My wife and I dropped by the "Grand Opening" event for Mosaic last week. It was a nice enough event with all the usual stuff; valet parking, great little catered appetizers, live string instrumentals etc. But the event as a whole sure didn't make sense to me. After all, they're supposedly selling a project going up in the heart of Tempe and yet the event was held at 1st Street and McKinley, just north of DOWNTOWN PHOENIX. What gives? I question the comittment of developers who "launch" from sales centers located fifteen miles from the site. Smells like they might be doing the ground work with the hope that they can flip the project for a quick profit. I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with that, I'm just trying to figure the whole thing out.
What I do know is that they're looking to build a 21 story tower of flats, townhomes, condominiums, and penthouses on University just west of Mill Ave. Great location!
Sales prices start at approximately $780/square foot. Super high prices!
We weren't wowed by the finishes displayed at the sales office. Sure MOST of them were nice but nothing that everyone else isn't already offering. In fact one of the kitchens there sported cabinets that I would expect to find in Grandma's home; booooooorrrrrring. I think that to be competitive in today's market especially in the urban/loft market niche, new builds have to be exciting.....especially when asking almost $800 per foot!!!!
I'd love to see it built, and I'll certainly take any of my clients interested in Tempe / Mill Avenue there to get their take on the project but I'd feel a whole heck of a lot better about it if: a) Center Pointe was actually even close to being sold out b) the prices started closer to the $600/foot range and c) the building offered anything unique. We'll see. . . . . . . .
Monday, March 05, 2007
Questions About Mosaic At University and Ash
Monday, January 29, 2007
Hayden Ferry HOA
Hayden Ferry (Edgewater, Bridgeview, etc...) just raised their HOA to about 55 cents per square foot. I don't understand this. Crystal Point, with only 63 units has fees of approximately 38 cents per square foot. Why does a larger community (currently about 60 but soon to have another 100 and ultimately a total of almost 400) with fewer amenities than Crystal Point, that also has the added benefit of sharing a portion of their common area with surrounding commercial buildings, need to charge so much? I represented several buyers at Hayden Ferry last year and at the time I was very confident that management would be able to keep the HOA down under 40 cents a foot. Ideas???
Read More......Friday, January 26, 2007
Tempe Update
We're getting closer to seeing something vertical at the corner of Rural and Apache. 100 units at approximately 350+ per square foot with starting prices in the high $200k's. Contact us for more information.
Read More......Thursday, January 25, 2007
Tempe Urban Loft Projects
The Brownstones at Tempe is coming along nicely. Phase I is nearly sold out, and Phase II is about to be released. These two and three story urban lofts are amazing. With a total of 13 layouts to choose from there truly is something for everyone. There are currently 5 spec homes decked out with upgrades and 6 additional homes remaining for sale in Phase I. Spec homes could be delivered in as little as 60 days. This is a great opportunity to get in early at the best pricing. The photo below shows the second floor kitchen in one of the models. These lofts are beautiful, stylish and in a great locations. As the landscape of Tempe takes shape with the Centerpoint and Hayden Ferry projects, these smaller loft projects provide a great opportunity for professionals and students who want access to all that the area has to offer. All told there are seven new construction sites in the area. I've got the inside story on all of the up coming loft and urban village projects coming to Downtown Tempe. Contact WeKnowUrban and I'll be happy to arrange personal tours of all these exciting developments.
Read More......
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
True
Christina Vanoverbeke recently reported in the Tribune that some East Valley residents are turning to lofts and high rises instead of the sprawl that has dominated the Valley for decades. My sales agents and I specialize in finding homes for just such buyers. I sold a Hayden Ferry condo to a great couple who currently lives in Fountain Hills. He's an airline pilot and she works at ASU. They love the idea of trading in the long commute for spending time together in and around Tempe. Another couple relocating from the mid-west will be calling Hayden Ferry home in about twelve months. She too works for ASU and they want to live close to work and the wonderful community that Mill Avenue has cultivated. My wife and I live in a high rise condo near mid-town Phoenix and we love being minutes from Durants, Fez, Zest, Barrio Cafe and other fantastic restaurants. I'm telling you when that light rail is completed life is going to pop along that route!!!
Read More......Saturday, July 01, 2006
Great New Jobs Means More Money For Real Estate
Technology Reigns in Tempe
Jul. 1, 2006 12:00 AM
Nine out of 10 Arizonans think developments in science and technology are critical to the creation of high-paying jobs.
That's according to a new survey by Arizona State University's Morrison Institute for Public Policy, which also found that a majority of Arizonans are willing to pay higher taxes to support research.
If that's the case, that most people equate science and technology with quality job creation, they should be keeping tabs on the researchers and employers choosing Tempe.
One of the state's most promising research facilities, the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University, is in Tempe. It has attracted renowned scientists and created several hundred jobs for lab technicians and last year was the Valley's largest generator of biomedical research funding.
Researchers there are working with folks in private industry to speed innovations into the marketplace, everything from pollution-eating molecules to sensors that help diabetics manage their disease.
