Archive for September, 2008
New Olreans Uptown Condo Listing-Historic Renovation, Below 200k!
September 29th, 2008 categories: Condo Listings
The condo located at 2818 Constance is the front porch unit the large windows and porch. This is a historic renovation in that many of the historic features were left in tact whicle updating the areas that people want. The modern kitchen and baths have both been totally been redone. The high ceilings, wood floors, pocket doors, large windows, fireplaces, all were left to enjoy. The condo is half a block from Washington Ave and a block to Magazine Street.
The kitchen has granite counter tops, custom cabinets, new stainless steel appliances, washer-dryer is included, storage area, and a rear door to another porch. The bathroom has also been updated and is large for a condo bathroom. The a/c and heat are new units along with the electrical system. The condo is one of four units and is on a quiet Uptown Street. The condo fees are $279 per month and include insurance, upkeep, termite contracts and common area upkeep.
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Uptown Condos-More people looking in Uptown New Orleans for second homes-Charm or Price?
September 25th, 2008 categories: Market Trends, Uptown NOLA
Here is a new trend I have noticed. People are looking at the New Orleans Uptown Market for condos to use as second homes. The real estate prices Uptown are lower than both the French Quarter and the Warehouse District. The most popular search is for a two bedroom and two bath condo for under 250k. While that is hard to impossible to find in the Quarter or the Warehouse District, choices exist in the Uptown area.
Historic condos with high ceilings, wood floors and old world character are the favorites. The named streets near St. Charles, Magazine and Prytania seem to be the areas of choice. A two bedroom condo opens the opportunity to invite business associates, friends, and family for a visit. All feature easy walking to shopping, dining, and fun. Park the car and leave it! New Orleans covers a small geographic area. You are never more than 15-20 minutes to the French Quarter.
Uptown condos offer much more size and many have been updated. Most of the complexes are smaller than their Warehouse or Quarter counterparts. For the most part, these were converted from old homes or apartment houses into condos. Its much easier to find the units between 170 and 200k in the Uptown area as compared to other neighborhoods.
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French Quarter Condos-917 Toulouse Condos-The Vieux Carre Resort Properties.There are some new units in the Quarter.
September 21st, 2008 categories: French Quarter, New Orleans Condo Reviews
The 917 Toulouse Condos are basically a new complex built around the plans of this historic building dating till 1828. The condos have got the charm of almost 180 years but the newness of the twenty first century. The 11 unit complex is top notch in many respects. You have 11 units of which there are one bedrooms, two bedrooms and the penthouses. Over half the units have garage parking. The penthouse units are over 2000. sq. ft. of living. All the units open into the courtyard and the pool.
The kitchens are of gourmet quality with gas stoves for the true gourmet cook surrounded by some of the worlds finest eateries in the New Orleans French Quarter. The units are only several years old. The two bedroom units are townhouse style with doors to the courtyard and to the balcony. The units feature wood floors, crown molding, granite counter tops, high ceilings, wood shades, french doors and plenty of light. The unit that I sold in the complex was a townhouse style with the kitchen and the living area opening onto the pool level. The balcony was the french doors leading to the bedrooms. The unit was very light with all the windows opening onto the courtyard.
This unit sold for 377k and was in tip top shape and was about 1100 sq. ft. You also had a nice patio on the roof top which was also common area and some great views at nite. There are very few newer units in the French Quarter. Most are conversions even though a lot has been done, they still are not newer compared to something like this. There are some more photos below of the unit.
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New Orleans-City Park, the Sculpture Garden. When is the last time you have gone?
September 19th, 2008 categories: Art , Music , Parks
Being in real estate you are your own boss. You work a lot of hours but you have control of what you do. I took the time to stop by City Park this week after visiting a client. You forget how pretty and how many things there are to do. One of the things is the Sculpture Garden which is open daily. The Besthoff’s owned the leading retail drug chain in New Orleans for years, K&B Drugs.
The admission is free but it worth leaving a donation so others can enjoy it as well. Its open daily and takes up only 5 acres with paths and lagoons spread about the park. Its very quiet and a short drive from downtown. Take the street car from Canal Street to Carrolton and you get off at the end of the line across from Bayou St. John. I just pulled over parked and started taking pictures with my cell phone in the car.
