Despite the recent decision by owners of 3900 N. Charles Street to halt the conversion of the building?s apartments into condominiums, local experts say it was an isolated incident and is not indicative of an overall cooling trend in the condo market.
“It was one project and it was an older building,” said Patrick Turner, president of Turner Development Group, which is currently developingthe Silo Point Condominium project in Locust Point. “You can?t judge the entire market based on one building.”
Turner said that other condominium markets, such as Washington and Northern Virginia are slowing, but he expects Baltimore to remain ahead of the curve, due to the influx of new jobs that will be created by the military?s Base Closure and Realignment Commission, as well as the major biotechnology development project at Johns Hopkins Medical Campus.
“With all these jobs being created around the state, some percentage of those people are going to want to live in an urban environment,” said Turner. “So, are there markets slowing down in the country? Absolutely, but Maryland is not one of those.”
Turner added, however, that properties are staying on the market longer than last year, mainly due to the number of properties available and buyers taking longer to decide on a purchase.
Meanwhile, Thomas Shaner, executive director of the Maryland Association of Mortgage Brokers, said that with all the new jobs that will come to the state, and less land available for housing, the local condominium market could see a major upswing.
“We know there is a housing shortage,” Shaner said. “If you package all this together, what seems to be a good product is a multi-residential condominium [community] so you can get more units on less space. I don?t think at this time I?m ready to say that the Baltimore area condo market is going to slow down.”
Frank Wise, vice president of Harborview Properties Development Co., which is developing Pierside Homes on the Inner Harbor, said that in anticipation of the increased demand for condos that the area is expected to see, the company has begun marketing efforts for a new project called the Pinnacle, which will be a 17-story boutique condominium project that will be built on top of The Harborview Tower garage.
“Maryland and the city of Baltimorestand uniquely positioned in the nation for economic growth that will be sustained and is really unstoppable for the next five to 10 years,” Wise said.
