Downtown loft style living epitomized. Steps away from countless amenties this location can not be beat. Urban Capital built. East Market I. Experience walking to the Parliament, Ottawa U, Metro, and all of Ottawa’s best restaurants. Storage locker included in the purchase price.
For a private showing please contact Matt Richling and the Ottawas Condos Team at 613-286-9501 or Matt@MattRichling.com.
The East Market condominium complex is comprised of three inter-connected phases with a total of 409 homes, including two different gym facilities, patio and garden areas, two party/event rooms, games lounge, and a meeting room. The three phases corner the east side of the Byward Market making them a short walk to all amenities possible. Built by Urban Capital, most of the units in the three phases have features typically found in loft buildings such as exposed concrete pillars and high +9ft ceilings (as seen at bottom).
Located at 180 York Street (K1N 1J6) the 14 level building is comprised of 101 units (4 of which are retail) ranging from 485sq ft to 1570sq ft. Built in 2003 the building has great use of space and most units have excellent sized terrace balconies with great west, north and east views. Condo fees range from $312 up to $709.20 (Based on sale data for last 12 months).
Located at 383 Cumberland Street (K1N 1J7) this 11 level building is comprised of 84 units ranging from 448sq ft to 1622 sq ft. Built in 2003, the building features mostly one bedrooms and is home the many of the amenities for phase 1 and phase 2 buildings (gym, party room, games lounge, meeting room). Condo fees range from $250 up to $344.88 (based on sale data for last 12 months).
Located at 179 George Street (K1N 1J8) this 22 level building is comprised of 192 units (two of which are retail) ranging from 455sq ft (floor plan being the Gatineau 1) up to 1705sq ft (floor plan being Sky 4). Built in 2006, the building is quickly picked out of the Ottawa skyline with its clean lines, concrete crown and contrasting red brick exterior. Phase three also features a gym, patio and garden area (with a reflecting pool), and party room, all for use of phase three owners only. Condo fees range from $274 up to $514 per month (based on sale data for last 12 months).
For more information about units available for sale in either of the three phases, please contact me directly 613-286-9501 or use the Contact page.
Below is an example of the exposed concrete pillars and ceilings within the East Market.
Below is the gym inside phase two.
Below is a one bedroom unit previously for sale with in phase two. Click here to see the unit and more photos.
—
We just listed unit 810 at 383 Cumberland Street for sale. Located inside of The East Market condominium development, unit 810 offers great views of the Byward Market, the brand new 90 George street, and the peace tower. Built in 2004, the Corbu layout is 601 sqft. (per builders plans) plus a 97 sqft balcony, with floor to ceiling windows and wall to wall berber carpeting. Listed at $249,900 with a monthly condo fee of $344.88 it includes a parking spot and a locker. Also, fresh paint, and over $36,000 in upgrades including granite countertops and island. During the day - nice and bright. At dawn, watch the sunset over the peace tower. For more information please call (613-286-9501), email (matt[@]mattrichling.com) or check the website online (MattRichling.com).
Download the Floor plan for the Corbu HERE.
—
Matt Richling is a sales representative with RE/MAX Affiliates Realty Ltd., Brokerage, Independently Owned and Operated - The opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the RE/MAX or RE/MAX Affiliates Realty Ltd., Brokerage.
David Wex, co-owner of Urban Capital Developments, is standing infront of the Central Condominiums model. Photo Credit: Pat McGrath, The Ottawa Citizen
You might recall this time last year a buzz of excitement in regards to a new development that was being released. Central Condominiums, child of Urban Capital Developments, Tamarack Homes, and Brad Lamb, was launched with a bang. Sister development to The East Market, and the Mondrian, Central is/will be located a few blocks south of the downtown core, and two blocks north of the glebe at the corner of Bank street and Gladstone avenue.
Brad J Lamb (who was the exclusive broker for Central) and his team had sold over 70 units or about 30% within two hours of opening the doors. By the end of the weekend, the team had sold 130 or 56% of the 232 units. The line that first opening day was absolute mayhem stretching from the corner of Bank and Gladstone all the way to O’Connor. The weekend’s launch made it into one of Brad’s episodes on Big City Broker (HGTV). Also check out an article from the Ottawa Citizen that was written on the launch.
Fast forward a year and there have been some interesting changes. Some of the two storey penthouses were cut in half to allow more units at a reduced price. As well the developers decided to switch to a local agent (Jurgen Fretschner of Coldwell Banker) to sell the remaining units (almost 35%).
The Central Condominium model with a bald Brad Lamb on the opening weekend in 2008 - Credit to SouthFacing, titled "Ottawa 4424" on Flickr
Prices range from $207,900 up to $525,900 and price per sq. ft. ranges from $339 sq.ft. for a one bedroom plus den to around $431 sq. ft. for a two bedroom plus den penthouse. Condo fees are $0.36 per sq. ft. which includes water, insurance and common element expenses. Have a car? Parking is $27,500 per spot with lockers (about 18 sq. ft.) going for an additional $3,500.
“Features a double storey lounge and party room, located in the space behind the Metropolitan Bible Church facade, containing a kitchen and bar, lounge seating, reading nooks in the church bay windows…” Each unit will also feature stone counter tops, and “New York Subway style” tiling in the bathrooms.
Central is not just following the Eco-friendly trend, but leading the way with its LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) silver certification. Registered with the Canada Green Building Council, Central includes many sustainability features such as a hybrid car share program, green roof, on-site car wash and irrigation, low energy usage (reduced by an approximate 35%), recycling system and many more. This is one building that you will be proud to bring your eco-conscious friend over for a tour.
