“The Condo Market Is No Good Right Now”
A housing report from the Baltimore Sun. “Ryan Conlon had a condo picked out. Nothing showy, but nice. Two bedrooms and a porch. No roommates, no landlords. The 29-year-old supervisor at Geico in Bowie was almost locked into the deal when he suddenly backed out. ‘The condo market is no good right now,’ he decided.”
“Instead, he and a friend took sanctuary at Annapolis’ newest luxury apartment complex, signing a one-year lease in December for a two-bedroom, two-bathroom unit with granite countertops, maple cabinets and stainless-steel appliances, for $1,900 a month.”
“‘For someone like me who makes decent money, I could afford a condo right now, but then I’d be house-poor,’ he said. ‘I plan on buying as soon as prices go down.’”
“People like Conlon are why the apartment market in the city is tight, despite a crush of new buildings and condos for lease by investors: Well-off Annapolitans are gobbling up high-end rental units, waiting for prices of single-family homes and condos to stabilize.”
“The average price per square foot jumped $10 to $380 last year, even as four new condo conversions entered the market, according to Delta Associates. The pace of condo sales in Annapolis slackened from nine units a month in 2005 to four in 2006.”
“‘I wouldn’t say that Annapolis is in dire straits, but the market would be doing better if there were fewer new projects,’ said William Rich, a vice president at Delta.”
“About 66 percent of Annapolis’ condos stood empty at the year’s end, according to Delta.”
“Condos are more vulnerable than single-family homes to price fluctuations because they attract investors who either flip them or rent them out, said associate broker Bill Hyland,. He tracks condo sales in Annapolis and supplies buyer information, and said the fluctuations in the Annapolis condo market have never been this pronounced.”
“‘For some people, it’s a good idea to buy right now. For others, it’s not,’ Hyland said. ‘Many of the listing prices were overextended to begin with, and most have dropped 20 percent in the past year.’”
“He and his wife are renting an Eastport condo that ‘we could nowhere near afford to buy.’ They intend to buy again once the market settles.”
“Single-family home sales in Annapolis fell off by almost half in 2006, down to 173 from 305, according to economist Joseph Cater. ‘We’ve come from a very long way in housing,’ Cater said. ‘Prices tend to ramp up very quickly and become sticky on the way down. The market is going to take time to readjust.’”
“A wave of conversions has added more than 700 apartments to the city’s inventory in less than two years, and the number of apartments has grown by about 20 percent, to almost 6,000, in the past six years, Cater said. Investors who couldn’t unload their condos because of market conditions have resorted to renting them.”
“New apartments in the area are trying to lure tenants with move-in specials and incentives. At West and Chinquapin Round roads, 1901 West is offering new tenants 1 1/2 months’ free rent. Down the road, Stone Point Apartments is handing out one month’s free rent.”
“A month after construction wrapped up, nearly 100 of 1901 West’s 300 apartments are leased. Jeramy Utara, a leasing consultant at Stone Point, which opened in the fall of 2005, said the building is 80 percent leased. Rents at both range from about $1,100 to $2,000.”
The Baltimore Messenger. ” Property taxes might be the death of Matthew Imhoff. The Mt. Washington resident’s triannual assessment shot up 110 percent, from $202,000 to $419,000, on a house that was appraised last year at about $350,000.”
“Imhoff joined 100 other Mt. Washington residents at an informational meeting Jan. 18, led by officials from the Baltimore City office of the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Many in the audience were angry at the gods of taxation.”
“The latest assessments are complicating lives in surprising ways. A man who wouldn’t give his name said his assessment doubled at a time when he is getting divorced, and he wants to buy out his wife’s half of their house. ‘I’m essentially screwed,’ he announced at the meeting.”
“Robert Cushner, a certified appraiser, whose job includes helping people appeal their assessments, said at least 20 percent of Mt. Washington residents might be eligible to appeal. The new assessments are more justified regionally than in Mt. Washington, where average sale prices for the city portion of ZIP code 21209 fell 12 percent from the third quarter of 2005 to the third quarter of 2006, he said.”
“Cushner said 21209 was one of four ZIP codes citywide where average sales prices fell during that time frame, including a 4 percent drop in 21218, which includes Guilford, Waverly and Oakenshawe. ‘That would be good evidence to make an appeal if you think you have been overassessed,’ Cushner said.”
