Urbannizer Posted March 30, 2016 Author Share Posted March 30, 2016 Via Reddit: According to the sold unit chart that they had they were over 30% sold. Most of the corner units were sold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HNathoo Posted March 30, 2016 Share Posted March 30, 2016 I spoke to a rep at their open house this past Saturday, and he said 23%. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmitch94 Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 23 rounds up to 30 right? At least in sales math. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post HoustonMidtown Posted April 7, 2016 Popular Post Share Posted April 7, 2016 (edited) I went to their "mixer" last night - here are some pics. They have 4 full sized models set up that you can walk through - you can see how a 300 sq ft condo would feel (very very small). The larger units are not bad at all, but get pricey fast. Murphy beds are everywhere - the bathrooms are quite large in comparison to the size of the units They have 3 packages which vary the accommodations based on what's more important to you -- more party/cooking (the gourmet), more storage (the fashionista), or more work/study space (the intellectual) I forgot to add, we talked with one of the builders/developers and he said they spent over $1 million on the models/sales office building, which will be torn down in August when they break ground. Edited April 7, 2016 by HoustonMidtown 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 My problem with this development has always been the location. If it was in downtown, or on that light rail line (as in the train passed in front of the building and you stare down at the station from your loft) then I would already have a deposit down. As is, I find it hard to justify buying the small space where I'd still have to walk 1/2 a mile to the train or drive to places. It is the most affordable places for sale in downtown, but still - this would have been perfect where the Days Inn is, or even across the street from the new high school. I hope that this is just the first of a few of these developments, and one will go in downtown, and the med center. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 4 minutes ago, cspwal said: My problem with this development has always been the location. If it was in downtown, or on that light rail line (as in the train passed in front of the building and you stare down at the station from your loft) then I would already have a deposit down. As is, I find it hard to justify buying the small space where I'd still have to walk 1/2 a mile to the train or drive to places. It is the most affordable places for sale in downtown, but still - this would have been perfect where the Days Inn is, or even across the street from the new high school. I hope that this is just the first of a few of these developments, and one will go in downtown, and the med center. The developer most likely got a reasonable price for the property. You cannot walk 1/2 a mile? Get a bike. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 It's a walkable distance, but if it's getting added at the front end to every trip, and then the back end to every trip, it makes it harder to compete, at least in my head, with townhouses in midtown (also 1/2 a mile from the light rail, though 3x the cost) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texasota Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 It would be great if they've standardized the design enough that, like Skyhouse, they can plop multiple copies of it down quickly and (relatively) inexpensively. Of course, Skyhouse gets away with that partially by separating the parking garage and letting that change shape depending on the site, but blocks in and near downtown are similar enough in size, and there are plenty of entirely vacant blocks, that I could imagine this developer making it work if they were thoughtful with the original design. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_cuevas713 Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 (edited) 53 minutes ago, cspwal said: My problem with this development has always been the location. If it was in downtown, or on that light rail line (as in the train passed in front of the building and you stare down at the station from your loft) then I would already have a deposit down. As is, I find it hard to justify buying the small space where I'd still have to walk 1/2 a mile to the train or drive to places. It is the most affordable places for sale in downtown, but still - this would have been perfect where the Days Inn is, or even across the street from the new high school. I hope that this is just the first of a few of these developments, and one will go in downtown, and the med center. Why couldn't you just take the bus and transfer? Any rail system is simply a compliment to its bus system. I'm sure you could still use public transportation and not have to use your car. The good thing about the location is it will force development in this area even more. So while I agree that this would be nice downtown, I think in order to speed up the process this is what's needed. Edited April 7, 2016 by j_cuevas713 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmitch94 Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 5 hours ago, HoustonMidtown said: I forgot to add, we talked with one of the builders/developers and he said they spent over $1 million on the models/sales office building, which will be torn down in August when they break ground. I can confirm. I live only a block away and they have been spending a LOT of money on this temporary building. And concerning the fact that it is not in downtown is not that important. Like I said I live one block from this and I have no trouble getting to stuff. EaDo is not some barren waste land, there is plenty of stuff to do there with out have to go to downtown which is only a half mile away anyway. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UtterlyUrban Posted April 8, 2016 Share Posted April 8, 2016 Jmitch94. I agree with your sentiments above. For clarity though, while it is about a half mile into downtown from your location, it is more like a mile to discovery green and 1-3/4 miles to market square. Still totally walkable on any given day - hot, cold, rain, sunny. No big deal, I agree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samagon Posted April 8, 2016 Share Posted April 8, 2016 On 4/7/2016 at 9:30 AM, j_cuevas713 said: Why couldn't you just take the bus and transfer? Any rail system is simply a compliment to its bus system. I'm sure you could still use public transportation and not have to use your car. The good thing about the location is it will force development in this area even more. So while I agree that this would be nice downtown, I think in order to speed up the process this is what's needed. Only a slight problem with the complimentary bus system is there is no bus that goes down Leeland. You have to walk up to Polk and potentially wait 30 minutes (assuming the bus isn't running late). May as well walk to the train. Heck, you could crawl and get to the train faster than waiting on the bus. Development is coming with or without Ivy, Ivy is sure going to move the needle in a serious way though. I think being on Leeland may (in the long term) be a hindrance though. Leeland, Harrisburg and Navigation are going to be the only streets that can get you from inside downtown to the other side of Scott without having to eventually get onto one of those 3 streets. To the east McKinney is going to be closed due to a railroad quiet zone. To the West Polk is going to be closed for the freeway. If East Downtown and the east end in general ever gets as popular as Montrose, Leeland is going to have a lot of traffic. