Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Hello
I am moving to Atlanta in January and I dont really want to rent so I am looking for a condo in any of the best buildings in Midtown Atlanta.
I am a young professional (25 years old) who wants a one bed/one bathroom apartment. I kindly ask to please help me by giving me a list of the best condo buildings in Midtown Atlanta so I can start making some phone calls and getting some appointments, I live in Miami and wont be able to travel until late December so I urgently need some help from any one who knows about the Midtown area and of course its buildings. Thank you very much!!
You need to understand that just like Miami if you buy a condo now you may be stuck with it for years to come. Most buildings in ATL (especially the newer ones) have caps on the percentage of units that can be rented, so if you find you need to move on, for whatever reason, you could be stuck with an empty condo.
You can actually rent a condo pretty easily.
We have a friend whose mother is in the market for an unit in a high rise, and she has been advised to wait another 6 months at a minimum. Though unlikely she will move once settled, she is concerned about leaving her children an asset that they won't be able to get rid of. It is that bad in the condo market right now in Atlanta. It is certainly worse in Miami, but not better enough to make different decisions.
Read this article...
Real estate a trap for metro Atlanta couple | ajc.com (http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/stories/2008/11/30/metro_atlanta_real_estate.html - broken link)
You need to understand that just like Miami if you buy a condo now you may be stuck with it for years to come. Most buildings in ATL (especially the newer ones) have caps on the percentage of units that can be rented, so if you find you need to move on, for whatever reason, you could be stuck with an empty condo.
You can actually rent a condo pretty easily.
We have a friend whose mother is in the market for an unit in a high rise, and she has been advised to wait another 6 months at a minimum. Though unlikely she will move once settled, she is concerned about leaving her children an asset that they won't be able to get rid of. It is that bad in the condo market right now in Atlanta. It is certainly worse in Miami, but not better enough to make different decisions.
Read this article...
Real estate a trap for metro Atlanta couple | ajc.com (http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/stories/2008/11/30/metro_atlanta_real_estate.html - broken link)
I totally agree.
The condo market here is dead with depreciating prices. You'd really be better off to buy Circuit City stock. The Atlanta condo market is that bad.
Most people would be well-advised not to buy condominiums or single-family houses in Atlanta. Rising unemployment, at unparalled levels, spells a city in trouble for quite some time.
Atlanta's unemployment rate may jump up as much as two percentage points next year ( 7 to 9 percent ).
Forget about selling a condo. Prices continue to fall like a rock.
I know of one newer Midtown high-rise condominium, Spire on Peachtree Street, which had a 25 percent leasing cap several years ago. For the most part condo markets are in trouble, and I highly suspect that these very generous leasing caps will disappear. In fact, some condos are now changing the covenants to restrict leasing completely. I think that's the wave of the future.
How could any condo such as Spire appreciate much in value when 25 percent of the units are leased? It just doesn't compute. A lot of the renters may not be screened particularly well with background checks, and some of the people may be less than desirable. That's what I've read by real-estate experts. Leasing to quality people generally takes time, and time is money. You may have to screen as many as 20 people to find the gem.
It all depends on what your price range is and what types of amenities you are looking for. Purchasing a condo in Midtown is a long hold right now because of the market. I have noticed that mid rises seem to be holding their value better since there is less competition on the market.
The Dakota is a mid rise and is a short walk to Piedmont Park. Piedmont Crest is also a mid rise and it backs up to Piedmont Park. Piedmont Crest ::: Condos
^It's such a bad housing market. I think our government had done something misleading the market in past 5 or 6 years. Now bubbles are busted and whoever made money in the bubbling market has run away. We all suffer and have to clean up the market.
It really depends on what you're looking for and how much you want to spend. You can certainly get some amazing deals on condos right now. There are lots of foreclosures and short sales if you've got the stomach to deal with the hoops you have to jump through, as well as plenty of desperate sellers who are willing to accept very aggressive offers. There's also new construction with developers offering lots of incentives to move inventory. Of course, everyone is right that the Midtown condo market is very depressed right now and you could lose money if you won't be able to hold onto the place for a number of years. (Of course, you'll also lose money if you pay rent, so if you will be in Atlanta for several years purchasing your home could well be the better choice.)