“Fifth District City Councilwoman Rikki Spector said she believes lowering the rate is essential. ‘It’s killing us,’ Spector said. But to cut the rate, the city needs a bigger tax base, and too many properties in the city, including a high percentage of abandoned homes, don’t generate any tax revenue, she said.”
“Fifth District City Councilwoman Rikki Spector said she believes lowering the rate is essential. ‘It’s killing us,’ Spector said. But to cut the rate, the city needs a bigger tax base, and too many properties in the city, including a high percentage of abandoned homes, don’t generate any tax revenue, she said.”
Gee, is that what you call a ‘conundrum’? Guess they’ll have to keep raising the property tax rate until all the houses in Baltimore are abandoned. At that point they can turn them all into Sectio-8 housing and let Uncle Sam foot the tax bill.
See, every problem has a solution!
“Guess they’ll have to keep raising the property tax rate until all the houses in Baltimore are abandoned.”
The beatings will continue until moral improves
CON-un-dumb.
“‘For some people, it’s a good idea to buy right now. For others, it’s not,’ Hyland said. ‘Many of the listing prices were overextended to begin with, and most have dropped 20 percent in the past year.’”
It’s a good idea to buy if your ambition is to lose a lot of money and be upside down, locked into a property with default as your move strategy. Not a lot of people fit into this category, as I see it.
Its a good idea to buy right now if you are a penniless bum because they will give you five hundred grand for free. What have you got to lose? Don’t you love our financial system?
Yes, of course!
Also a good strategy if your goal is to game the system in the last gasp before the bubble finally explodes by getting a lot of cash-back-at-closing to live it up and then default on the loan.
I keep waiting for the ‘readjustment’ in prices. Then I look at my screen and I see Pulte and Brookfield up.What’s going on? Are the criminals on Wall Street believing Lereah and Lay or what and pumping again. The shorts will probably loose their a– again. The yield curve is inverted but where is the recession when we need it?
“For some people, it’s a good idea to buy right now. For others, it’s not,” Hyland said. “Many of the listing prices were overextended to begin with, and most have dropped 20 percent in the past year. There are some pretty good opportunities out there.”
He and his wife are renting an Eastport condo that “we could nowhere near afford to buy.” They intend to buy again once the market settles.
He’s renting …hmmm
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2007/01/24/another-reason-i-know-the-bottoms-not-in.aspx?source=eptyholnk303100&logvisit=y&npu=y
Did you guys see this? Author thanks this blog specifically.
ok Seth Jayson, author of the above article, what is the moniker you are using on this site?
It is a nice short article similar to many posts here. Hmmm… I have no problem with him staying anon. Its time to get the truth out to the MSM.
When will the bottom be? Well… I joined the chorus that I’m tired of waiting and thus will look into jobs in “fly over country.”
I’m sorry, but the value of owning outweighs the tiny risk in some areas. 
Will this be soon? No.
This isn’t over by a long shot.
Got popcorn?
Neil
I like Seth Jayson,
I read a lot of his stuff. He helped confirm my decision to buy ELN at $5. Even with the pullback to $13, I’m way ahead on it.
John Doe
I can tell you guys that this is unfolding a lot faster than in the 90’s.
Back then it took the lenders much longer to feal the pain of the bad loans. With the advent of all these subprime boiler rooms we have hit the wall. Their loans are so bad now that they don’t have time to unload them before they blow up. This is the reason you see them folding up shop at the rates they are.
As noted here, the information flow is much faster and more accurate (for those collecting/paying for it) than in the 90’s. Back then there was much bullshit like “we can’t find the file, we will get back with you”, “Mr. Dirtbag loan officer is out for (lunch, vacation, vasectimy, whatever…)”, etc.. That kind of crap can draw things out for a lot longer than you would think.
In todays world of lightning fast HOT money the time from any point in a transaction to the next is much smaller than in the past. The lack of response in any point in the transaction is immediatly flagged. The wiggle room is not there like it was in the 90’s.
We are in effect many months further through the collapse than we were after the last peak at this time. In the 90’s it took the banks forever (years)(due to fed regulators, CYA bankers and corruption hiding) to get a handle on what happened.
With everything basically at your fingertips now (and the real fraud blowing up immediatly after funding) it will take weeks to sort out how bad it is (for the lenders) as compared to they years it took in the past.
Legit observation Rich.
