U.S. builders started work on fewer homes in March after they sharply cut back on apartment construction. But builders requested the most permits for future projects in 3 1 / 2 years, suggesting many anticipate the housing market could improve over the next year.

The Commerce Department said Tuesday that builders broke ground at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 654,000 homes last month. That's down 5.8 percent from February. Apartment construction, which can fluctuate sharply from month to month, fell nearly 20 percent. Single-family homebuilding was mostly unchanged.

Building permits, a gauge of future construction, rose 4.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 747,000. That's the highest level since September 2008.

Jonathan Basile, director of economics at Credit Suisse, said the increase in permits is a "good sign for broader economic activity" and should lead to increase in construction in the coming months.

Yet the rate of construction and the level of permits requested remain only about half the pace considered healthy. Economists say that construction activity is still depressed and the housing market has a long way to go before it is back to full health.

Since the fall, builders had slowly grown more confident in the market after seeing more people express interest in buying a home. But that interest has yet to materialize into many sales. As a result, builder confidence fell this month for the first time since September.

Part of the reason for the previous optimism was a mild winter allowed builders to keep working in most parts of the country. And an improving job market has many slightly more optimistic about home sales this year.

January and February were the best for sales of previously occupied homes in five years. And an average of 212,000 jobs was created each month from January through March. Unemployment has sunk from 9.1 percent in August to 8.2 percent last month.

Though new homes represent just 20 percent of the overall home market, they have an outsize impact on the economy. Each home built creates an average of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in taxes, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

There are some hurdles to a smooth recovery: Builders are struggling to compete with deeply discounted foreclosures and short sales when lenders allow homes to be sold for less than what's owed on the mortgage.

Originally posted here:
Home building slows, permits hit 3-year high

By F.M. Wiggins

PETERSBURG - City Council will likely soon decide on whether to allow the development of a controversial 12-unit apartment building at the west end of High Street.

The upcoming vote on the project - which would be new construction on an existing lot - comes after a March 20 public hearing where numerous residents of the High Street neighborhood said that they wouldn't welcome the development. The next City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday.

The project has received mixed opinions from residents, city officials and historic preservationists. Petersburg preservation planner James Sved said that the city's Architectural Review Board has already denied the project three times - most recently on Jan. 25 - despite recommendations from staff for approval.

Sonja Reese, who has lived on High Street for 40 years, said that City Council should listen to the Architectural Review Board and experts from within the city who have provided opinions on the planned development. Reese cited Willie Graham, a noted architectural expert who she said works for Colonial Williamsburg, as having opposed the project.

The developer, Canterbury High Street LLC, plans to build an infill multi-family housing unit of 12 one-bedroom apartments. The developer already owns an adjacent two-story commercial structure with a missing facade. That building has already received a certificate of appropriateness for development as a mixed-use project.

During the March 20 City Council meeting, no architectural renderings were presented for the public to view.

"Why don't you see any renderings for this project," asked Richard Stewart. "Shouldn't we see a rendering?"

Stewart said that High Street is one of the most historic areas in the city and any decision should be carefully evaluated.

Zoning for the property is not an issue as the land for the proposed infill development is currently zoned B2, according to Director of Planning Sharon Williams. However, because it is in an historic district, the development would need a Certificate of Appropriateness, which has been denied by the ARB three times.

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Apartment project in historic area draws flak

Apartment developer Archstone is building a 157-unit townhome rental complex in the Santa Clarita Valley, giving a jobs jolt to the beleaguered construction industry, officials said Friday.

About 750 workers will be needed to build the complex, the Denver-based company said.

Grading has already started on the 12.5 acre site at the southeast corner of Lost Canyon Road and Via Princessa in an unincorporated portion of Los Angeles County.

A groundbreaking will be next Thursday.

The project is a joint venture between Archstone and Resmark Apartment Living, a division of The Resmark Cos., a real estate investment adviser based in Los Angeles.

