Comments on Wanna Buy The Lock Vista? Got $32 Million?

7 minutes from the downtown Business District? Yeah, maybe if you commute in an F-16.

Though not as meaty, one of the most irritating things about the conversion craze is that cool buildings next to cool things will eventually be %100 converted. There's no gem-scoring in the future renter's market. I lived at Lock Vista in 2002 and paid $600 for a one bedroom full of cool midcentury details. Memories...

West Seattle has also had several planned conversions scuttled.

http://westseattleblog.com/blog/?p=4355

(put 4346 on the end of that URL instead for another link, spam police stopping me)

We've seen the end of the condo conversion craze.

Why would I want to buy this if I can't convert it or charge market-rate rent? The number of people who have $32M for a real estate investment is small, but the number of people who have $32M for a charity project is approximately zero.

My homie lives there. He'll be glad to know he's not getting kicked out right away.

#4 is correct. The building next to mine was supposed to go condo. They wanted to charge obscene prices for teeny, tiny apartments. Now, they're trying to rent the apartments out again. Nyah, nyah.

Wel by me on first hill they started construction on what was to be luxury condos ... now as they are building it, it has transformed to luxury apartments.

Condo craze == dead.

With a quick calculation: on a 15 year mortgage(the only sensible option for commercial property), plus operating expenses, to make a modest profit and pay off the loan, at $32,000,000 you'd need to charge an average rent of at least $1,400 for the 192 units.

$32 mil is the asking. Just the asking. And it's a fishing price, too. Praps Northlake knows it will have to write a fat check for withdrawing from the purchase & sale agreement, and is stalling until the new fiscal year begins.

Nobody but an idiot would take the bait. Let the price drop like a rock, then SHA or King County Housing Authority could get up to bat and snap it up for assessed value. Or let current owners suck it up and be happy with the income their renters provide.

I lived there in the mid 90's. It was a cool spot. Right on the bus lines and across from the locks.

Problem was that the walls are so thin and the hardwood floors are so loud, that I could here the hooker upstairs turning her tricks at 3 am and her taking the occasional really hard dump.

The pool was a constant source of summer hot bod viewing though!

I think condo conversions are often good moves for older buildings (I'm thinking of Historic Seattle's bldgs here). Sometimes landlords let older buildings with character go to shit and then they just get torn down once its too expensive to restore and a generic cookie-cutter condo building goes up anyway. Most of the Anhalt buildings are condo now, for instance, and are sure to be preserved.

I think condo conversions are often good moves for older buildings (I'm thinking of Historic Seattle's bldgs here). Sometimes landlords let older buildings with character go to shit and then they just get torn down once its too expensive to restore and a generic cookie-cutter condo building goes up anyway. Most of the Anhalt buildings are condo now, for instance, and are sure to be preserved.