First off, what kind of budget are you looking at? The "best" building for you will vary tremendously if your budget is $100k or $500k or $1 million.
Also, what kind of building are you looking for? Small and intimate? Big glass tower with tons of amenities? Historic or hip?
Next, how much space do you need? What kind of amenities do you require?
How much parking do you need? Or do you need any at all? If you'll be using MARTA or don't mind street parking you can get an even better deal on most condos although you'd have to recognize that the saleability of such a condo would be diminished by the lack of parking.
Then, do you have a preference with regard to location? George was mentioning some of the condos on Piedmont Park (personally, I despise the Mayfair, but it's worth a look if you want a big building with lots of amenities on Piedmont Park). Do you need to be close to a MARTA rail station? All of Midtown is pretty close to a station, but if you'll be taking the train every day you might prefer to be one block away instead of 10-15 blocks. Is there any particular part of Midtown you want to be closest too?
Once you find an agent, you can get her (or him) to pull comps for specific buildings to see how well each one is selling. It's no guarantee that what's selling well now will still be doing so when you want to sell, but there are some buildings (like The Dakota) that have historically been better investments than others. Well-built condos tend to have higher resale values than buildings that began as apartments (there was also a lot of shoddy construction around the time of the Olympics). A Midtown condo expert should be able to point you in the right direction.
I have several colleagues who are Midtown condo experts and would be happy to provide you with a referral if you like. Just PM me.
Hello
I am moving to Atlanta in January and I dont really want to rent so I am looking for a condo in any of the best buildings in Midtown Atlanta.
I am a young professional (25 years old) who wants a one bed/one bathroom apartment. I kindly ask to please help me by giving me a list of the best condo buildings in Midtown Atlanta so I can start making some phone calls and getting some appointments, I live in Miami and wont be able to travel until late December so I urgently need some help from any one who knows about the Midtown area and of course its buildings. Thank you very much!!
Does it HAVE to be in Midtown? There are some surrounding communities like Decatur and Vinings that have much more reasonably priced units (albeit less glamorous and somewhat older) at better prices and are still a short distance to the city. For example, you can get a 2/2 condo in Smyrna starting at $120K.
It really depends on what you're looking for and how much you want to spend. You can certainly get some amazing deals on condos right now. There are lots of foreclosures and short sales if you've got the stomach to deal with the hoops you have to jump through, as well as plenty of desperate sellers who are willing to accept very aggressive offers. There's also new construction with developers offering lots of incentives to move inventory. Of course, everyone is right that the Midtown condo market is very depressed right now and you could lose money if you won't be able to hold onto the place for a number of years. (Of course, you'll also lose money if you pay rent, so if you will be in Atlanta for several years purchasing your home could well be the better choice.)
First off, what kind of budget are you looking at? The "best" building for you will vary tremendously if your budget is $100k or $500k or $1 million.
Also, what kind of building are you looking for? Small and intimate? Big glass tower with tons of amenities? Historic or hip?
Next, how much space do you need? What kind of amenities do you require?
How much parking do you need? Or do you need any at all? If you'll be using MARTA or don't mind street parking you can get an even better deal on most condos although you'd have to recognize that the saleability of such a condo would be diminished by the lack of parking.
Then, do you have a preference with regard to location? George was mentioning some of the condos on Piedmont Park (personally, I despise the Mayfair, but it's worth a look if you want a big building with lots of amenities on Piedmont Park). Do you need to be close to a MARTA rail station? All of Midtown is pretty close to a station, but if you'll be taking the train every day you might prefer to be one block away instead of 10-15 blocks. Is there any particular part of Midtown you want to be closest too?
Once you find an agent, you can get her (or him) to pull comps for specific buildings to see how well each one is selling. It's no guarantee that what's selling well now will still be doing so when you want to sell, but there are some buildings (like The Dakota) that have historically been better investments than others. Well-built condos tend to have higher resale values than buildings that began as apartments (there was also a lot of shoddy construction around the time of the Olympics). A Midtown condo expert should be able to point you in the right direction.