In the Northeast, the primary participants in the ‘90/’91 bust tended to be established banks.
And a quite few went broke.
Sub-prime also wasn’t even an established loan rating.
But the penny stock boiler-room hucksters, seein’ easy millions to be made in an unregulated industry, crawled out of the sewers where they were previously employed and had a field day.
The coming debacle will take everything down.
Seth Jayson is really TXChick57. I can just feel it.
so what’s dire ?
“‘I wouldn’t say that Annapolis is in dire straits, but the market would be doing better if there were fewer new projects,’ said William Rich, a vice president at Delta.”
“About 66 percent of Annapolis’ condos stood empty at the year’s end, according to Delta.”
I wonder how much money people are losing each year just in taxes, fees and maintenance on all those empty condos?
No need for a number. A LOT. The dumb morons forgot these things that always go up. Stupid morons! How can you forget that taxes, fees and maintenance cost always go up ? Always.
…..”market would be doing better if there were fewer new projects”
Somebody has to start giving awards for people stating the obvious. I’m waiting for a spokeman to say they would sell more units if more people would start buying….
I think Yogi Berra may have already coined that one
“People like Conlon are why the apartment market in the city is tight” … nope, wrong. The apartment market in the city is tight because the a$$holes who own the vacant 66% of condos haven’t given up on the idea that someone will buy their POS’s.
emailed this to a future fb
I guess she better check the hoa docs before buying
“Property taxes might be the death of Matthew Imhoff. The Mt. Washington resident’s triannual assessment shot up 110 percent, from $202,000 to $419,000, on a house that was appraised last year at about $350,000.”
Wow, that is a 19.7% increase in assessment from appraised value from just a year ago. Proof positive that RE always goes up!
A Landlord once told me that every year when he goes to pay his property taxes he takes the title with him and tells ‘em he will be more than happy to sell his rental house today to anybody at the tax office who wants it for the assessed value.
I wish the state of KY would buy my car for it’s assessed value every year at registration, because I do not know of any dealer who is getting this assessed value even at a retail level.
Like it or hate it, but horror stories like this of unfair taxation is the reason why voters passed Prop 13 in California. Way back when they voted this in, California was pulling crap like this yearly.
People are going to lose their homes, and they are pissed.
Prop 13 is a joke and don’t for a second think that it was a sympathetic gesture by the politicains to help out the little guy. It was a ploy that, by far disproportionately benefits large property owners. Those that gain the most own shell corporations that defeat the tax increases at sale time by transfering the corp to the next owner, robbing the communities of money used to benefit the constituents. The most screwed are those that have to or need to move or 1st time buyers.
Prop 13 is a scam.
You’re right that it wasn’t a sympathetic gesture by the politicians - they hated it. This was a proposition that was put on the ballot by the voters, not the politicians.
I don’t think it’s a scam or a joke, though. Yes, there are some loopholes that should be closed, but for the most part it does its job, which is to make property taxes stable. I will be a first time homeowner (once prices return to normal), and I know that I will pay more in taxes than someone who bought a similar property at a lower price. I’m OK with that - I consider the taxes when determining what I can afford to buy. And Prop. 13 helps make sure that those taxes won’t get out of control as long as I live in that house, which is a nice feature (same reason I want a fixed rate loan - security of knowing what the payment will be).
So, no Prop. 13 isn’t perfect (and, while I would like to see it fixed, I know that once you start tinkering with it, people will try to do a lot more than close loopholes). But, I do think it is better than the alternative, which is just to let taxes increase to the point where people (often retired, on fixed incomes) are forced from their homes because of rising taxes.
If it were not for Proposition 13, I would have had to leave the state. Thankfully, at age 54, having owned since 1987, I can consider downsizing and living out the rest of my life in CA.
Prop 13 is a Ponzi scheme based on screwing new buyers with ever-increasing assessments. Old-timers could vote for increased spending and hit the newcomers with increased taxation.
Well property values are now declining and the house of cards is going to collapse. Old-timers will now have to hold their taxes down the old-fashioned way - by holding down spending.
The only Californians that I know who hate Prop 13 are renters. You people who are complaining can come back and tell us about it after you get your houses.
I moved out to an area about 15 miles north of St George from CA about 4 years ago. I paid $350,000.00 for my house. Last year it was appraised at $383K, this year $590K. I fought it down to $510K, wow! thanks. The reason for the property tax increase is the dumb a$$ ba$tards who cashed in their equity and moved here, a whole bunch from CA, who were more than happy to get raped by the local developers.
