Originally Posted by
betts
The problem is: no one anticipated the economic meltdown, especially in the housing market. Real estate is so faddish. A few years ago everyone was gaga about the concept of people buying higher density real estate than is usually available in Oklahoma City. Now everyone thinks rentals are where it's at, and the level of enthusiasm for them reminds me of that we saw for downtown "for sale" housing a few years ago. The market could quite easily turn and people will again be looking to buy downtown and the rental market could end up overbuilt, with developers having empty units they can't rent. This whole trend of following the latest fad needs to be tempered by the realization that building projects like this take several years, and in the space of several years, the real estate market can change. I don't think it's unreasonable to build smaller units, since that is what seems to be selling best downtown, but if I were a developer, I'd be thinking of the sales and rental market and I'd build for flexibility.
I agree with Architect. Although The Hill is not my favorite project, and I really dislike the way they look from the rear, I think in the end we'll all be glad there is some residential housing in that area that's not rental. They've done a very nice job of landscaping, and it's nice to see people there, walking their dogs, participating in the neighborhood. Deep Deuce is not very well maintained in terms of landscaping and trash pickup. People who rent are less concerned about dropping trash in their yard and on the street, we've noticed. When we walk our dog, we basically spend the walk picking up trash left by residents of Deep Deuce. We don't see that in the developments that are for sale.
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