Today, we’re putting the finishing touches on 830-832 Beaudry, a 7 unit building we renovated through Adaptive Realty Fund 3. This project ran into some hurdles and was delayed approximately three months past its scheduled completion date. Some of the delay was unavoidable, but most of it was the contractor failing to supply sufficient labor … Continue reading “Update on 830-832 N Beaudry”
Category: Development
How Highland Park got so many non-rent control buildings
Met with a guy yesterday who participated in the Highland Park building boom of the 1980s and early 1990s. Apparently deals worked like this: You would buy a piece of land for cash. Next, you would get the bank to appraise the land for a lot more than you paid for it. Then, the bank … Continue reading “How Highland Park got so many non-rent control buildings”
Some rehab pics
Visited a smaller building we bought three months ago. About six months from now, these are going to be six of the nicest three bed units around, though you certainly can’t tell from how they look now!
How to think about assemblage
When you’re in a hot market, every second thing you get from brokers is a development opportunity. That’s generally code for “over-price land”. And I’ll tell you what your first impulse is: To see if you can maybe buy the land on either side and have that make the project work. (That’s called “assemblage”.) But this … Continue reading “How to think about assemblage”
How to handle weather-related construction delays
El Nino is finally here and we’re pretty well prepared, at least with respect to the existing portfolio. But, unsurprisingly, construction workers generally don’t love working in the rain. And that confronts us with an irritating dilemma. We can: Suck up the resulting construction delays; or Bonus the workers (either directly or via their employing … Continue reading “How to handle weather-related construction delays”
Checking in on our “rehab” deal
And… we’re back. As you know, we’re in the process of “rehabbing” a 4plex in Echo Park right now. I say “rehabbing”, because it’s effectively new construction, as you will see below. When we started this project, I was mentally prepared to treat it like a standard rehab deal, except with slightly more risk and … Continue reading “Checking in on our “rehab” deal”
Why developers prefer to build luxury apartments
Here’s a question that’s been popping up all over the place: Why do developers only build apartments for the rich? The answer, as with most things in our business, is in the math. Imagine you can buy enough land to build 10 units for $1MM, or $100,000 per unit. Let’s say you have two options: … Continue reading “Why developers prefer to build luxury apartments”
First concept for interiors on our first true ground-up project
Am unreasonably excited today because we got the drawing below via email from our architect: That’s his first crack at the interiors on the new fourplex we’re building in Highland Park. Now, I’m quite certain that Jon is going to have a field-day marking this baby up (for example: that kitchen is pretty damn small!). … Continue reading “First concept for interiors on our first true ground-up project”
More NIMBYism in Hollywoord
Here’s a ridiculous example of NIMBYism ruining our city. You ought to be able to build lots of apartments in already-dense areas on major commercial streets near subway stations. If you can’t build them there, where should you be able to build them? And, if someone wants to an answer “nowhere”, then that person has to be honest … Continue reading “More NIMBYism in Hollywoord”
420 N Commonwealth is done
Just finished a little triplex we renovated on behalf of another group. When they bought it, it was a diaster: Two units vacant, one occupied but falling apart. Now, it’s a beautiful little complex of three separate homes, each with parking and private outdoor space. The pics are below. Two of the units are rented. … Continue reading “420 N Commonwealth is done”