INDIANAPOLIS, IN - From Massachusetts Avenue to Pennsylvania Street; any where you look downtown condos are going up. Developers are finding condos downtown are a tough sell so instead of buyers many are looking for renters to fill the space.
For some Hoosiers, the price to live downtown is just right. For others its too expensive. "I can't afford to buy downtown," Nicole Norris of Indianapolis said.
With the recent downturn in the economy, getting property downtown has changed. Condos up for sale a year ago are now for rent.
"Some of the developers have had to react to the market and try to reposition their product," explained Terry Sweeney of Indainapolis Downtown Inc.
Sweeny said some developers are renting these condos to fill up space, "There's still a great deal of demand for living downtown because of all of the amenities and the good quality of life and things like that but some of the national economic trends have kind of slowed people's ability to buy."
Sweeny says about 56 percent of the new condos available are for rent ompared to 44 percent for sale.
"At the same time we are having a number of developers who are still very successful," said Sweeney.
"I would rent because downtown is too expensive," said Kimberly Taylor of Indianapolis.
Nicole Norris moved downtown 6 years ago, "It's more affordable to rent downtown. All the things that you buy downtown are luxury and it's just not affordable buy anything downtown."
She said the way the market is right now, it's safe to rent, "700 square feet for over $200,000, it's expensive."
The city will soon have more apartments for rent downtown. 24-Hour News 8 just learned there's a proposed new development near the old MSA Site.
Source: WishTV.com