Reports on Condo sales in two cities. "A planned $21 million Des Moines condominium project now deemed 'economically infeasible' is a sign that downtown's housing boom has shifted from high-end to more affordable, a national expert said Monday. 'The market has moderated somewhat on the demand side, and in some markets you have a lot of units coming on line,' said Bernard Markstein, an economist with the National Association of Home Builders. 'What you get is a temporary imbalance of supply and demand.'"

"Minneapolis developer George Sherman on Monday got council approval to change his planned $21 million, 80-unit condo development into a 105-unit apartment building."

"More than 500 apartments or condos will be added to Des Moines' downtown real estate market within the next year. Real estate agents and developers say sales remain strong across the board, city leaders acknowledge that some of the higher-priced condos have not sold as quickly as expected."

"'Personally, I don't think the market is flooded,' (spokeperson) Jackie Nickolaus said. 'I'm very bullish about downtown housing. The question is how long it will take to absorb' the influx."

From the Boston Globe. "So far, Boston isn't buying what Philippe Starck is selling. Marketing began almost a year ago, but buyers have agreed to purchase just six of the 26 condos Starck is designing. Agents in Boston's clubby real estate community who have spoken with the developer and sales agents said even those six agreements are not firm commitments."

"(Consultant) Stephen Chung said the slower housing market is also responsible for lagging sales, with fewer speculators quickly buying and flipping condos for profits. In the current market, homebuyers 'are going to live there,' he said, and 'they bring tape measures. The market and the people are so different.'"

"But real estate agents said that because the project was initially overpriced, it also missed out on the sizzling 2005 condo market. Developers typically raise prices as a project attracts interest during construction and builds sales momentum. But some of YooD4's asking prices have been lowered since last summer: The highest-priced unit is currently on the market for $1.71 million, down from $1.77 million in July. The price of the two-bedroom Unit 13 was cut $200,000, to $1.1 million."

"Chung said he and the sales teams are amenable to negotiating over the details. 'Maybe people didn't want to pay for all that Starck finish,' he said. 'We said, 'We'll take it out. It'll make it more attractive in terms of price.'"