North Loop Condo Pipeline Drying Up

May 28th, 2008

North_loop_map_2
Finance and Commerce reports on the status of Downtown Minneapolis' North Loop Condo Pipeline (Pipeline = industry-speak for planned and in-process projects):

The new, under-construction Twins stadium has been touted as a catalyst for new development. But so far, new development has been slow to take off in North Loop.

The previous wave of residential condo development has largely ground to a halt. And amid the bumpy economy, there isn’t much fresh development in the current pipeline around the ballpark, slated to open in the spring of 2010.

From the perspective of a developer, this not only bad news, but a sign of the times. It is simply too costly, too risky, or both, to launch any new projects right now.

And after the onset of the credit crunch last summer, just as for individual homeowners, financing new projects got tough:

right after late August [or] Labor Day, it was literally like a switch had been flipped and that market evaporated,” Minn said.

lenders making loans backed by commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) loans drove much of commercial real estate financing in recent years, until the credit crunch hit last fall.

For the individual homeowners - mostly condo dwellers - in North Loop, this can be taken as a positive sign.  Though there is still some inventory overhang from completed projects with unsold units, and financing a condo has gotten markedly tougher, new supply will soon be limited to re-sales only, and should provide some pricing support and enhance their prospects for appreciation, even if a few years away.

Posted in Condos & New Developments, Downtown, Minneapolis, Uncategorized | No Comments »

Reports from the Field: Putting the ‘Sex’ in Sexton

April 29th, 2008

Sexton_courtyard

We compiled the image above from this Sexton Property Listing, based on an anonymous tip:

So after reading the Strib article [on the Sexton] I went to the MLS to look at the history.

Turns out there is an active listing from one of the original owners that was foreclosed...I noticed in the details mention of “adult entertainment room”...indeed, the unit includes a lower level decked out in mirrors, couches and poles – a real business opportunity! Yikes!

Word to the wise: If you are going to install a sex room in your condo, be aware that a simple search of property tax records, or in this case a record of Sherrif's Foreclosures makes it easy to establish your identity as a known pervert. Not that we looked it up or anything.

And also:  This property is currently listed for $109,900.00 (reduced from $159,900.) Last recorded sales price?  $620,000.00.

That is a horse-choking $510,000.00+ loss for homecomings financial.

Bounty: Any agent who can come up with pictures of the AER (a feature that just begs for its own acronym) we'll run your next 3 open houses as posts, or get you some other similar publicity, right here on Behind The Mortgage.

Posted in Condos & New Developments, Downtown, Foreclosures, Sexton, Twin Cities, Uncategorized | No Comments »

The Mess at Sexton: More Details

April 28th, 2008

Sexton_building
Front and center in the business section today is a massive version of the photo above, via Star Tribune.

Accompanied by an article with more detail on the ongoing saga down at the Sexton, where only 36 of 123 units are occupied, and the entire project is a messy tapestry of fraud, foreclosure, and lawsuits.

"[The Sexton] doesn't come up in conversations very often, but when it does, the comment usually is something like 'That place is really a mess,'" Melchior said.

We'd expect to see some indictments for some of the principal actors soon, and one wonders whether the Sexton Building will be given similar treatment as the TJ Waconia, and is being set up for city administration/ownership/receivorship.
Sexton Building: That Place is a Mess [Strib]

Posted in Condos & New Developments, Downtown, Foreclosures, Fraud, Minneapolis, Uncategorized | No Comments »

 

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