Download the floor plans and “updated” price list below. Note that the price list is not a representation of what is left, just a sample of the prices.
Central Condominiums Floor Plans
One really interesting fact that should be noted is that they are offering a 2% cash back upon closing (as a credit) if you purchase one of the 80 remaining units. If you are interested in more information feel free to email me (Matt[AT]MattRichling.com) and we can take a tour of the showroom.
—
Matt Richling is a sales representative with RE/MAX Affiliates Realty Ltd., Brokerage, Independently Owned and Operated - The opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the RE/MAX or RE/MAX Affiliates Realty Ltd., Brokerage.
By Alex Veiga - Associated Press
For many aspiring homeowners, buying a Ottawa condominium can be an affordable way to move from renting to owning a home that doesn’t have a lot of the added costs involved in maintaining a house on a piece of property.
Condos also may come with added perks many first-time buyers might not be able to afford in their starter home, such as a swimming pool or hot tub, or resort-like amenities such as tennis courts and security guards.
But the condo life also requires owners to give up some of the freedom they would enjoy if they owned their own detached home, all while being exposed to onerous maintenance fees on top of their mortgage payments.
And too often, experts say, condo buyers don’t stop to consider exactly what they’re getting into.
“The biggest single mistake that people tend to make is to think that buying a condo is just a less expensive way of buying a house and not really understanding that it’s shared ownership, which is a lot different,” says Robert Irwin, author of Tips and Traps When Buying a Condo, Co-op or Townhouse.
“They aren’t going to be able to do a lot of the things they can freely do when they own their single-family detached house,” Mr. Irwin says.
Still, there are steps buyers considering a condo purchase can take to ensure they know what to expect before taking the plunge.
The first thing to do is try to find out how much you will have to pay in maintenance costs, or monthly homeowners association fees. You also want to know if there are any big special assessments on the horizon.
Special assessments are fees that condo associations sometimes decide to charge owners in order to pay for an unexpected cost, such as an emergency repair, litigation or even to help cover a shortfall in monthly dues.
Assuming that the maintenance is reasonable and there aren’t any special assessments on the radar, you can delve deeper.
You may be happy with a building’s looks, the size of the unit and location. But a condo is real estate, just like a detached home. And just like a detached home, the value of a condo will rise or fall largely based on how comparable units sell.
Buildings with high proportions of unsold, empty units can send the wrong signal to buyers and can hurt comparable resale prices.
Also, a condo complex that has too many investor-owned units being rented rather than occupied by owners can make it tougher to obtain financing, experts say.
“The first thing I want to know is what the occupancy rate is,” says Ken Roth, author of Everything You Need to Know Before Buying a Co-op, Condo or Townhouse.
In a market with declining sales and home prices, condo owners who bought during the peak or speculators who bought with the intention of unloading their properties quickly could be in financial trouble, particularly if they took on risky adjustable-rate mortgages, Mr. Roth says.
Buyers looking to snap up a unit in such a complex might find it difficult to get a mortgage because banks typically won’t finance or will charge a premium to finance a unit in a building where 40% or more of the units are rentals, he explains.
Therefore, condo buyers should find out what the occupancy rate of the building is and what percentage of its units are being rented out by their owners. Ask the homeowners’ association, or in the case of a new building, the developer.
Experts advise buyers to examine the financial state of a developer and to ask to have some guarantee that any money you put in toward a unit in a building under construction be kept in escrow.
One gimmick to watch out for is when developers advertise a building as 80 or 90% sold.
That sounds good, but sometimes what developers are really saying is they’ve sold most of the units they’ve put on the market, rather than most of the units in the building.
The next key step when considering a condo purchase is to go over the building’s condo rules, conditions and restrictions documents, which are typically handed over to buyers when the contract is signed.
The documents are crucial because they spell out the rules on everything from how parking spaces are assigned to what types of restrictions owners must heed for remodeling and decor.
Too often, buyers don’t look through these documents thoroughly and end up in a bind after it’s too late.
That’s what happened to Tara Washlack and her husband, first-time home buyers who purchased a condo in Los Angeles in July, 2007.
The couple skimmed through the condo documents and later ran into trouble when they wanted to install a satellite-TV dish. The condo rules, however, prohibited the installation of such hardware on the building, says Ms. Washlack, a pharmaceutical researcher.
The condo rules also did not allow the Washlacks to run a TV cable through a different location in their unit because it would have been necessary to drill a hole in the exterior of the building. They also couldn’t add an overhead light in their living room because they’d have to run cables through the building’s roof, Ms. Washlack says.
Then, they discovered they couldn’t install a canopy on their balcony.
“That’s one of the things that was disclosed to us, but again, it was overlooked since we had thousands and thousands and thousands of pages [to read],” says Ms. Washlack, 29, referring to the condo documents. “I think for the average homeowner it’s kind of an overload.”
One other big reason to plow through the documents closely is to find out what the condo association’s financial picture looks like and whether it is involved in litigation.
Although the homeowners’ association will typically have some insurance coverage for litigation, it may not completely shield owners from liability, Mr. Irwin warns.
“If you get into a situation and you find where there’s a whole bunch of lawsuits going on - regardless of how well you like the physical layout and the building itself,” he says, “it may be the sort of thing you might want to pass on.”
A great article I came across for anybody thinking about getting into Ottawa real estate and buying a condo in Ottawa!