The complex is a welcome addition to the Valley, said Stacie House, marketing and business retention manager at the Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corp.

"In terms of jobs created, we are excited about the project. It's a great indicator things are picking up in the economy," she said.

"Economic development in the Santa Clarita Valley is thriving."

There is good demand for rental units, too, she said.

In the 2011 fourth quarter, Santa Clarita's rental vacancy rate dipped to 5.5 percent from 7.5 percent in the year ago period.

Originally posted here:
First of Archstone Santa Clarita's 157 townhome units to rent next spring

The first phase of construction has begun at Assembly Row, slated to be the largest residential real estate project under construction in this region, according to a press release.

AvalonBay Communities, a real estate investment trust with multi-family apartment communities across the country, announced last week that it has begun construction on the residential component of the first phase of development at Assembly Square that will feature two distinctive living options in separate residential buildings Avalon at Assembly Row and AVA Somerville.

This is the cornerstone residential component within Federal Realty Bostons overall master redevelopment plan for Somervilles Assembly Square. The $100 million development will reshape the residential landscape of Somerville, totaling over 470,000 square feet and 448 apartment homes plus more than100,000 square feet of retail space to be owned and operated by Federal Realty.

We are pleased to be an integral part of Somervilles ongoing renaissance, said Scott Dale, senior vice president of development for AvalonBay Communities, Inc., in a press release. Were also looking forward to introducing for the first time in New England our new brand, AVA. Our community at Assembly Row will provide two distinctive living options in one of greater Bostons most exciting new neighborhoods.

This critical residential component is the first step in bringing the new Assembly Row to life. One of New Englands largest developments, Assembly Row is a new, mixed-use, transit oriented neighborhood spanning more than 50 acres on the banks of the Mystic River. It is expected to bring in significant new revenues for the city and state.

The most exciting aspect of Assembly Row is that its an entirely new urban neighborhood that incorporates the best of Somervilles popular residential, business and entertainment districts, said Mayor Joe Curtatone. The retail, office and river-view park elements are all important but getting the housing element right is absolutely critical. Thats why were so enthusiastic about AvalonBays participation in Assembly Row. They have the experience and the creativity to do a truly outstanding job and we look forward to working with them.

Avalon at Assembly Row will be a traditional Avalon luxury apartment building, appealing to residents seeking upscale apartment living and high-end amenities with 195 generously-sized apartment homes, consisting of studio, one, two, and three bedrooms units, and will offer the high-end amenities and services.

AVA Somerville will be a modern, urban lifestyle apartment building, designed to attract the increasing number of people who want to live in close proximity to restaurants, nightlife, shopping and public transportation. With 253 apartment homes, consisting of studio, one, and two bedrooms, it will feature innovative design elements geared specifically towards active urban lifestyles, with many apartments engineered for roommate living. A new residential concept first introduced in late 2011, AVA communities feature modern design, a technology focus, and amenities that maximize the social experience of residents that will be the first of its kind in New England.

With 1.75 million square feet of new office space and over 50 retail outlet shops, several restaurants, a 60,000 square foot AMC Theatre, and a newly constructed public park along the Mystic River, Assembly Row will provide a new, fresh setting for the stimulating, active urban living experience preferred by so many young professionals, couples, and growing families. The MBTA will an a new Orange Line T station there too, the first new MBTA station to be built in over 25 years.

The two AvalonBay communities at Assembly Row will feature an array of first-class amenities, including expansive common spaces with multiple indoor resident lounges and outdoor courtyards, state of the art fitness center, and uninterrupted views of the Mystic River and Boston skyline. Its proximity to the new Assembly Square Orange Line T station, which will transport residents into downtown Boston in mere minutes, makes Avalon at Assembly Row and AVA Somerville new, dynamic places to live in the greater Boston area.

