.EliteRenting.com Launches Dual-Approach Web Marketing Campaign.
Denver, FL, December 02, 2007 --(PR.com)-- Denver-based www.EliteRenting.com announced today the launch of two innovative online marketing strategies designed to provide apartment listing content to renters across the country.The first strategy is the launch of a secondary lead-generation division, a network of market-specific apartment websites designed to reach renters in large cities around the United States. The new division will include nearly 300 domain names that are specific to each unique geographic area, such as www.LasVegasCityApartments.com, www.DenverCityApartments.com and more. Renters will benefit from the current listings already online with www.EliteRenting.com, highlighting those that are germane to each market.In addition to the new CityApartments division, www.EliteRenting.com has started using a unique online marketing technique known as “drafting.” By purchasing and registering commonly misspelled rental website domain names, the company plans to capitalize on residual traffic generated by pay-per-click positions held by other industry rental websites, such as www.Hubuz.com and www.Hubuzz.com. The strategy is named after the NASCAR racing term that describes the technique a driver uses to follow the lead vehicle, thereby reducing the impact of wind resistance to maintain racing position and decrease fuel needed to maintain high speeds.“Together, these new online marketing strategies will drive apartment renters nationwide to the communities listing with www.EliteRenting.com, allowing the company to spend less on paid search results placement and increasing access to our many online listings,” says David Israel, www.EliteRenting.com Owner.www.EliteRenting.com is a leading online content provider connecting apartment communities to renters nationwide through proprietary software that enables apartment managers to update more than 35 rental websites daily through a single point of contact. Additionally, www.EliteRenting.com is the only online apartment service company that provides apartment listings and content to Craig’s List and MySpace.