I hear bitching from people on this forum about the “idiots” who fed this housing frenzy and made it impossible for them to get a nice home at a fair price. Try living on the other end of the housing spectrum where you move into a nice area with reasonable taxes only to have the same “idiots” move in and send your property tax rates into the strastosphere.
‘He and his wife are renting an Eastport condo that ‘we could nowhere near afford to buy.’ They intend to buy again once the market settles’
This is only the second time I’ve seen a broker admit in ink that he is renting and waiting the market out. The other time was that guy in the Santa Cruz Sentinel, last year.
Hey, there are some smart realtors ™ out there. Not the majority, but some. It is weird seeing it in print…
Of topic: just how many E-class mercedes were leased to realtors ™ ? Every house listed last weekend was being sold by a realtor with an E-class… sheesh! I pay what so you can drive a nicer car than me?
My dad once said (30 years ago) “No one breaks their back so that their boss can drive a Cadallac, but you’ll do ok if you show up to work in a Buick.” While the models have changed, the trueism is still there. (e.g., Mercedes/BMW is high end, Acura is the best Buick replacement, etc.)
Neil
Smart man your father was.
“condo market is no good right now”
from who’s perspective??
if you’re trying to get a higher price, it’s no good. but that means if you’re trying to get a lower price it is good. however, even if you get a lower price now, prices will be much lower later.
I understand that either. Looks like its getting better everyday.
I don’t understand
LA Times:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-fi-foreclose24jan24,0,4412832.story?coll=la-home-headlines
Good story, even if they do have the obligatory “it’s still OK, don’t panic (yet)” line from the “experts.” Nice to see the LA Times printing a story talking about the NODs and foreclosures rising rapidly.
Just a couple of tidbits from the article:
“Default notices [in California] jumped 145% in the last three months of 2006, accelerating a trend that began in late 2005 as home sales started to cool.
“It was the largest number of default notices in any three-month period since 1998.”
“Default notices are the initial step in the foreclosure process. In the fourth quarter of last year, lenders issued such notices to 37,273 borrowers across the state, warning them that they were at risk of foreclosure, compared with 15,196 during the same period a year earlier, DataQuick said.
“Not every notice of default leads to a foreclosure, when a property is seized and sold to pay the mortgage. But foreclosures also are on the rise. There were 6,078 in the last quarter of 2006, up from 874 a year earlier.”
Hmm, NODs are up 145% but foreclosures in California are up almost 600% in 4Q06 versus 4Q05. Seems like a lot more NODs are turning into foreclosures. And the 2007 resets haven’t even started yet. Nope, nothing to worry about. All’s well, remain calm.
Funny Downtown Austin is going Condo Nuts. Maybe these developers are smarter than we think or maybe they can’t read a newspaper. The prices are outrageous.
From Statesman.com
“Proposed 55-story luxury condo tower will be Austin’s tallest building when completed in 2009. Austin’s skyline is about to undergo its biggest change in history.
Soaring 22 stories higher than downtown’s tallest existing building, a $200 million luxury condominium tower planned for Congress Avenue and Second Street will set a new bar for height and unit prices amid downtown’s residential building boom.
Although the design isn’t final, the Austonian could rise up to 700 feet, dwarfing the 33-story, 515-foot Frost Bank Tower at Congress and Fourth Street once it’s finished in 2009. Construction is set to start late this year at 200 Congress Ave., which is now a parking lot.
The 55-story Austonian would eclipse the tallest residential tower under construction downtown, a 563-foot condominium tower with 44 stories that Atlanta-based Novare Group Holdings LLC and its local partner, Andrews Urban LLC, are building at Third and Nueces streets.
The developer of the Austonian, Second Congress Ltd., an affiliate of Austin-based Benchmark Development, launched its Web site to begin marketing the project Tuesday.
The Austonian’s upscale units could set a new benchmark for luxury living in the city’s urban core. Though prices haven’t been set for the 195 units, they are expected to start at about $500,000 for the smallest units with about 1,200 square feet, said David Mahn, vice president of Benchmark. Prices for the penthouse units would top $1 million.