ASU's Flexible Display Center has a similar mission. The center, which is developing rugged, flexible computer screens, has partnered with the Army and industry heavyweights such as Honeywell, Corning and General Dynamics to speed the invention's completion.
ASU's Tempe campus has plenty of other programs that are attractive to high-paying employers. Google, the Internet search giant that offers legendary employee perks, recently chose to open its temporary office in Tempe, partially so it could be close to innovators at the university.
According to the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, nearly 11,000 people work in "high technology" jobs in Tempe.
But the potential for growth, even in office parks outside Tempe, could be exponential in the years to come if, say, someone at the Biodesign Institute finds an effective cure for Alzheimer's disease. A spinoff (or spinoffs) would need to hire workers to manufacture the drug.
Of course, job-creating innovations won't come overnight. And it's anyone's guess whether the big ones, such as a cure for Alzheimer's, will ever come.
It's hard to say if most Arizonans understand that. The Morrison Institute survey didn't ask how long people thought it would take for the investment in science and technology research to pay off or what fits the bill as a "high-paying job."
Nevertheless, if there truly is a correlation between science and job creation, it should be easiest to find it in Tempe.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Tempe Loft Down the Drain? - 4/13/06
Sewage problems could sideline redevelopment on Apache Boulevard.....Old sewer pipes clog condo plans
Apache Blvd. lines worry developers
Katie Nelson
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 7, 2006 12:00 AM
Sewage problems could sideline redevelopment on Apache Boulevard, warn some real estate agents involved in trying to build a 10-story condominium complex there.
Plans for the Tempe Union Station Lofts project stalled in March after a series of setbacks including the sewage issue.
But the live-work condo complex may still happen, according to the real estate agent brokering the deal. It could be the first major revitalization investment to come to the area as a result of light rail.
The developers are still trying to build on three adjacent plots of land containing mobile home parks and other low-income housing, said Diane Minkner, the agent who assembled the land, and the owner of Integrity Fine Properties in Paradise Valley. Architects are in the midst of redrawing their plans with lower buildings, Minkner said.
Yet height issues aside, both sides say for the project to be successful, one of the main hurdles it will have to overcome is sewer capacity. To serve more people than are already there, major changes need to be made to the about 50-year-old sewer lines.
It's an expensive problem the developers say they shouldn't be responsible for. They also say it may spell trouble for not just them, but any developer who wants to invest in the area.
"The developers are already spending millions of dollars. The city should contribute their portion," Minkner said.
"It's a little give and take. After all, we're helping the city clean up Apache Boulevard in a big way. Three trailer parks is a big thing."
City leaders say they, too, have invested a lot. Light rail and waterline upgrades in the area are already costing Tempe millions.
And community members and city officials have spent years planning a transportation overlay district, designed to make Apache Boulevard a safe, pedestrian-friendly place to live and do business.
The city says developers shoulder the burden of items such as needed sewer capacity.
"It's common practice in the utility industry and every city in the Valley," said Don Hawkes, Tempe's water utilities manager. "New development means if they need new infrastructure, it's at their cost."
Hawkes cited The Vale, a modern condo/business complex at University and Hardy Drives, and Arizona State University buildings at Mill Avenue and University Drive as examples of recent developments that have had to pay for new sewer lines.
Sewer capacity has been raised as an issue elsewhere.On Apache Boulevard, the sewer lines are smaller than other commercial areas, Hawkes said.
That's because when the lines were put in, the area was only single-story residential or commercial.
Sewer lines are typically designed to last at least 50 years, according to Hawkes, but can last up to 100 years.
The city's oldest working sewer lines were built in the late 1940s or early 1950s.
Thoseinvolved in trying to build the Tempe Union Station Lofts warn the current sewer situation on the boulevard spells trouble.
"The city has got this great plan, but it won't become a reality unless they replace and improve the sewer line for sewer capacity," said Realtor Sara Lucas, who represents the business owners trying to sell their land for the Union Lofts deal.
"If not, it will always be an ongoing problem for every single development deal and all their vision and all their work and all the years are literally down the drain."
Sunday, April 02, 2006
Hayden Ferry Bridgeview, April 2, 2006
The developer of Hayden Ferry Edgewater (phase 1) and Bridgeview (phase 2) are throwing an invitation only party in May to celebrate the completion and delivery of Edgewater units. Guests will pretty much be limited to people who purchased an Edgewater or Bridgeview unit and those people who are "for real" prospective buyers for Bridgeview. The developer hopes that once prospective buyers get to see an actual unit then they'll want to sign a contract. The developer is also hoping that once buyers can see, touch and feel what they're offering then they'll be able to raise prices. In a normal market I'm sure that strategy would pay off. We'll see if it works in a market that has slowed down.
Read More......Safari Drive
Safari Drive has begun taking reservations. The builder already let friends and family reserve 20% of the units but now the public can get in. Prices start at about $600 a foot so they're not cheap but they are right in the heart of Scottsdale. I personally still prefer Portland Place and Hayden Ferry Bridgeview but if you gotta have Scottsdale then Safari Drive might be the way to go. The styling of the finishes are definitely geared for a younger audience, kinda retro like Valley Ho or James Hotel (which by the way recently sold) but with a European flavor.
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