Eric Bouler

Whitney and Sloo Condos at 404 Notre Dame Loft #9, A Large one Bedroom condo with garage parking.

Condo Listings

I just listed this very spacious executive condo in the center of the New Orleans Warehouse District. It comes completely furnished. It has had one owner since the conversion 9 years ago and is in tip top shape. Its unusual since most one bedrooms are much smaller than this unit. The condo is 1033 sq.ft. of living area. All the rooms including the bathroom are larger than the normal downtown condo.

Its got a killer location on the corner of Tchoupitoulas and Notre Dame. The third floor condo as 5 large windows which spreads natural light throughout the condo. You can walk from this location to the Convention Center, the French Quarter, Riverwalk, Super Dome, New Orleans Arena and St. Charles Avenue. The Whitney and Sloo is 27 units over the 3 upper floors plus several penthouses on the rooftop area.

The spacious 404 Notre Dame condo has an open floor plan with large rooms and city views. The seller is including almost all furniture and appliances with the sale. Its priced at $280 per sq. ft. or $289,240. It comes with a secure garage parking spot which can easily be worth 20-25k in the New Orleans Warehouse District.

The condo has all the things that make a New Orleans Warehouse Condo appealing. The high ceilings, the wood floors, the exposed beams, the exposed bricks, windows with street and city views. This would make a perfect second home in that you can just move in and start enjoying the area.

This is a perfect second home. It's furnished! It's entertainment friendly! Low condo fees of $251 per month ! Garage parking ! Easy access to the interstate. The roof top is common area is another place to entertain and grill you own steaks and burgers.

I have addition photos and details on my website New Orleans Condos for further viewing. Its under featured condos. Below are views from the common roof top area that can be used by all.

I have started labeling the photos I enter inot the MLS in an effort to add more info about the properties that I list. Its short and to the point. Much like the postcards we use to send home before e-mail and digital photos. In this photo I am featuring the street below givng the buyers an idea of the neighborhood. Maybe it will make a difference. Its quick and easy to read.

Each photo may have one thing that stands out. Just beginning to try this with the help of picnik which I learned about on Active Rain. I tried to put too much in the beginning. Soemthing simple seems to make the point better and quicker.

Selling your New Orleans Condo? Know the competition! Get you condo sold quicker?

Selling your Condo

It's not what you paid for it. It's not what you owe. It's not what you what it to be. It's not what you put it to it. It's what the condo is worth that counts. The price or value is what people will pay for your condo. Buyers have many choices to choose from in all categories. The other condos in your price rang and area are your direct competitor.

Knowing them is the key to getting your condo sold at the best price . A good agent can give you this info and show you where you will fall in the order of units for sale. Know how you compare?

You want to slot your condo into the correct group by pricing or updating to get slotted higher. It really does get back to pricing once your presentation is very acceptable. People will look at 6-7 of the better units in that range. You need to be near the top in your group. Agents will by pass on those that are unrealistic. Agents may show it to make the other ones look better.

You want to be the best available with what you have to offer. Location, Condition, Parking, Updates, Views, Historic features, Great complex, Security, flooring, paint, are all things buyers are going to be looking at.

Many sellers wait till the buyers are gone before figuring out how to figure this one out. Come out of the gate ready to fly. Its much like a beauty contest with each condo having its pros and cons. The biggest con is pricing the unit wrong.

Just like my grandson is watching the ducks, you want to be watching what the buyers are doing and why. As agents we know most of the answers but are open to learning everyday. This is what I learned from my clients.

French Quarter Condo Trends for May, 2009! What are the numbers saying?

French Quarter New Orleans

Most of the real estate sold in the New Orleans French Quarter are condos. At the present time there are 156 units for sale with only 9 under contract. These are not good numbers if you are a seller. There have been 28 sales during the last six months or about 5 units being sold per month. This is coming out of a very slow period. Real Estate is seasonal and many of the condos sold are to second home people from nearby states.

The square foot prices in the French Quarter are all over the place as to the quality and location of the units vary a lot. The French Quarter has always been more expensive than the Uptown and Warehouse District. The Uptown and Warehouse District locations were not competition for French Quarter condos as much in the past but they are now.

You wonder why the trend to fewer sales. One of the reason is that people have other areas to chose from that are competitive for what you get. There are fewer and fewer locals looking to buy as they tend to look in other locations. The prices for property went up way too fast from 2000-2005. Now you have the nicer properties in other areas at cheaper prices. Many people are still looking in the French Quarter but are buying in as great numbers.

I find the weakest segment of the market are the very small units that are under 500 sq. ft. that are not in great shape. The best segment is the two bedroom and two bath units with good locations.

This means if you are a buyer you will begin to see the prices trend downward on the not so premium properties. Those that are very small, those that need updating and those in the poorer locations. There will be sellers that just want to sell and get their profit out of the second home and invest in something else. Some motivated sellers will have very fair prices and they will price their French Quarter condos accordingly.

This means its still a buyers market with great interest rates and motivated sellers. Many people just want the French Quarter so now that its a buyers market its time to starting looking. That good deal may be around the corner. This is what I a thinking. You may have some other comments and that would be great!

Timing in Real Estate is Key for Buying and Selling ! Now is the season !! Its Busy right now.

New Orleans Real Estate is seasonal but its very hard to judge when the season starts. It started for most agents 2 weeks ago. It was like someone shot a cannon off and the market filled up with buyers. I thought it would be after Mardi Gras but nothing happened. Then I thought it would start in March after Easter. Then I thought is would happen after daylight savings time started. It was close after that time that it really picked up.

The interest rates are at 5%. There are willing and nervous sellers. There are some nice places in all price ranges. The better condos and homes tend to come on the market this time of year. People are moving, changing jobs, moving up, moving in and moving out. The sellers and buyers that fall into these categories are serious. The Rent versus Buy is strongly leaning to buyers at this time. The prices are leaning to buyers. Just wonder what took so long for Buyers to start looking. Psychological maybe?

Sellers need to make sure their units are priced correctly and compete well with the competition. Are they ready to shown easily and quickly. Are the places looking great with all the little issues having been taken care of. People will buy the best looking properties. Many, many people cannot see around a mess or lots of defects even if small. You only get so many chances as a seller before your property gets stale in this market. Its show time so act like your condo is in a beauty pageant. The winner sells.

Buyers need to be ready. Getting pre-approved and sitting down with a lender is a great way to start the process. I would sit down and talk to an agent about the process that is used to being a buyers agent that knows the properties. Getting started on the Internet is the way most buyers start looking at properties. Its a great way to start but it has it limits.

Having an agent while you are beginning the process is a great step the right direction. You are learning learning the pros and cons of complexes, neighborhoods, resale values, current and past pricing. Think about resale values and local real estate trends when looking.