Mahn said the Austonian’s prices would be “very competitive” on a per-square-foot basis with other new downtown condominium projects. Prices also are expected to start at about $500,000 in a mixed-use condominium tower that local developer Tom Stacy plans for Fifth Street and Congress Avenue. Stacy’s building, which has no timetable for breaking ground, is expected to rival Benchmark’s in height. Stacy also plans to build a striking glass tower that could rise up to 700 feet.
Mahn said the Austonian developers only recently settled on a 55-story building, which he said worked best from an economic standpoint, although a range of stories was considered during the design process.
The Austonian will have 500,000 square feet of space, roughly half the amount of a regional shopping center. A variance from the city will allow the developer to build a project with about double the square feet that existing zoning would have allowed. “
I don’t know where these people will come from for all these condos in Austin. I’m paying $1350 for a large two bedroom in an amazing area. There are 18 condos being built down the street which are smaller, but cost between $350-400,000. They have been selling these for 3 years now, and there are at least 6 left unsold(on mls). How do they expect to sell 200 units for $500,000 and up?
No idea - it seems there are a lot of specualtors in the market though. A lot of developers claim that the people buying these condos are looking for a second home in Austin. That in itself smells like property flippers. They put down a $10K deposit wait two years for it to be built and then - flip - sell it for a $30K profit - its a great system as long as you can find a buyer. As for the local market - you;re right - all of these units are priced for the upper 10% of the population (and most of these people want to live in houses since they have kids).
Because EVERYONE wants to vacation in Austin. I hear it all the time: “Yes Muffy, we’re summering in Austin this year.” Before somebody gets insulted, I’m sure it’s a very nice city. I’m also sure you have a few legislators getting a second home there, but I don’t think it will ever turn into Vail or the Hamptons, or the Catskills.
I doubt that this project will go forward later this year, but just the same, I hope they build it. The playahs won’t stop playin’ till the gladiator with the bullwhip is completely satisfied and has had his fill.
It will cost between $500k-$1m to live in the sky above a shopping center in downtown Austin? This building will almost certainly not be built, and in the odd circumstance that it is build it will have to be repurposed. Maybe it could become offices? Throughout much of Atlanta’s ambitious history whole floors of the skyscrapers downtown have been used for storage. Could this become the grandest warehouse in all of Texas?
I backed out of my deal. I just can’t make myself do it. Probably rent forever.
Phew, we are all relieved. OUR soldiers shouldn’t start falling immediately !
Come on TxChick - we count on you to carry our weight. We know that you could purchase just about anything available - it’s your determination not to give in that gives us strength.
“For someone like me who makes decent money, I could afford a condo right now, but then I’d be house-poor,” he said. “I plan on buying as soon as prices go down.”
Then you really can’t afford to buy.
I’ve been very much enjoying this blog, particularly since I live in San Diego County. I think there needs to be an reexamination about why people purchase real estate.
I feel particularly lucky: I did purchase a 2 BR/ 2 BA condo in 2003 for $220k. The condo, which was built in 1995, was owned by investors who paid $141k. Their asking price was $135k. By the time we bid on it, it had been on the market over 6 months and vacant. The investors had a deal with the realtor for a reduced commission, which is why the place didn’t move. Other realtors kept showing buyers other units where they could get full commission. We bid $216k based on the most recent comps and they counter offered with $229k. We said “$220k take it or leave it.”
My parents provided the 20% downpayment and helped me secured a 30 year fixed 5.25% loan. I live 1.5 miles from the beach and local transit hub (train/bus) and a mile from the 5. The area is a little on the rough side, but after living in San Francisco for 8 years, not bad.
The numbers:
Mortgage + Taxes $1,176
HOA 214 (includes water, garbage, etc.)
—————————–
Total $1390
(Insurance runs $250 a year).
I have a roommate paying me $550 for the smaller room and bathroom (which includes all utilities, cable and wireless internet).
Between the deductions and additional income, it’s less expensive for me to own versus renting. Plus, I plan on staying put for the foreseeable future.
I think it worked out for me because I bought when I was ready and because I wanted a home, not an investment.
Opps. Should say $235k for asking price.
Rents for units in my complex are running between $1100 - $1300 a month.
If rents for units in your complex are running $1100-$1300, I don’t understand your statement that it’s cheaper to own. You would still (presumably) have the roommate if you were renting. …OK, maybe I get it, it’s the tax deductions. (right?) - Of course, you are counting on the market value not falling below your original purchase price, and many on this blog would say the rent-equivalent value of your property is under $200K (based on $1300 max monthly rent). But, only time will tell. Good 5.25% fixed.