I have several colleagues who are Midtown condo experts and would be happy to provide you with a referral if you like. Just PM me.
Thank you so much for all your help and advice. I will try to answer all your questions so you can continue guiding me in the right direction
I have a budget of about 300,000 USD, it could be more it could be less but thats pretty much the average of how much id be willing to spend.
I definitely want a NEW building, not historic but actually a hip kind of building with many amenities. I do like high rise buildings better with glass doors from floor to celining. I like modern decorations and luxury finishings.
I would like to be surrounded by young professionals instead of people in their 50s or too many families. I definitely need a parking spot, (only one) and i dont necessarily need to be very very close to Marta but of course that never hurts.
I would extremely appreciate it if you get me some contacts of people that can tell me and refer me to the best deals!!... i only have a few weeks before i move there and need to make up my mind about the apt.
Please let me know what information you can provide me with now that we have come up with a more detailed description of what i am looking for. Once again thank you so much for your help!!!!!
Looking forward to hearing from you again
Of course, everyone is right that the Midtown condo market is very depressed right now and you could lose money if you won't be able to hold onto the place for a number of years. (Of course, you'll also lose money if you pay rent, so if you will be in Atlanta for several years purchasing your home could well be the better choice.)
Your post refers to the phrase, "several years." What time frame are you talking about? I interpret "several years" as being two, three, or maybe four years. Nothing much beyond four years.
Several ( two or three ) weeks ago, an AJC real-estate article alluded to the fact that buying Atlanta real-estate has been a poor investment for the past six-years. This article was documented with statistics. According to the article, Atlanta median real-estate prices have appreciated 1.9 percent. In dollars, I guess this computes to $2,800. To say the least, other real estate markets have fared much better. Much better! As I recall, Trenton, New Jersey was $150,000. Boise, Idaho had a dollar figure of around $62,000.
Personally, I think the Atlanta condo market will be in the cellar for a long time. Not several years. What time frame is a long time? Perhaps a decade. More new condos are in the pipeline. Not good news. For example, one new condominium project had dismal sales and the builder is now leasing them.
According to the real-estate articles I read, the bottom for many markets is a long way off. No one knows for sure what's going happen in the future, but the economic fundamentals in Atlanta, and most of the nation, are very problematic. Very! The Big Three in Detroit are in serious trouble. If they fold, we'll see a major depression. Regardless, most of us are witnessing economic events we've never seen. Never! This is scary stuff.
Yes, there are tremendous Atlanta condo deals here. However, you're not likely to turn a profit for perhaps a decade. I personally know folks who are losing lots of money. I don't know the time frame but it's a long one. Purchasing a condo may be the right choice for a few select people, but only a few select people. Possibly retired folks with very deep pockets. We're talking affluent. Selling it is most likely not a viable option nor is leasing. No-leasing covenants are probably the wave of the future.
Thank you so much for all your help and advice. I will try to answer all your questions so you can continue guiding me in the right direction
I have a budget of about 300,000 USD, it could be more it could be less but thats pretty much the average of how much id be willing to spend.
I definitely want a NEW building, not historic but actually a hip kind of building with many amenities. I do like high rise buildings better with glass doors from floor to celining. I like modern decorations and luxury finishings.
I would like to be surrounded by young professionals instead of people in their 50s or too many families. I definitely need a parking spot, (only one) and i dont necessarily need to be very very close to Marta but of course that never hurts.
I would extremely appreciate it if you get me some contacts of people that can tell me and refer me to the best deals!!... i only have a few weeks before i move there and need to make up my mind about the apt.
Please let me know what information you can provide me with now that we have come up with a more detailed description of what i am looking for. Once again thank you so much for your help!!!!!
Looking forward to hearing from you again
Alejandro
If life style is more important to you than investment, I will recommend Twelve Centennial Park Condo. There are lot of young prefessionals and people with money living there. Marta is just 100 steps away from the front door. Plus builder has sales going on. You have a large selection for your unit.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
