The Mond At The Museums: Condominiums At 5104 Caroline St.

[dml423]

Seems like a nice property and I am glad it might actually start.

With only 20 units and the sales center open since September, I am surprised that for this quality of a building that they haven't sold enough units to start. They only needed to pre-sell 4 or 5 units, right? Perhaps they have sold enough but are targeting next summer for another reason?

Another question I have is condo fees on this one. That 24-hour concierge is very nice to have ( and probably a "must have" for this level of luxury building) but it also comes with a cost. How much would a concierge make at a building like this, all-in (employment taxes, etc)? 40k? More? Less? 24/7 means at least 4 people. So, that is about $160k per year to the HOA, right? That means that the average sized unit would be paying about $650/mo just for the concierge..... Add HOA maintenance, insurance, etc, etc and it could get fairly steep for the mid-rise market?

Anyway, this is a really nice project and I wish the developers well.

 

well since these condos start at $1.25MM, I would expect HOA fees to be pretty darn high, but yea $650 just for the concierge is pretty high. One of my friends was looking to buy a 1 bdrm condo at that building on West Dallas and Shepard (The European looking one- Can't remember the name) and her HOA fees alone were going to be around $800/month. And that was for a condo around $200-250k. I could only imagine the HOA fees for a $1.25MM condo

[rbarz]

I have been by, I think $1.25M is the average price because they have units priced lower.

The floor plans are pretty good, but it is not a surprise they haven't sold many. They were not really finished with what details were being offered when I visited about three weeks ago. For example, the sales office did not know what cabinets where being offered or if the fixtures were going to match the ones in the renderings. I did speak with an architect whose firm is involved in the project and she did know what was being selected and it was quite a surprise at the level of finishes included for the price (Eggersman Level 5). We will have to wait and see if that officially makes it to the sales office.

A Conceirge seems like a waste to me. The buildings I have had units in that had only one person working no matter what you called them were always a waste of money. The only time a staff seemed to benefit the residents is when there is Valet and porters. A guarantee this building will not have a 24 hour Conceirge and if it does to start like all the older Randal Davis properties then it will change once the residents take over the HOA.

[HoustonMidtown]

[Urbannizer]

50% sold 

 

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/real-estate/article/Oil-worries-cloud-Houston-s-high-rise-outlook-8342188.php#photo-10490842

[Urbannizer]

Looks like it's moving forward! Former Weather Museum on the daily demo report:

 

http://swamplot.com/daily-demolition-report-3/2016-07-07/

[htownboy]

lovely building, just wish it were taller

interesting design, looks very modern, especially for houston

Edited July 7, 2016 by htownboy

[rayjay]

I don't know, I feel like the Museum District it would be cool to let the center fill in with a bunch of different small mid-rise condo buildings like this one and the Museum Mansions and let the taller high rises come closer to 59 and bordering Hermann Park. I think it'd have a nice look and super sophisticated feel to it.

[htownboy]

the glass in the renders is amazing

very blue, modern and sleek

 

[Urbannizer]

Any demo pics?

[houstontexasjack]

Drove by this evening. Demo hasn't started yet. Lots of orange spray paint for utility markings nearby, though.

[hindesky]

Demo has taken down the Weather Museum. 

[HoustonMidtown]

Lot has been cleared - still 50% sold according to the sign

Edited September 21, 2016 by HoustonMidtown

[jmitch94]

I'm a big fan of this size of developments. They also seem to have a bit more architectural style than their larger counter parts. 

[Urbannizer]

Groundbreaking now scheduled for November. 

[CREguy13]

Secured Construction financing.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2017/01/31/exclusive-groundbreaking-planned-for-luxury-condo.html

 

[Timoric]

-

Edited July 11, 2019 by Timoric

[Urbannizer]

On January 31, 2017 at 0:30 PM, CREguy13 said:

Secured Construction financing.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2017/01/31/exclusive-groundbreaking-planned-for-luxury-condo.html

 

 

Since announcing the project in August 2015, Oxberry Group has pre-sold 11 units, which is a little more than half of the units in The Mondrian. The pre-sales paved the way for Oxberry Group’s construction loan from Moody National Bank, which will help finance 75 percent of the project.

 

Despite concerns about low oil prices, the energy downturn didn’t affect sales or foot traffic to The Mondrian, Jamea said.

 

“Of course, we were worried a little bit, but the majority of our buyers are empty nesters who are downsizing,” Jamea said. “We didn’t see any slowdown in traffic.”

 

Oxberry Group expects to finish construction on The Mondrian in the summer of 2018. The developer said it is confident it will sell the remaining nine units in the building.

[Urbannizer]

Now 65% sold

[UtterlyUrban]

I am glad to hear this. 

 

Empty nesters aside, Phrases like "From $1.25m" still shock me though. What would the property tax be on that?  $36k/year?  More?  Add HOA which might be, maybe, $1000 per month and that means $4k per month in taxes and fees every month, forever (or until taxes and fees go up more).  Wow!

 

 

 

[Urbannizer]

 

[john nicholson]

Beautiful building and I am glad that they were able to move forward.  But has anyone heard what the HOA fees will actually be?

[hindesky]

On 3/10/2017 at 1:03 AM, john nicholson said:

Beautiful building and I am glad that they were able to move forward.  But has anyone heard what the HOA fees will actually be?

According to HAR a $1.3m unit will have a HOA fee of $848

[houstontexasjack]

There's an excavator on site, and digging has commenced.

[HoustonMidtown]

[hindesky]

They have financing and 50% sales so I guess it's a go.

 

[hindesky]

Work has started, I wonder if this calls for an underground parking garage?

 

[Urbannizer]

7 minutes ago, hindesky said:

Work has started, I wonder if this calls for an underground parking garage?

 

 

It does, one level of underground parking for residents.

[hindesky]

This pic shows the depth of the site better.

 

[hindesky]

The base for a tower crane went up.

 

[hindesky]

Tower crane going up.