Friday, February 8, 2008

Century City 45-story condos

"They aren't making any more land on the Westside" but that doesn't limit the supply of luxury housing. See the LA Times article today (with multiple photos) about a new proposed 45-story 177-unit condo tower at 10000 Santa Monica Blvd. in the corner of Century City (above left; click image to enlarge; original MS Live).

The $400-million tower along one of the area's toniest corridors would be the first building in California designed by renowned Paris architect Jean Nouvel, known for his daring designs. He is proposing a narrow glass structure with sweeping views through the building and extensive greenery ringing each floor.

The developer predicts the project will attract European and Asian globe-trotters as well as local empty-nesters ready to move from sprawling Westside mansions to roomy condominiums complete with concierge services, a private club, first-run movie screenings and valet parking. ...

Prices have not been set.... But units in the ultra-luxury Century tower being built in nearby Century City are being offered at a range of $3.2 million to $30 million, and the Nouvel condos are expected to be even more pricey.

Two top-drawer projects are also being planned around the intersection of Santa Monica and Wilshire boulevards in Beverly Hills. Last year, British developers paid $500 million for the former Robinson-May department store at the site, where a 252-unit condo and retail complex designed by prominent architect Richard Meier has been proposed.

6 comments:

WarChestSM said...

"the vacant lot was the object of a high-profile bidding war in 2006 when Irvine home builder SunCal finally topped New York developer Donald Trump with a $110.2-million offer for just 2.4 acres"

I am not necessarily saying they overpaid for the land (although I think it is very likely), but this is what happened with the homebuilders that acquired land late in the cycle. It is hard to make a good profit when you overpay for the land.

Also note that in 2006, people thought that the bubble wasn't busting for sure and that if it did, the high end would be "immune". Add the fact that there was a "bidding war" to get this and I think it is all the more likely this land is not worth nearly what they originally paid.

Anonymous said...

These condos i think sell for two thousand a square foot right ?

So a family sized apartment 2500 square feet - is $5 million

wow, i remember the day when a condo was the affordable alternative to a single family house

:)

Canter Real Estate said...

Yeah, it is crazy how many new condo buildings are going up and have gone up in the past few years. West Hollywood has created a moratorium for building condos at least for another 2 years. In Century City you have The Century, the Towers, and this proposal. The Century was where the St. Regis Hotel used to be and when the developer had bought it they initially were going to renovate it. However, after escrow closed they realized they could not do what they wanted too. Oops! They raized the hotel and are building the current site with prices starting in the high $2M I believe. Ridiculous I think, but large developers keep buying these long sought after pieces of land and hope to get $2,000 a sq ft and more. The Montage in BH will probably ask $2,500 a sq ft. The 9900 Wilshire building is suppose to start in April and they will ask a crap load also per sq ft. I think it is going to take years for them to sell these condos. It is hard to believe they will make money, but I guess the economies of scale are such that they might. The developers also manage to get great financing terms, so that helps too. However, if the market collapses as many on this blog are predicting they can kiss their profits goodbye!

Anonymous said...

my best guess using redfins past sales is that there is about 2 decades worth of inventory in the $2,000,000+ range of condos.

good luck with that.

too bad Mr Trump didn't win the bid!

Anonymous said...

Well
the montage in BH i believe is almost all pre sold at $2,000 plus

i personally think it is crazy to pay that, but obviously the people with $$$ don't agree with me and have opened their check books

Anonymous said...

pre-sold means a small deposit to hold it until completion... how many will close?