[tahlsr]

Hi,
Thanks in advance for any information.
I'm a 29 yr old single Male. I live in West Hartford in a 3 family right now and I'm getting the itch to move to downtown Hartford. I want a bit more action. There is too many young families here in West Hartford and since I don't have one I get jealous Ideally I would be able to afford a 2 bedroom (I would consider as high as 250k) and then get a roomate to help me offset my mortgage a bit. I'm in no rush in the sense that I own my current place and could just move whenever. I really want a place that is in the heart of it all (yay for the Rising Star). I know to look at:

Linden
Bushnell Towers
Metropolitan (Ann and Pearl)

I guess my questions are:
1.) Are there any other places where one can buy (not rent) in Downtown? Anyone have a favorite web site I should now about to help?
2.) Are there any places soon to be coming (within a year)?
3.) Anyone have an opinion on: if condo prices will be declining in this economy over the next few months?

Thanks for any help!

[uconn99]

I would look into the Riverfront Condo's located just over the river in East Hartford. The building is 17 floors and has a pool, work out room and 24 hour security and is a east walk across the bridge to downtown.

The building was built in 1989 and a lot of units are renovated recently. You could find a 2 bedroom for under 250k and IMO is a great steal.

[uconn99]

Also, Northland who owns Hartford 21 and other buildings downtown was planning on building a large residential tower where the YMCA is located on Bushnell park. The plans have stalled a bit and probably won't get built for another 5-10 years I am thinking.

If it ever gets finished, it will be the nicest residence in the Hartford region by far.

[AmyBergquist]

If you're looking for Downtown, the 3 buildings you mentioned are the major ones. You might also want to look on Charter Oak Place. There are some really wonderful older, smaller buildings that were converted to condos. Most are townhouse style, with 2-4 units per building. They're typically owner managed for the association.

There are also some nice brownstone buildings on Buckingham and Capitol Ave that sometimes come up for sale. Again, townhouse style, usually 2-4 units per building.

I believe this is mostly what you'll find available in Downtown within the next year.

The number of condo sales in Downtown is down 36% in 2008, comparing to 2007. Prices are down 4%. The market has been very slow this year in this segment of the market. There has been 1 closing in the last 3 months and there are 21 condos currently available in the Downtown area. I would say your chances of getting a reasonable deal in the upcoming year would be fairly good, given the amount of inventory available and how slowly it's moving.

[tahlsr]

Amy thanks for your input. That is very helpful. I wanted to add some more information I found out too in case it's helpful to anyone. I contacted the Metropolitan via their web page and emailed with a nice person and here is the meat of what she told me about The Metro:

"Yes, there are currently two resales in the building, one is a two and the other is a one bedroom, both for $259,900. The developer still has a few condos available that I could show you ranging from $259-295,000 all on the sixth floor which has incredible views and sunlight. The sixth floor also features floor to ceiling windows and juliet balconies."

I also spoke with my realtor / ex-girlfriend (don't ask) who is amazing at what she does (although she is mostly into commercial nowadays) and here are some snippets from emailing with her:

" Remember there is not even a grocery store in downtown…starbucks is not open on the weekends… Things are closing and failing…
Crime is up…
Be careful!"

and she also wrote:

"Hartford is going to have the hardest hits on the condo market and they will take the longest to rebound and it would suck to buy something like that. TRUST ME"

[AmyBergquist]

Not sure what to say. I am always skeptical of people saying that X market will be the hardest hit. It's all a guessing game. I also find it frustrating, as a Hartford resident, that people tend to focus only on the negative. There was just an announcement last week of a positive redevelopment that will happen at the old CBS broadcast building... Abdul Islam's Towering Plan -- Courant.com

[Uconn97]

Originally Posted by AmyBergquist

I also find it frustrating, as a Hartford resident, that people tend to focus only on the negative. There was just an announcement last week of a positive redevelopment that will happen at the old CBS broadcast building... Abdul Islam's Towering Plan -- Courant.com

But thats what people do. Unfortunately nothing anyone can do or say will change that regardless if we are talking about Hartford or some other non-hoity toity city or town.

[uconn99]

I believe the Starbucks is now open on weekends.

There isn't much crime downtown, not any more than any other mid sized city. You have to go out and find the crime in Hartford. At worst a car may get broken into or stolen downtown which can happen in a small or large city/town in this country.

In terms of housing prices, I think buying downtown will only be for the better. Hartford is in far better shape than it was 10 years ago and will be in far better shape 10 years from now.

A grocery store is in the works for downtown at the Hartford 21 near the wine store.

Does your ex girl friend live in Hartford area? A lot of people (including realtors) are misinformed about Hartford and have "suburban scare".

Also, I would like to know what she means by closing and failing? New restaurant's are popping up it seems on a monthly basis. There is a ton of great places to eat downtown that a lot of people don't even know of. Retail has been slow to catch on but that can be related to the lack of downtown residents and the economy. I don't really know of anything closing or failing other than some restaurants that close. Restaurants are hard in any city and even in Scottsdale, AZ I see them closing and becoming something else all the time. It isn't just Hartford.

[tahlsr]

I'm not sure why she is saying that or what her basis is. She does not live Downtown. Either way I would be content with living downtown and I think you are right in that you never really know the best time to hop in if you are looking for the best price or the 'bottom of the trend'. If I could do that better I'd be at the casino right now playing only winning hands of Black Jack.