Condo shoppers lie low

Finally! A print publication has picked up on the slowing sales at Lumen, Trio, etc. From the Puget Sound Business Journal, Condo shoppers lie low (if you don’t have a paid subscription someone sent me a PDF):

Trio is among a growing number of struggling condo projects in Seattle. A downtown Seattle high-rise project at Fifth Avenue and Madison Street has sold about 62 of its 126 unfinished condominiums since September 2006. Lumen a 94-unit project in Seattle’s Lower Queen Anne neighborhood started selling in June 2006, and roughly a third of its units are still up for grabs. In Ballard a project dubbed Hjarta, which started presales in October, had sold seven of 79 units as of Jan 7, according to the Fat Report.

And…

…Many local developers and real estate watchers agree that Seattle’s condominium market is decelerating for the first time in years.

The reason: With thousands of local condos slated to go up in the next few years, buyers believe the recent period of rapid price appreciation is disappearing, and it’s taking away the buy-now urgency that fueled the local boom with it.

I couldn’t agree more. And guessing at the Trace price per square foot range $393 to $840, I’d bet that Trace is going to have a real hard time selling the top end of their range.