John Ross Condo Auction

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Well, another bank has decided to auction off condo units in Portland.  The John Ross building is following Atwater Place's lead and selling 50 of the remaining 80 units.  I can see both the good and the bad of this.  I do feel sorry for the homeowners that were early adopters of the John Ross and the south waterfront district.  This will set a new low bar for the values of the condos.  The whole project has been hit very hard by the downturn in the market.  However, I do think some poor planning has also hindered the sales and acceptance of the south waterfront project.

In my opinion, there are 3 major problems with this development in general.  First, there is very little parking outside of the 1 or maybe 2 spots an owner gets with their unit.  Secondly, it is not an easy place to get in and out of.  Access is only onto Macadam and often seems to be more difficult in comparison to other parts of the city.  Finally, and this is the complaint I've hard most, is that there isn't a grocery store or enough commercial space.  Most people that embrace condo living want to be able to park their car and walk to get their needed items.  You can jump on the street car, but it takes a 30 mins or more to get very far into town. If you compare it to the pearl district, which has thrived because it is full of shops, restaurants, bars, and most importantly, 2 grocery stores, it's a tough sale.  In the south waterfront, you have a couple of restaurants, a coffee shop, a mini mart, and that's about it.

That being said, there is opportunity for the south waterfront to be a thriving community in time.  I just look at it as a longer hold than other condo buildings.  If you can get in cheap enough, though, it could be well worth it.  You look at price per square foot and make a decision.  The other drawback to the John Ross building is that it is not located on the water like Atwater Place or the Meriwether.  There are still river views but it just depends on the unit and the floor in the building.  In my opinion, I don't like the finishes quite as well either.  The Atwater Place building is quite stunning and the Meriwether is pretty nice as well.  One thing I have realized after touring most of the condo buildings in Portland, is that it all comes down to personal taste.  There is a style to the elliptical building, and it may be just want you're looking for. 

In looking at the auction, here are a couple of things to note.  First, you just have to be educated if you are going in there.  Make sure you go in with a Realtor that is familiar with the project.  I went to the Atwater Place auction and most of the units were bid up to nearly market value or above.  Out of the 41 units they were auctioning I felt as though there were 5-6 units that were values when it was all said and done.  In my case, instructed my clients to pass on the units they had hoped to bid on.  In many cases, you could have had the same deal just by negotiating with the developer prior to the auction.  If you want to see the list of condos up for auction and more info, click here.  If you have any questions or would like more information on the building simply give me a call or shoot me an e-mail.  I'm always here to help.   

Aaron Stelle
Real Estate Broker
Licensed in OR & WA, CDPE, e-PRO
2009 RE / MAX 100% Club
RE / MAX equity group, inc.  
Direct:   503.495.3264
Fax:      503.495.5124
E-mail:  aaronstelle@gmail.com
Web:     www.aaronstelle.com