Chris’s comments are spot on, based on our experience owning and then selling two condos in the Pearl between 2009 and 2023. I would add two other factors to the depressed condo resale market. First, good paying jobs based in downtown or the Pearl itself are far fewer in number than in the mid to late 2010s, giving less reason to want to live on the West side of Portland. Second, the number of retail businesses that used to populate the Pearl has dramatically declined over the past decade from what it was in the early 2010s. Compare the Pearl with NW 23rd Street and other vibrant neighborhoods in Portland, Beaverton, Hillsboro, and Lake Oswego where retail is thriving and few store fronts are vacant.
Hard to compare the Pearl with NW 21st or 23rd. NW is much more lively and interesting, but I've always thought the Pearl was over hyped and boring. I can see why retirees would like the Pearl, but Portland has great neighborhoods that are better for younger people or families.
We bought our Pearl condo in mid-2015 and since then more than a dozen new condo and appartment structures have been built in the Pearl area. So we'd list over-supply as a major contributor to price drop.
Perfect synopsis! Great to see it put in stark objective terms. The positives are real too…people from expensive cities like SF and NY can’t believe the value, with all that Portland has to offer and wonder what all the griping is about…now just get the city employees back in offices downtown (if not you, who?!) and things will start rolling the right way. We need actual people to walk the now clean, safe and beautiful streets downtown, and to ride empty Max trains, to add vitality. Plus Every neighborhood has its own distinct charm and personality, as in all great cities.
I think there is another silver lining for existing condo prices, especially those in post tension slab high rise format-replacement costs. We bought in 2004, prior to construction commencing. Construction cost was about $300 a square foot or less for condos being built at the end of the "boom". Sales prices were about $350-$400 a foot. Today, sales prices are about $400-$450 a foot, but replacement would be closer to $700 a foot. What you see is what you are going to get for the foreseeable future. I like the lifestyle. Those like ours have good repair and replacement reserves, as required by law. The demand will increase gradually but the supply won't increase due to new construction. They are a HUGE bargain today, if the Association is well run.
Well, the dude is in the business of selling--I repeat, selling--condos. Might be something in the "bear it in mind" department.
His first three reasons all revolved around the "liveability" issue, sotto voce (as befits a salesman). I've lived in the Pearl and I wouldn't dream of moving back for the usual reasons. Basically, it's Big Bucks for little space, minimal storage, no yard, and neighbors with dogs that bark all day before they get to go do their business in the itty-bitty local park. No deal.
Some may take comfort that Portland isn't alone in the cratered condo market--but coming up with excuses for decline won't help.
Chris’s comments are spot on, based on our experience owning and then selling two condos in the Pearl between 2009 and 2023. I would add two other factors to the depressed condo resale market. First, good paying jobs based in downtown or the Pearl itself are far fewer in number than in the mid to late 2010s, giving less reason to want to live on the West side of Portland. Second, the number of retail businesses that used to populate the Pearl has dramatically declined over the past decade from what it was in the early 2010s. Compare the Pearl with NW 23rd Street and other vibrant neighborhoods in Portland, Beaverton, Hillsboro, and Lake Oswego where retail is thriving and few store fronts are vacant.
Hard to compare the Pearl with NW 21st or 23rd. NW is much more lively and interesting, but I've always thought the Pearl was over hyped and boring. I can see why retirees would like the Pearl, but Portland has great neighborhoods that are better for younger people or families.
We bought our Pearl condo in mid-2015 and since then more than a dozen new condo and appartment structures have been built in the Pearl area. So we'd list over-supply as a major contributor to price drop.
In the meantime there's always renting! I've seen some bargains on the slightly older but still seismically "survivable" buildings in Slabtown.
Perfect synopsis! Great to see it put in stark objective terms. The positives are real too…people from expensive cities like SF and NY can’t believe the value, with all that Portland has to offer and wonder what all the griping is about…now just get the city employees back in offices downtown (if not you, who?!) and things will start rolling the right way. We need actual people to walk the now clean, safe and beautiful streets downtown, and to ride empty Max trains, to add vitality. Plus Every neighborhood has its own distinct charm and personality, as in all great cities.
I think there is another silver lining for existing condo prices, especially those in post tension slab high rise format-replacement costs. We bought in 2004, prior to construction commencing. Construction cost was about $300 a square foot or less for condos being built at the end of the "boom". Sales prices were about $350-$400 a foot. Today, sales prices are about $400-$450 a foot, but replacement would be closer to $700 a foot. What you see is what you are going to get for the foreseeable future. I like the lifestyle. Those like ours have good repair and replacement reserves, as required by law. The demand will increase gradually but the supply won't increase due to new construction. They are a HUGE bargain today, if the Association is well run.
Well, the dude is in the business of selling--I repeat, selling--condos. Might be something in the "bear it in mind" department.
His first three reasons all revolved around the "liveability" issue, sotto voce (as befits a salesman). I've lived in the Pearl and I wouldn't dream of moving back for the usual reasons. Basically, it's Big Bucks for little space, minimal storage, no yard, and neighbors with dogs that bark all day before they get to go do their business in the itty-bitty local park. No deal.
Some may take comfort that Portland isn't alone in the cratered condo market--but coming up with excuses for decline won't help.