CONDO LIFE
Houston’s luxury condos can offer postpandemic peace of mind.
A little over one year ago, cases of COVID-19 in Houston were announced. In the roller coaster ride since that time, daily life became significantly altered as normal routines were upended in major ways. Fast forward to April 2021, and the proverbial winds are shifting toward a post-pandemic reality in the Bayou City just as market conditions are also improving.
Crude oil prices recently rebounded, representing a recovery from the “carnage” wrought on the oil and gas industry, which continues to be a critical economic driver of Houston’s economy.
Within this context, important decisions that fell by the wayside over the course of last year are suddenly back in play. After shuttering themselves inside the confines of their homes to safely ride out the COVID-19 pandemic, empty nesters who had put off downsizing as they stayed indoors
are readying for their next chapter. One needs look no further than the Houston Association of Realtors, HAR, which reported that sales of townhouses and condominiums in January increased for the fifth straight month, rising 12.5% over the same period last year with 458 closed sales versus 407 in 2020, according to its February market update.
At alone, three condominiums at the Tanglewoodarea luxury high-rise have sold since the start of the new year. Slated to break ground in Q2 this year, the Pelican Builders project possesses appeal to Tanglewood and Memorialarea empty nesters looking to not only downsize,
The Hawthorne
but to streamline their lifestyle without having to leave their family and friends in the neighborhood where they raised their kids. With a new tagline for a new era — “Life is Looking Up” — The Hawthorne is positioned to strike the perfect balance between natural harmony and urban intrigue in a post-pandemic dream scenario. Further
reinforcing the change in tide, Pelican Builders broke ground in January on Westmore, a 33-residence seven-story luxury midrise in Upper Kirby.
“Pelican Builders is seeing a number of promising factors that have us confident that Houston buyers are once again ready to explore the ease of condominium living in a major way in 2021,” said Pelican Builders president Derek Darnell. “COVID-19 vaccine deployment is accelerating on a daily basis, and a high percentage of the U.S. population aged 65 and over, which represents a core demographic for condo sales, has received at least one vaccine dose.
“Additionally, we’ve
seen the price of oil rebound to over $60 a barrel, which is critical to the Houston economy. Lastly, when you factor in all … that single-family homeowners across Houston faced during the recent winter storm, I think a great deal are saying that they never want to deal with burst pipes again and are considering the move to a condominium — and the maintenance-free and peace-of-mind lifestyle that it offers.”
Another case in point is The Revere — Pelican’s Park Avenue-style midrise in the River Oaks area — where the few residences remaining on the market at the condominium continue to draw a high level of interest given its coveted boutique size (The Revere boasts 30 residences) and amenities that are ideally suited for comfortable and safe living, including a residential HVAC split system. This means that each residence and the air system supporting it is individualized and not a shared as part of a traditional common system — which is the type of air system that most highrises possess.
Houstonians are now able to see the COVID-19 “finish line” just starting to come into sight in the distance. Dotting the route to the finish line are Houston’s luxury condominiums, beckoning pandemicinduced stay-at-homers to get back to the business of living.
Sales of townhouses and condominiums increased for the sixth straight month in February, rising 4.1%, with 488 closed sales versus 469 a year earlier.
The full report is at https://www.har.com/ content/mls.