by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
Move over Nashville, Charlotte and San Diego. Jacksonville is on the verge of becoming the next “hot spot” for relocation and its downtown condominium market is leading the way, says a real estate analyst.
Bob Schultz of Bob Schultz & the New Home Specialists was in town last month to deliver a half-day seminar on selling downtown residential high-rises. About 150 Realtors attended the event in the Terrace Suite at Alltel Stadium.
Schultz lives in Boca Raton but has seen most of the country. He says downtown Jacksonville is one of the most livable and marketable communities in the country.
“Jacksonville doesn’t have the challenges of South Florida, which is overbuilt,” said Schultz, who came for the Super Bowl and has been back several times since. He said flipping property in South Florida is a major trend that doesn’t seem to be an issue here. “There is minimal investor flipping in Jacksonville.”
Schultz said there is a nationwide misconception about the current state of the real estate industry. After several years of exceptional growth and sales, the market may be cooling off, he says, but coming down from such a high is light years better than the market has been in the past.
“Eighty percent is the new 100 percent,” said Schultz, referring to a market that is slower than it was a year ago, but one that is still strong. “The great news is that no market ever goes to zero. The marketplace is simply confused. In the 1980s, the prime interest rate was 21 percent and the mortgage rates were 18 percent — if you could get a mortgage.”
Schultz said the downtown high-rise condo benefits from an ample supply of brand new units and an available supply of waterfront property — for now — an emerging business and entertainment district and weather than most of the country envies.
“I have lived in San Diego,” he said. “Believe me, this is everything that San Diego would like to be.”
The Strand is the first riverfront condo to hit the market. It’s being built by Miami-based American Land Ventures, which is also building its sister condo, The Peninsula just a few yards east of The Strand.
Tammy Britton is the marketing director for Ameriland Realty, the real estate arm of American Land Ventures and she said The Strand is being marketed to a variety of the potential condo-buying public.
“We are mainly marketing in Jacksonville,” said Britton, who lives in Miami. “About 80 percent of our market is local. We have concentrated our advertising effort in Jacksonville and also in South Florida. The Strand was built as apartments, but never marketed as apartments.”
The 28-story Strand will have 295 units ranging from the low $200,000s to the mid-$800,000s. Britton says the typical Strand buyer is one of three types: someone looking to move from the beach, an older couple looking to own something downtown without maintenance issues, or someone looking to buy something for their children. Britton said the view of the Northbank and the proximity to work and other necessities have made both towers attractive.
“If you are from out-of-town and don’t know many people, there is no better way to meet people than in a condominium tower,” she said. “People really want to be downtown. They have caught the fever.”
Schultz agrees. He says he sees a vibrant downtown that is quickly becoming more appealing. While many locals are rediscovering the neighborhood, Schultz said he expects corporations will soon see the value in owning a downtown condo.
“They can use it when colleagues visit on business as kind of an executive suite,” said Schultz, adding the condos could be shared among corporations. They are also tax writeoffs that will only appreciate in value, he said. “It’s much more convenient than staying in a hotel.”
Here’s what attendees of the seminar thought about the presentation.