Yes, it’s the tax deductions and the fact the place comes with an oversize one car garage (which would cost me $200 and up a month — not that I have much stuff anyway. My roommate stores a bunch of stuff there now.) And the fact my mortgage will remain the same and my property taxes will increase gradually per Prop. 13. Not to mention I won’t have to worry about being displaced because the place is being sold or turned into condos. Then, there’s the fact I can have a cat or small dog without paying extra pet “rent” (easily $50 and up) plus a pet “deposit”. (I have a cat now.)
You have a point about the whole roommate income. I’ve never rented apartment by myself and generally have always had room shares. I lived in San Francisco between 1991 - 2000 and during the entire time I was there, never paid more than $500 for a roomshare. In fact, at one point, I was paying $130 per month. It was in a slum, but it was an adventure. So, yes, renting a room for $500 a month would be cheaper. But then I couldn’t have a cat or additional storage space and…
My basic point is buying real estate for the short term doesn’t make any sense, but there may be other legitimate reasons to buy for the long term if you can afford it.
My neighbor upstairs bought the exact same unit as mine with cathederal ceilings and upgrades the previous owners put in for $350k in August of 2005. The last comps for a similar unit, slightly larger was $299k in December 2006.
Oh yeah…
For the first time in 15 years, I didn’t have to share a bathroom with anyone…
That’s priceless. And did I mention an in-unit washer and dryer? Better than having to lug everything to the laundromat.
Lor’ it’s the small things that make life worth living.
Good for you to be able to have a pet (cat). You will live a long and happy life. Saw that saying one time in a fortune cookie.
The Baltimore Messenger. ” Property taxes might be the death of Matthew Imhoff. The Mt. Washington resident’s triannual assessment shot up 110 percent, from $202,000 to $419,000, on a house that was appraised last year at about $350,000.”
“Imhoff joined 100 other Mt. Washington residents at an informational meeting Jan. 18, led by officials from the Baltimore City office of the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Many in the audience were angry at the gods of taxation.”
Yada, yada, yada…
Homeowner’s want it both ways…Max value on the appraisals for their refi’s and HELOC’s, and then turn around and plead poor mouth to the tax assessor.
They need to aim their bitch at their Congressional rep’s. They’re the one’s who saw no need to regulate the independant mortgage loan biz.
““‘People are living on the edge, and they can’t help it with the price of houses,’ said Barbara Swist, a Costa Mesa mortgage broker who is helping Brown sort through his options. ‘They have good jobs but they bought over their heads, buying into the American dream.’”
- Indeed the irony that brings me and most others in my boat a lot of frustration: I make good money ( 6 figures) yet cannot afford anything unless I wanted to live on the edge and essentially be making a lot of money so that I could live poor. That versus saving a buttload of cash by renting. It simply makes no sense. Just 5 years ago I was making $8 an hour with no hope of being able to afford in the then somewhat more “normal” market. Now that I make enough to have afforded then, I can’t afford what homes cost now, which is nonsense.
In some ways it was better making $8 an hour and fully realizing I couldn’t afford then versus now where I SHOULD be able to, but can’t because of dysfunctional economics.
Here’s a nice nugget from Northern Colorado that sums up the lunacy that continues . . . IMO, there are still megafools out there (both borrowers and lenders) that are unfazed by reality.
“Trustee Michael Patrick said actual home building would represent a change from the last two years, when the board has approved 1,500 to 2,000 lots that continue to sit empty. “At this point none of them have moved past the paper side of the world and into the reality side of the world,” he said. Ross Brazil, Plan West principal, said unlike other developers, they are working with private home builders instead of the larger, public companies that are struggling to sell homes in the Front Range. He noted that many communities have thousands of approved, but idle, lots. “You need a lot in the pipeline to get a few out,” he said. The initial development plan allows for as many as 431 homes, including houses, townhomes and apartments. It also calls for a community park and open-space areas.”
There were seven, I repeat SEVEN new home sales in Berthoud from July 2006 to Dec. 2006!!!!! This moron thinks he’s smarter than everyone else and will add another 30-year supply to the market. Yeah, there will be open spaces all right . . .
This deal will never get done - why in the hell do they report on it??