• The City of Seattle granted the Certificate of Occupancy for the entire building.
• More than half of the scheduled closings are now closed.
• The volume of new home sales since January 1, 2009, has averaged one per week.

“Since celebrating our official grand opening in January, Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue has been a beehive of unit closings, homeowner move-ins, construction punch-lists and new homebuyer tours,” said Tom Parsons, senior vice president and general manager of Opus Northwest. “We are tremendously proud to watch this building come to life with new residents each day – some who bought several years ago and others who walked into the lobby just last week.”

To date, 63 of the 120 pending presales have closed – the balance of which are scheduled to complete over the coming weeks and months (depending on the level of unit customization, which was common in the top third of the building). During the presale process, 138 of the 143 homes at Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue sold with firm purchase and sale agreements. However, some attrition has occurred in the closing process, according to Parsons.

“Even in a seller’s market, it’s typical to see 10 percent to 20 percent of the presale deals fall out,” said Parsons. “Understandably, circumstances change and some people choose not to close. The silver lining is that new inventory opens up for buyers who missed a presale opportunity – it’s a natural part of the process.”

Recent changes in federal lending guidelines and a downturn in the stock market have made it more onerous for some buyers to secure mortgages today. But Parsons says the buyer profile at Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue remains confident and capable. Buyers are also encouraged by favorable unit appraisals, which have been coming in at or higher than the purchase prices – in part due to a more resilient condo market in downtown Seattle’s center city.

The valuations have not surprised market advisors at Seattle-based Realogics, Inc., as comparable sales at nearby towers are fetching more than $2,000 per square foot. Dean Jones, president and CEO of Realogics, believes distinctive properties in downtown Seattle have been resistant to downward pressure on pricing because the new inventory is highly differentiated by design and in relatively low supply, versus more typical condominiums.

“Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue is unique and continues to demonstrate impressive demand today – just like it did during presales,” said Jones, who is representing the project. “Buyers can separate individual developments from generalizations about the broader Seattle marketplace.  Success stories such as this demonstrate that real estate is, and always will be, intensely local.”

Now that Fifteen Twenty-One Second Avenue is available to tour, with several new model homes, homebuyer traffic has increased substantially, with 20 to 30 qualified showings per week. Opus confirms that 15 new home sales occurred since January.

For additional information, visit www.fifteentwentyone.com

Opus Northwest, L.L.C. is headquartered in Minneapolis and is one of five regional companies within the Opus Group. The Opus Group, a group of independent operating companies, is a full-service real estate development company with more than 55 years of experience. Opus is recognized as a national leader in office, industrial, retail, multifamily, government and institutional development and has offices across the United States and in Canada. Committed to creating great real estate, Opus implements best practices in sustainable design and construction to maximize building performance and reduce environmental impact. A community steward since its inception, the Opus Group is committed to the long-term development of people and communities by contributing 10 percent of its pre-tax profits to community organizations. For more information, visit www.opuscorp.com.