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Downtown Ghost Buildings

By Matt Goyer December 22, 2009

This month Seattle Business magazine wrote an article on the ghost buildings downtown, Housing is bad. Condos are worse, and included this interesting info-graphic:

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12 responses to “Downtown Ghost Buildings”

WakeMeUpWhenitsOver says:

December 23, 2009 at 9:38 am

Hello Matt –
Here is a link to the story so that the graphic makes more sense – Cheers! http://seattlebusinessmag.com/article/housing-b…
christiangustafson says:

December 26, 2009 at 12:14 am

Add Olive8 to the list. I've seen at most a half a dozen condo units above the hotel level with any activity whatsoever.

But real estate only goes UP! Buy now or .. or .. OMG, get PRICED OUT FOREVER. That's a long time!

I can laugh. It's the underwater idiot terminal debtors who should be pissed.

Send some flowers to the REIC.
christiangustafson says:

December 26, 2009 at 6:54 am

After reading this, I slept uneasily and had a slight feeling of nausea. I couldn't figure out just what it was, something was bothering me.

And then it hit me.

Some people have actually … closed … at Escala. They actually signed the papers and closed on an overpriced unit in this ridiculous (and ugly) building.

It is true. As shocking and unbelievable as it sounds, there are people who actually did this.

How do they sleep at night?
oxfordmshomes says:

December 26, 2009 at 10:16 am

I really do hope it picks up soon! I am in Oxford Mississippi and we have been pretty fortunate but its still slow! I hope we all start seeing the fruits of our labor increase!
Chris says:

December 26, 2009 at 10:18 am

Wow… I didn't believe you, but I see four units closed on the property report (the records search isn't pulling up 4th & Virginia Owner LLC for some reason).

Someone paid $4.1 million!
christiangustafson says:

December 26, 2009 at 2:30 pm

Why it's so funny, it's not the gut-wrenching loss on a stupid bubble property.

It's the haute marketing fluff that went into selling this dirt to the suckers. Escala was for the superior people, the fantastic luxury that they deserve!

Our betters get what they deserve, good and hard.

Enjoy your ARMs, you better men, you! Imagine the horrifying disaster this development will be at the end of 2010.
christiangustafson says:

December 27, 2009 at 8:49 am

http://www.escalamidtown.com/

Absolutely the funniest site on the web today.

Club Cielo! With the Wine Cave! Concierge Plus!

How long before the attendant at Concierge Plus is that girl who used to work the shoe counter at Sunset Bowl in Ballard, the one with tracks in her arms?

Marketing condos with wine themes … just too funny. I have a crystal-clear image of the sort of person who would be impressed by this, who would fall for it, who would sign on the line which is dotted for it.

What's the monthly association fee at Escala? What will it be if they can't sell any more units?

Seattle wakes up to realize it is not at all special here, and RE does not just go up up up after all. 2010 is going to be a real doozy.
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com says:

December 27, 2009 at 10:16 am

The ghost buildings are a good thing. There were far too many developers pushing a glut of condos all at once. It's better that many of these projects got mothballed before they became empty towers.
christiangustafson says:

December 27, 2009 at 10:34 am

Agreed. Adding any more would be sheer destruction of scarce capital.

The existing ones are destroyed, sunk capital. So are all of the HELOCs out there, and the $100K kitchens. And the vacation homes. And the $350K sawdust-tenement town homes. And the 5000 sq ft McMansions. And the [insert RE bubble absurdity here …]

They filled in that hole at 2nd and Pine yet? At least a parking lot can earn a living.
WTF? says:

December 27, 2009 at 11:23 pm

According to a friend of mine who works for a prominent title company [i.e. solid intel] the only units that have closed at Escala are from buyers that have paid ALL CASH. Not a single buyer has paid with conventional financing. Very curious indeed … can someone please explain this???
niles says:

December 30, 2009 at 10:26 am

Escala is not approved for FHA, so the four sales listed are cash only. No mortgage company would touch it right now.

Interestingly one of the Escala closed sales is at the low price of $574 sq/ft, so they have discounted pretty severely. That's a lot lower than most of the other 'luxury' condo's around town. Originally Escala was above $800 sq/ft from memory.

I believe 20+ of the Escala owners have retained a lawyer to explore their options.
niles says:

December 30, 2009 at 6:26 pm

Escala is not approved for FHA, so the four sales listed are cash only. No mortgage company would touch it right now.

Interestingly one of the Escala closed sales is at the low price of $574 sq/ft, so they have discounted pretty severely. That's a lot lower than most of the other 'luxury' condo's around town. Originally Escala was above $800 sq/ft from memory.

I believe 20+ of the Escala owners have retained a lawyer to explore their options.

Downtown Ghost Buildings

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