A trio of condo craze articles. "'We certainly believe this idea of urban living will catch on in Brickell. People are tired of using their cars for everything,' Carl Rosso, vice president of the Related Group said. 'Brickell will be the motor for Miami.'"

"He said it is difficult to know how many units in the Related projects were sold to speculators. He said earlier projects Loft I and Loft II were priced below market value to enable city employees to live there. Some workers who bought units, he said, then quickly sold them at a profit. 'Were these users or investors? It's hard to tell.' He said. 'What defines one category becomes blurred.'"

"Alan Ojeda said his company's project, One Broadway, is the product 'of a contrarian mind' because instead of being a condominium, it is a '36-story, extremely upscale rental project.'"

"Due to the cost of land and construction, he said, an upscale rental project 'does not work in the short term' but his company is in the project 'for the long term.' 'In the short term, we have no competition because everyone has gone condo,' he said. 'Any competition we have will be from the people who buy these condos and then rent them.'"

"Recent buyers of new condominiums in Seattle are likely familiar with what can be a stressful, cutthroat process. Wanting to spare buyers from that pressure cooker..the builder of a 20-unit loft development in Madison Valley is holding what is believed to be the area's first Internet condo auction. Potential buyers must register on the development's Web site, and attend informational meetings, at which they will be able to see renderings of the building and receive a CD with an electronic 'fly-through' tour of the development."

"'We're not changing the whole process,' (developer Mike Mcclure said. 'We're augmenting how you define the price.'"

"But (agent) Corey Patt sees potential drawbacks for buyers who could get caught up in a bidding frenzy and pay more than the unit is worth. 'I know a lot of my clients just feel like they're bidding blindly in the dark when they make an offer,' said Patt, who herself hopes to buy one of the lofts. (Broker) Jim Reppond said potential buyers need to ensure with their lenders that a sale is subject to an appraisal. 'What if you ended up paying $700,000 on a unit that everybody thought was going to go for $400,000 and it doesn't appraise for $400,000, or you have a 90 percent loan?'"

"Nobody really knows the depth of the high-rise condominium market in Las Vegas, though nearly 1,000 have been built and sold and another 5,800 are under construction, a local economist said. Nine condo projects and three condo-hotels are 'real,' meaning you can see the steel going up. John Restrepo said six projects are 'dead or wounded,' canceled or put on hold for whatever reason. Three 'John Does' are also on the R.I.P. list, he said."

"Research shows that 80 percent to 90 percent of condo buyers in the Strip corridor are speculators, investors and second-home buyers, Restrepo said. 'Very few people want to live on the Strip full time,' he said. 'Look at Turnberry Place and Park Towers. They're always dark.'"

"'We do know there's a huge amount of interest in Las Vegas and people want to live here,' Restrepo said. 'People want to live near the ocean or water some people say the Strip is our ocean. I don't know about that.'"