Projo Biz Blog

In a further sign of the slackening housing market, the condominium complex behind Providence Place mall, known as The 903 Residences, is for sale.

“In this real estate climate, you have to look at all your options,” Frederick J. Vincent, project manager for the 330-unit condo, said this afternoon.

Perhaps best known as the employer of former Providence Mayor Vincent A. Cianci Jr. near the end of his federal prison sentence, the property is owned by a partnership that includes another former Providence mayor, Joseph R. Paolino Jr.

Vincent said that the partnership between the Athena Group, of New York, and Paolino Properties decided to “test the market” after being approached by European investors looking to capitalize on the euro's strength versus the dollar.

For the two years since the partnership closed on the complex in October 2005, it focused on marketing units to individual buyers. But, six to eight weeks ago, the partners hired Apartment Realty Advisors to market The 903 to investors, Vincent said.

Vincent said the partners, who paid $81 million for the property, will not sell at a loss. “They will not. They don’t need to.”

Although fewer than a third of the units have sold, Vincent said, “We’re the bestselling condominium project in the state.” He said the complex has done $35 million in sales. As of yesterday, the 903 had 234 unsold units.

But, like the rest of the Providence condo market, sales have been lackluster in recent months.

Vincent said The 903 sold 43 units in all of last year. So far this year, two units have sold, with a third scheduled to close tomorrow, he said, adding that three more sales are “pending.”

In all of Providence, the condo market has been in decline. In 2006, 454 units sold, with a median price of $232,250, according to The Warren Group, a real estate data collection firm headquartered in Boston. In 2007, condo sales dipped to 418 units, with a median price of $226,000.

And things aren’t shaping up better at the start of 2008, according to the firm’s figures. In January of last year, 26 condo units sold in Providence at a median price of $223,500. The same month this year, that fell to 21 units at $183,100.

Comments

Adrian said:

As a purchaser of the first unit, I am not worried about the sale at this point; hopefully they will sell too a good company and keep the prices high. In early 2006 the original sales staff told me “we will sell all the units in no time, we won’t have a problem, and we will be out of here in 2 years”. Well, it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that the market was on the way down, I told them that. I can not believe a million dollar real estate company couldn’t figure this out. I am disappointed in Paolino and hope he has the best interests of the903. It is a very good community and it is the best value this close to downtown. I would still purchase today.

Link | March 28, 2008 9:53 AM
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