sogod
11 August 2004, 04:35 PM
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/081104dnbustreviso.c381b.html
Condo craze has spread to Las Colinas Like its Dallas peers, luxury apartment tower to make the switch
08:45 AM CDT on Wednesday, August 11, 2004
By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
Dallas' high-rise condo craze is heading to the 'burbs.
The owners of the 17-story Grand Treviso apartment tower in Las Colinas have decided to convert the building into condominiums.
The 2-year-old luxury rental complex is the first recently built project in the suburbs to make the switch.
Four high-rise condo projects are under development in Dallas' Uptown neighborhood, and two former apartment towers have already gone condo.
"There has been a lot said about downtown and Uptown, but we are the first and only high-rise in Las Colinas," said Tom Huth, president of Grand Treviso owner Palladium USA International.
"This gives an option to a segment of the market that doesn't want to live near downtown Dallas.
"We think we have a niche that will be very successful for us."
The 247-unit Grand Treviso tower is a hit with renters.
"We are in the mid-90s [percent] leased and occupied," Mr. Huth said. "From a rental standpoint, it was a very big success."
The project is just east of State Highway 114 in the Las Colinas Urban Center.
Palladium, an apartment builder that's a subsidiary of a European firm, started offering the units for sale to current renters a couple of weeks ago. Later this month, marketing to the public will begin.
Units will range from around $150,000 for a one-bedroom condo to about $1 million for a three-bedroom penthouse. The apartments range in size from 733 square feet to 3,169 square feet.
"Our unit mix can appeal to a wide variety of potential buyers," Mr. Huth said. "And regardless of whether you buy a unit for $150,000 or $1 million, the amenity package is the same."
The building's frills include a rooftop swimming pool with garden terrace and spa, a "grand salon" set up for multimedia, a cigar lounge, a fitness center and a tanning room.
Longtime Dallas real estate analyst Ron Witten said the latest generation of condos appeals to a wide range of buyers, from retirees to young professionals. But it's still a small part of the overall North Texas housing market.
"I don't think it's a flash in the pan, but it is not a mainstream housing sector," he said. "We are not to that level of maturity as a region. The locations for these projects continue to be urban or semi-urban."
Unlike in previous condo booms, most of the buyers are embracing the lifestyle, not choosing condos because that's all they can afford, Mr. Witten said.
"Being priced out of single-family homes drove a lot of the demand in the late '70s and early '80s," he said. "But that is not the case with mortgage rates today."
The number of condos for sale in North Texas has jumped by about 26 percent this year. And while pre-owned home prices are flat, condo prices are up 6 percent.
"A huge block of the apartment sales transactions nationwide are to condo converters," said Greg Willett of M/PF Research Inc. "I think we are looking at somewhere close to 1,000 units converted in the past year" in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
So how deep is the market for condos in North Texas?
"That's the big question," Mr. Willett said. "It's hard to get a good handle on that here in Dallas, where condos have never been an especially popular product and have moved in cycles."
He also predicts that if mortgage rates rise significantly, "This market will be one of the first to be knocked out."
Perhaps, but presales at the W Dallas Victory Hotel and Residences and the Residences at the Ritz-Carlton have far exceeded expectations, developers say.
Mr. Huth said Palladium is evaluating another high-rise rental building it owns near the Galleria in North Dallas.
"We are looking at conversion as an option for Verona [on Noel Road], but it's way too early" for such a decision, he said.
E-mail stevebrown@dallasnews.com (stevebrown@dallasnews.com)
Condo craze has spread to Las Colinas Like its Dallas peers, luxury apartment tower to make the switch
08:45 AM CDT on Wednesday, August 11, 2004
By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
Dallas' high-rise condo craze is heading to the 'burbs.
The owners of the 17-story Grand Treviso apartment tower in Las Colinas have decided to convert the building into condominiums.
The 2-year-old luxury rental complex is the first recently built project in the suburbs to make the switch.
Four high-rise condo projects are under development in Dallas' Uptown neighborhood, and two former apartment towers have already gone condo.
"There has been a lot said about downtown and Uptown, but we are the first and only high-rise in Las Colinas," said Tom Huth, president of Grand Treviso owner Palladium USA International.
"This gives an option to a segment of the market that doesn't want to live near downtown Dallas.
"We think we have a niche that will be very successful for us."
The 247-unit Grand Treviso tower is a hit with renters.
"We are in the mid-90s [percent] leased and occupied," Mr. Huth said. "From a rental standpoint, it was a very big success."
The project is just east of State Highway 114 in the Las Colinas Urban Center.
Palladium, an apartment builder that's a subsidiary of a European firm, started offering the units for sale to current renters a couple of weeks ago. Later this month, marketing to the public will begin.
Units will range from around $150,000 for a one-bedroom condo to about $1 million for a three-bedroom penthouse. The apartments range in size from 733 square feet to 3,169 square feet.
"Our unit mix can appeal to a wide variety of potential buyers," Mr. Huth said. "And regardless of whether you buy a unit for $150,000 or $1 million, the amenity package is the same."
The building's frills include a rooftop swimming pool with garden terrace and spa, a "grand salon" set up for multimedia, a cigar lounge, a fitness center and a tanning room.
Longtime Dallas real estate analyst Ron Witten said the latest generation of condos appeals to a wide range of buyers, from retirees to young professionals. But it's still a small part of the overall North Texas housing market.
"I don't think it's a flash in the pan, but it is not a mainstream housing sector," he said. "We are not to that level of maturity as a region. The locations for these projects continue to be urban or semi-urban."
Unlike in previous condo booms, most of the buyers are embracing the lifestyle, not choosing condos because that's all they can afford, Mr. Witten said.
"Being priced out of single-family homes drove a lot of the demand in the late '70s and early '80s," he said. "But that is not the case with mortgage rates today."
The number of condos for sale in North Texas has jumped by about 26 percent this year. And while pre-owned home prices are flat, condo prices are up 6 percent.
"A huge block of the apartment sales transactions nationwide are to condo converters," said Greg Willett of M/PF Research Inc. "I think we are looking at somewhere close to 1,000 units converted in the past year" in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
So how deep is the market for condos in North Texas?
"That's the big question," Mr. Willett said. "It's hard to get a good handle on that here in Dallas, where condos have never been an especially popular product and have moved in cycles."
He also predicts that if mortgage rates rise significantly, "This market will be one of the first to be knocked out."
Perhaps, but presales at the W Dallas Victory Hotel and Residences and the Residences at the Ritz-Carlton have far exceeded expectations, developers say.
Mr. Huth said Palladium is evaluating another high-rise rental building it owns near the Galleria in North Dallas.
"We are looking at conversion as an option for Verona [on Noel Road], but it's way too early" for such a decision, he said.
E-mail stevebrown@dallasnews.com (stevebrown@dallasnews.com)