Remember when all of us condo lovers were wondering which building would make the best investment back in 2006. You remember 2006, right? When new condo projects were getting announced so often a few of us decided to write an entire blog about them ;-)
Well, I was curious which resale condos faired the best through the recent recession. Certainly, there were plenty of SCR readers who were convinced all the 2006 prices vastly exceeded their future values and probably just as many who were convinced certain buildings would always be in high demand.
This afternoon, I pulled all the 1BR sales from 9/1/06-9/1/07 and 9/1/08-9/1/09. I was actually doing a much more in depth analysis for one of my clients but they were ok with me sharing a slice of it for SCR readers since they've been readers themselves for some time now.
Below is one of the resulting analyses. The takeaway? Concord and Klee investors were kept the most whole through the dark times.
(Data from Multiple Listing Service and are deemed reliable but not guaranteed.)
I'm sure lots of folks have theories. My take is Concord is considered a blue chip building. It's got a great location (close to Belltown but not within earshot) and the building quality is top notch. Surprisingly, Klee's open one bedroom prices are holding up really well. As for Bellora, it's still a pretty solid building to keep in mind. The price per square foot retention is lower partly because of a higher number of smaller units selling (smaller units generally result in higher price per square foot) in the '06-'07 period versus '08-'09.
