The Redevelopment Agency is expecting a payment of $202,000 in fees for the sale of units at Sky View at Carriage City Plaza, Redevelopment Director/City Administrator Peter Pelissier said at last night’s agency meeting. Based on the redevelopment agreement and a new deferred payment schedule, that would mean about 40 units have closed so far.
I’ve heard that as many as 60 units have closed but only about two dozen have appeared in property transactions so far. The average for the 23 units closed so far is about $288,272, with a low of $233,050 and a high of $444,000. There were three purchasers with the same last name who bought two units in the building, according to real estate transactions.
The redevelopment agreement with Elizabeth-based Silcon Inc. calls for the agency to receive $10,000 per unit upon closing of each unit. This past summer the agency agreed to defer half the payment until it reached the level of water connection fees paid in June ($331,194). At $5,000 per unit, that would mean about 40 units have closed, given the $202,000 payment.
July 7, 2008 (almost three months ago)Source: Rahway Rising BlogAccording to representatives of Silcon Group: “More than half of the 209 condominium units at SkyView at Carriage City Plaza are under contract with the first 30 expected to close this month and the rest by the end of August”The article goes on to say:”Representatives also said they have an agreement in principal with a national steakhouse brand that’s well known in New Jersey to occupy the restaurant at Carriage City, and expect to make an announcement in the next 30 days.”So we are supposed to be at 104 units closed now and we are at 24. Could it be that mortgage lenders are not so willing to loan money to purchase condos in an up-and-coming town that has yet to prove itself to borrowers who may not have much to put down and at purchase prices that reflect a housing bubble?No discernible work done on building out Cuppy’s in weeks, no announcement on the steakhouse. Could it be that banks aren’t loaning out money to open high risk ventures right now like restaurants?Nothing to see here, move along.
OK, my therapist says I need to be more positive so……. I stand corrected. Just saw a guy standing in Cuppy’s. He wasn’t doing anything but I still think it qualifies as “activity” so yay!Also, the Organic Cleaners sign is up in Skyview AND A Little Bit Healthier looks like its in the pre-opening or grand opening stages so Go Rahway!Rahway Pride! Rahway Fever… Catch It!
Do they have the diveing board on the roof yet for the ones that lost there shirts in the stock market? if so they should use it to push the rep and dem politians off it too. lol
Clearly, anonymous of 8:22pm is a product of the Rahway School system.
From the records I have seen, there have been at least 29 closings so far with an average sale price of $292k. There could be some delays in the data getting posted though so there very well could be 40-50 closed or closing soon.Of those 29 closed, 8 of them are 2-bedroom condos. The average selling price of the 2-bedrooms is $375. The average selling price of the 1-bedrooms is $261.
OK, so the target for end of August was 50% closed. We are at 14% closed (in October) based on possibly delayed information.And the name of the well-known steakhouse is apparently “Retail Space for Lease”. … I love their signature salad.
I would be interested to know how many of these buyers were dragged kicking and screaming to the closing table by aggressive Silicon group lawyers. Or how many of these units are now available as rentals on Craiglist, and whether planned that way or because flipping condos isn’t the path to riches anymore. And whether the rents collected can come close to covering the mortgage, taxes, HOA dues, concierge tips, etc.
“And whether the rents collected can come close to covering the mortgage, taxes, HOA dues, concierge tips, etc.”Landlords pay concierge tips?
Well, I closed early September and was approximately the 40th unit closed (according to my lawyer who filed documents with the tax office that morning). I would imagine that at least another 10 to 20 units must have closed by this point – but that is simple speculation. In any case, certainly more than 24 to 29 units have closed to date. Although many people have closed, not everyone has actually moved in (myself included). Anyone having experience with new construction will know that these projects are rarely completed on-time (my mortgage rep said upfront that in his experience <90% will close on time – and he is in no way affiliated with Silcon). The Skyview contract even provides a provision that closings can be delayed 6 months (November) without any repercussions. I myself was not dragged kicking and screaming – Im not sure why you would even suggest such a situation has occurred. You really shouldn't make assumptions with any evidence.On the flip side, Silcon certainly isnt fault-free. They obviously did not come through on MANY of their promises. However, all-in-all, I am confident that given enough time, everything will fall into place. One thing is for certain, there is plenty of traffic in that building – mostly from the hotel – but in time, it will become busier (from the tenets as well). I see lots of people going out to the restaurants and bars. Speaking with local business owners would probably be the best litmus test of the Skyview success. One local cafe told me he has had quite a bit of increased traffic from Skyview. I would imagine others would say the same. Give it some time – things will continue to improve. maybe not as quickly as everyone has hoped, but things are getting better. I never expected Rahway to re-gentrify in 1 year. 5 years maybe, 10 years certainly.
Anon 10:53,I agree that new construction is rarely an on-time affair. Don’t rip up your apartment lease or arrange for furniture delivery based on what the developer tells you.One of the previous threads produced a discussion about how Silicon’s preferred lender jacked up the down payment requirements and how Silicon threated legal Armageddon to anyone who dared to duck out of their sales contract. Several people on the wrong end of that position wrote in to voice their displeasure – I would be upset too if my 3% or 5% down payment suddenly had to be 15% at the minimum. I didn’t spend hours trolling real estate records and surveying pedestrian traffic in downtown Rahway just to substantiate a blog comment. However I didn’t pull a reference out of nowhere as you insinuated. I’m glad your closing went smoothly. Maybe you’re one of the few buyers out there with cash and good credit.
beware, those Silcon guys are all crooks
Skyview and Wells Fargo lead their buyers to believe they are the only ones that will write a mortgage in this building. Just wanted to let potential buyers know that RSI very accomodating and will write a mortgage in Skyview. WF tried to scare me out of going with RSI 3 weeks before my closing after 1 month of not calling me back and with a higher rate, at 10:30 at night by saying that last minute RSI would back out… needless to say they didn’t.