The Sculpture Collection
donated by Sydney and Walda Besthoff in New Orleans City Park
“The Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden is home to 57 sculptures by artists from around the world. Forty-four of the 57 sculptures have been donated to the New Orleans Museum of Art by the Besthoff Foundation. The other 11 are Museum purchases or gifts from other donors. The collection includes work by some of the great master sculptors of the 20th century (Antoine Bourdelle, Henry Moore, Jacques Lipchitz, Louise Bourgeois), as well as younger, contemporary sculptors (Kenneth Snelson, Allison Saar, Joel Shapiro, Jean-Michel Othoniel). Nine of the 57 sculptures pre-date 1960, while 29 of the 57 artists represented are living. “
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New Orleans-Borders Bookstore Opens Fall of 2008. St. Charles and Louisiana Ave.
September 15th, 2008 categories: Art , Music , Parks, New Orleans Origionals
Borders Bookstore on St. Charles Ave will open this Fall in the Crescent City. It is located on St. Charles Ave. at the corner of Louisiana Ave on the St. Charles Ave Streetcar line. The bookstore will showcase Louisiana and New Orleans Books, Authors and Music. The bookstore is notable for several reasons. It is built on the site of the Baltman Funeral Home which has been at the location since 1943. The exterior of the building is being preserved as you can see below. The nine million dollar project will be 24,000 sq. ft and will be the first chain store on St. Charles Ave.
The Borders Concept store is within walking distance of many of the condos that I have been selling in the Uptown area over the past couple of years. It will be a destination place for the locals as well a tourist stop on the Streetcar line. Outdoor coffee shop and cafe no doubt. I did a search on the Borders site and they had 2821 New Orleans related Music items and 939 books. Guess its name that tune over hangman!
Will see you at the Grand Opening if you are in the area. Always nice to get an upgrade from a funeral home to a book and music store.
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Rue Chardonnay Condos-1500 West Esplanade-Size and Value make these worth looking at. Condo Update!
September 13th, 2008 categories: Jefferson Parish, New Orleans Condo Reviews
The Rue Chardonnay Condos are in Kenner, Louisiana and have been around for 26 years. They were one of the first condo complexes to be built from scratch in the area. The best features are the size, 3 bedrooms, storage, the setting and the location. Rue Chardonnay is one of the few complexes that has a majority of 3 bedroom town house style condos. The condos are conveniently located across from the Esplanade mall. The 277 townhouse style condos have very similar floor plans with 2 bedrooms up and one bedroom down with kitchen and den. There are fewer two bedrooms. The bedrooms are good size, you can have an eat in kitchen, you have enough room in the den for a dining room table. One of the best values in East Jefferson and Kenner.
Common features that each condo has is a private patio often fenced off the kitchen. There is a small balcony off the master bedroom which is on the second floor. All will have a wood burning fireplace. Some units will have vaulted ceilings with a loft bedroom, while others will have the larger master closed in with a second fireplace. All have a full bath down next to the downstairs bedroom.
All the condos will have an attic space for storage and adequate storage areas and closets. Each unit will have a reserved spot for at least one car. There are ample guest parking spots, however some areas do get crowded when everyone is home. The three bedroom units are a little over 1700 sq. ft while the two bedroom units are 1400 plus sq. ft. of living.
The interior in the vast majority of town-homes have changed dramatically since Katrina flooded most of the units following the storm in 2005. Many of the units flooded anywhere from inches to over a foot of water. The bottom 4ft. of the sheet-rock, flooring, kitchens, appliances, a-c compressors all had to be replaced. Each individual owner was covered by the flood policy that the condo association had in place. Each owner then had to decide how they wanted their condo redone. There is the difference in quality and style. You just have to see how updated each of the units are. Read the rest of this entry »
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New Orleans Condo-Buyers Delight! Rates drop and sellers are more eager to sell!
September 10th, 2008 categories: Condo Knowledge, Market Trends
The interest rates have dropped since the take over of Freddie Mac and Fannie May. The takeover and the slowing economy are bringing rates down. What does this mean for you and your note. If the rates drop .5% you are looking at saving $33 per 100k on what you borrow. If you were looking at borrowing 200k you can save about $75 on your note in the past week alone. This is $900 per year in interest savings. Its like a $12,000 reduction in the price of the home or condo in terms of your note. I have have no idea as to how long these rates will hold. Good time to think about it however.