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Assembly Row construction begins in Somerville

LYNDHURST, Ohio - More than 100 firefighters battled a large fire after construction crews ruptured a gas line next to an apartment building in Lyndhurst Thursday.

Crews broke the line at 12:30 p.m. right next to a building at the Sherri Park Apartments on Acacia Park, near the Interstate-271/Cedar Road area.

Lyndhurst Mayor Joe Cicero said emergency crews responded as soon as they learned of the 4-inch gas line rupture, and evacuated all the residents from the building.

A short time later, the gas caught fire and crews struggled to turn off the pipeline feeding that main.

Chief Mike Carroll with the Lyndhurst Fire Department said the fire was not widespread in the building. The fire department said the gas spread through the first, second and third floors, with most of the damage confined to the one wing of the building.

Carroll said many of the 120 residents in the building are elderly, but all were able to make it out safely. All of the evacuees were taken to the Greens Nursing Home in Lyndhurst with the help of the Red Cross and South Euclid Lyndhurst Schools.

Video from the Nikki Ferrell from the Beachwood Patch news website ( beachwood.patch.com ) shows flames shooting in the air.

At about 3:20 p.m. almost three hours after the fire started the gas line was shut off and the fire was put out.

The fire left behind black soot that covered the side of the apartment building and ground, and destroyed the construction vehicle that struck the gas line.

Three firefighters were accessed on the scene for injuries and one resident was taken to Hillcrest Hospital.

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Fire out after gas line rupture near apt

Soon after LP and I arrived in Boston a plot of land was bulldozed on our street in preparation for an apartment building to go up.

This section soon became a large, ugly hole that we didn't really like to walk past. But as 2011 crept by the wooden skeleton of a five-story building started to grow slowly up and out of the pit. The weather got warmer last year and surprisingly a group of protesters showed up on our street, decrying such-and-such labour practices from the property developer. This small band of bedraggled activists would brandish signs on random days over a few months, braving 30-degree plus heat to be seen. But as the old adage goes: you can't stop progress, and in the eight or so months since then, the building has still seen a steady stream of new developments.

Floors! Walls! Brick! Doors! Windows! Electricity!

LP and I digest and discuss all of the minute new details of the new building. "You notice all of those boxes sitting outside of the new apartment building today?" I find myself enquiring when she gets home from work, almost before I've asked about her day.

"Yeah, I think they're for the drywall they're putting in at the moment," LP will say, and we'll stand in silence for a little while and sort of appreciate this new development for a few moments. I'll probably stand and try and hide my confusion for a time, as I don't have any idea what drywall is.

I've come to like everything about this apartment building. I like the way that old policemen, who've obviously checked out a bit and are on some safe detail while they wait out a pension (or so I've decided), guard the construction site with a glazed, bored eye, a cup of coffee and a cigarette close at hand. I like the way that work on the building fills the air with the sounds of forklifts and power tools if I have the windows open. I've come to tolerate the way the builders stare slightly lecherously at LP as we walk past.

LP and I are moving to San Francisco in a little over a month. Her family is there, and Boston was always a graduate school and out destination for us. There are so many destination schools in America that most of the people we know in town have left now and returned to their home. So we need to find ours. We've been living the quiet life for a few months. It makes sense to be near LP's family, and we both have a number of friends nearby on the West Coast. We're getting married at the end of May, and then moving in with LP's aunt for a time and deciding whether to rent or... gulp... buy a place.

So I've come to contemplate recently this apartment building, as it nears completion, as a sort of obvious and sentimental metaphor for how long I've lived in Boston. I haven't been here long enough to watch the neighbourhood shift drastically. But, I have been here long enough for them to construct a five-story apartment building.

We came here with no roots and few possessions and little idea of the city. We leave with degrees and work experiences and new friends and the intimate knowledge of a new place. This whole structure of a life came out of an empty pit, like the building. But it's similarly substantial to us. We're not staying here, but we both readily acknowledge that if the pull of family wasn't dragging us Westwards, we could.