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted April 8, 2016 Share Posted April 8, 2016 Having lot's of traffic could be a good thing, at least for a dense project like this - it increases the likely hood of commercial being near by, makes it more attractive for a new bus route, and a high rise is less traffic noise sensitive than houses or a mid rise 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmitch94 Posted April 9, 2016 Share Posted April 9, 2016 The view from where I live. The grey building in the bottom right is the Ivy Lofts block and the current sales/demo building. You can also see the presence that 609 is going to have. This picture does not do justice to how big 609 looks in real life. 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoustonMidtown Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 24% of units reserved (133 out of 550) according to the most recent email I received from them 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samagon Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 the skyline from this side of town has really come into itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFootsSocks Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 I've heard of the term "go screw yourself" but that just takes it to a new level... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samagon Posted April 12, 2016 Share Posted April 12, 2016 hey-ooooo!!!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenOlenska Posted April 12, 2016 Share Posted April 12, 2016 If the apartments were five and a half times bigger it would have a Frasier type balcony view. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montrose1100 Posted April 12, 2016 Share Posted April 12, 2016 (edited) 38 minutes ago, EllenOlenska said: If the apartments were five and a half times bigger it would have a Frasier type balcony view. Well for 5 and a half times the price of the smallest unit you could get those views in a spacious condo at 3333 Allen Parkway (Royalton). Edited April 12, 2016 by Montrose1100 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenOlenska Posted April 12, 2016 Share Posted April 12, 2016 I'm sorry, but I'm quite partisan for the north-facing view of Downtown. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoustonMidtown Posted April 12, 2016 Share Posted April 12, 2016 Channel 13 just did a story about them... http://abc13.com/realestate/micro-condos-bring-tiny-living-to-downtown-houston/1287911/ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triton Posted April 26, 2016 Share Posted April 26, 2016 Channel 2 did a video as well: http://www.click2houston.com/video/micro-condo-movement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Sounds like they couldn't find enough buyers that wanted to live there http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2016/07/25/exclusivehouston-s-first-major-micro-unit-condo.html?ana=RSS%26s%3Darticle_search&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+bizj_houston+%28Houston+Business+Journal%29 Quote However, four months after opening an on-site sales center, Ivy Lofts had secured contracts from only 68 prospective buyers, said Wen Pin Tsai, Novel Creative Development’s vice president of business development. Of those buyers, few were actually the targeted market of Millennials, urbanites and suburban empty nesters, Tsai said. The majority of the interest was from investors looking to purchase the smaller 300-square-foot units to use as investment properties, renting them out to young professionals, Tsai added. I know I looked at it, and decided it was just too far from the rail line. I think they didn't choose an urban enough location for who they wanted to sell to. Now they are going to make it a condo-hotel hybrid Quote The developer is now redesigning the project into one of the first condo hotels in Houston, Tsai said. Condo hotels, or a contel, is a condo building that is operated as a hotel. When the buyers aren’t using their condos, it is rented out to visitors. “The micro-condo concept works, but we had to tweak our project a little bit, trying to create something more favorable to investors,” Tsai said. “Investors want an investment vehicle. We project between a 7 percent and 9 percent return.” 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triton Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 (edited) Their goal seemed a bit unrealistic. They wanted all of them bought before they started construction? I don't see this project really taking off anymore. Although hotel is incredibly hot right now around the country (will most likely be the second best year ever, after 2015), you have to be smart about your hotel location. There's just not much of a market for hotel in this area... most of the locations we see are either downtown or uptown. I think a more realistic project is to perhaps just make this a smaller condo project. I know they're trying to make more bang for their buck and I'm sure they can work an agreement to get a discount on materials for a larger project, I just don't see this going forward at least in this market if they're not willing to be a little speculative with at least 30% to 40% of their units on a smaller scale project. Edited July 25, 2016 by Triton 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UtterlyUrban Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Gotta give them credit, This developer has been getting some amazing PR out there. I seem to recall that their original timeline was "aggressive" (IMO) and the Real Estate agent was talking some interesting talk. They needed dozens of sales per week on one timeline that they reportedly presented as I recall.. Now, they want to do a condo hotel concept? Did I read that this developer is funded by Doctors in NYC? Well, that concept seems to work at the Plaza but, EADO? I guess that we shall see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terra002 Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 Im glad it failed, they picked a terrible location. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 I'm not glad it failed because this will make other developers more hesitant to target the downtown market with condos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triton Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 6 minutes ago, cspwal said: I'm not glad it failed because this will make other developers more hesitant to target the downtown market with condos They weren't really targeting the downtown market though. Their condo property feels like a true outlier... condo prices for sub-par grocery stores, little connectivity to light rail (ok, perhaps a few blocks away but would you walk to there?) or any parks, almost zero retail in the immediate vicinity, the list goes on.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 It was a decently long walk too - past townhouses and industrial buildings. Almost half a mile iirc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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