At the same time sellers who have had their condos or homes listed over the summer are getting ready to take a lower offer as the seasonal effects of real estate will take effect now. Throw in a Hurricane and sellers become ready to strike a deal. This bodes well for the buyers. Its bodes especially well if you have the loan ready to go with a well thought of lender. Get qualified and start looking as there are some good deals in all price ranges. Much has not changed since 2005 and expectations are for steady prices.
The seller may also be getting a good deal on his next purchase and just wants to move on. These are the sellers that buyers need to look for.
First time buyers can still get a tax credit of $7500.
Pic nik is a very easy program for pictures. Check www.picnik.com out as it is a great free tool you can use to enhance your photos. This took me about 3 minutes to frame and etch in a name. Just a tidbit to pass along. The basic version is free. You keep the original photos and make changes on line before downloading. Always amazed how many free and useful things you can find on the Internet.
View other related articles. Sellers Motivations , New Homebuyers tax credit , To Buy or to rent.
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New Orleans French Quarter Market Update! Are Condos Sellings?
September 7th, 2008 categories: French Quarter, Market Trends
French Quarter Condos have been selling at a moderate pace the past 3 months. There are 125 New Orleans French Quarter condos currently for sale in the local MLS. Since June 1, 2008 there have been 36 sales of condos. Looking at the sales per month does not tell us much, so going back 3 months gives us a better idea of past sales. There are 20 units listed above 500k and 27 condos listed below 200k. You can see the bulk of the market is between 200-500k. The moderate pace far exceeds the sales in the same period a year ago. The trend looks good and could become better.
There was a new project at 1025 Bienville which had 8 units priced between 350k-700k. All the units are currently under contract. The condos were the Orleans Steel Mill condos. They are on the Canal Street side of the French Quarter. One of the common themes we are seeing is that people want units that are updated. They want something nice for the money or want that special location within the French Quarter.
Most of the sales are to second homers who want something nice. I sold three such units during this period and two were to local people who had always wanted a place in the French Quarter. Many are looking for condos with two bedrooms and two baths so they can invite friends to visit them in New Orleans on their visits. Many want units with nice views and balconies. Many want to be in a certain part of the French Quarter. Many do not want to be on the first floor.
Once you narrow your criteria down you will not have that many to look at. I recently did a search for condos in the 300-600k for 2/2 and came up with 6 units worth looking at. It tends to be this way, but we forget how hard it is to find the nicest unit.
You are going to have to pay over 400k for something nice with two bedrooms and two baths. If you want a one bedroom then you can get a balcony and on one of the premier streets in the Quarter. The weather has been hot during August and the Quarter should be a great visit as we move into October. Read the rest of this entry »
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Hurricane Sends Eric to Orange Beach, Alabama vacation.
September 2nd, 2008 categories: Real Estate News
Hurricane Gustaf calls off New Orleans real estate for at least a week. Everyone had left the Gulf Shores area except those from Louisiana that have made there way East. That makes it very quiet. The wind and waves are dying down with rain here and there. We are about 2 miles to the Florida line. New Orleans is only a 3.5 hour drive during normal times. It took us 7 hours to get here and that was arriving about 3am Sunday morning.
Being an agent I can update my clients via e-mail on their various searches. Just take time off to do nothing. You take very little when you leave thus you have very little to keep up with. Camera, laptop, shorts, and a couple of shirts. None of your clients expect anything of you as they are all gone to other places North, East and West.
No need to go home at this point. No power, no sewerage, no stores or services. The service stations have all run out of gas so most should stay a couple of days till things get back to a more normal time. Schools out for the week.
We are all glad that the area was spared the damages of Katrina.
Arrived home again after being almost a week. We got power back Thursday nite. We were lucky, no damage other than cleaning up the yard and such. Everything in the frig and freezer is gone. Over 500,000 still have no power. Many times without power you have no sewerage. Parishes southwest of here are still in the dark with 80% or more without power, retail, gas and the things we take for granted. I hope the jobs are not washed away. Got a few things at the store. Glad to be home again!
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