Crain’s is already sifting through Appraisal Research Counselors‘ latest Downtown Benchmark Report (released today), and so far its findings look pretty grim:
The downtown condominium market took another turn for the worse in the third quarter, as developers sold the fewest condos in a three-month period since the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Buyers signed contracts for only 160 condos and townhouses in the quarter, down 82% from the same period a year earlier, according to Appraisal Research Counselors, a real estate appraisal and consulting firm.
Contracts for the year are poised to fall short of 1,000 units, making 2008 the worst year for downtown condo and townhouse sales since the Chicago-based firm started tracking the market in 1997.
According to the article, about 10 percent of contracts in a downtown development typically get canceled prior to closing, but that amount has increased to 15 percent at most developments and even reached 40 percent in one instance.
More and more developers are postponing or aborting their new projects and are on pace to completing only 408 units in 2010, down from the 4,719 projected for 2009, the report says.
We should get a copy of ARC’s summary in the mail this week, so stay tuned for more information from the report once it arrives.