On Wednesday, I can go and pick up my Masters diploma from the registrar's office at Boston University. So I've got what I came here for.

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Finishing up our Boston project

An apartment with a view of Central Park is one of the most covetedand expensiveprizes of the New York real estate market.

The cheapest condominium at One57, a 90-story luxury apartment building currently under construction, for example,is $7.35 million while its two-floor penthouse is expected to sell for $115 million.

But according to Alexei Barrionuevo of The New York Times, there was a time when an apartment along Central Park was considered undesirable.

In the late 1800s, he writes, most buildings were not more than five stories high (tall building construction didn't hit its peak until 1961).What's more, malaria was widespread in the park at the time, and New Yorkers wanted to stay as far away as possible.

Malaria is, clearly, not a common problem in New York anymore. But theunseasonably warm weather could bring an influx of mosquitoes to the city. Which means that residents along the park should probably invest in some bug spray.

View original post here:
A Hundred Years Ago, No One Wanted To Live Near Central Park

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New development in New York has soared over the last 10 to 15 years. While this may be good for the citys economy and the overall health of the real estate market, a new study examines one major downside to new construction.

"The report goes through all the new construction in a number of neighborhoods and it shows how many seats the city should have planned for based on the new housing units built. The city should have been building schools all along," says Barbara Denham, the chief economist of Eastern Consolidated.

Unfortunately, it has not. According to Denham's report, the city has not followed its own formula for how many new school seats should be created based on the number of new housing units added.

Her report evaluated the Upper West Side, Midtown West and Lower Manhattan and found the more construction, the more the public schools are being squeezed.

"From West 59th Street to West 77th Street, they have added over 6,000 new housing units and they only have four school buildings right now and all four of them are over-capacity," says Denham. "Enrollment in those four schools has grown by over 700 students from 2006 to 2011. There is a plan to build a new school on Riverside South that will open in 2016 but that school will likely be overcrowded by the time it opens."

That is because by the time it opens, an addition 3,000 units will have come on line.

The same goes for Midtown West.

"In Midtown West, they have already added 11,000 new housing units from 1998 to 2011 and the plan is to add 4,000 more. And thats before the plans for Hudson Yards gets underway, which is another 5,000 units," says Denham.

One school there is being replaced with a larger building, but it too will most likely be over-capacity by opening day.

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Apartment Construction Boom Has Packed Local Schools To Over-Capacity

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The weekend before 'Super Saturday' saw steady home sales. Simon Johanson reports.

Gone are the days when a pool or gym would suffice in a new apartment building.

Now nightclubs, bars, shared dining facilities, poker rooms and yoga are being included to create "vertical villages" and provide communal spaces for residents.

As a result, modern apartment blocks are becoming more like pseudo hotels.

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New apartment blocks, such as Fifty Albert as seen in an artist's impression, are emphasising communal space.

The large array of lifestyle services on offer caters for an increasingly sophisticated set of high-rise dwellers wanting spaces and facilities not found in older buildings.

Developer Hamton's new Fifty Albert building near Albert Park Lake offers residents a health club, day spa, on-site yoga, indoor garden retreat and concierge service at ground level.

On the top floor are a sun deck, hot tubs, fully equipped barbecue, kitchens, dining, lounge, cinema and poker rooms all shared.

See the original post:
Rise of the vertical village

New apartment blocks, such as Fifty Albert as seen in an artist's impression, are emphasising communal space.

GONE are the days when a pool or gym would suffice in a new apartment building.

Now nightclubs, bars, shared dining facilities, poker rooms and yoga are being included to create "vertical villages" and provide communal spaces for residents.

As a result, modern apartment blocks are becoming more like pseudo hotels.

Advertisement: Story continues below

The large array of lifestyle services on offer caters for an increasingly sophisticated set of high-rise dwellers wanting spaces and facilities not found in older buildings.

Developer Hamton's new Fifty Albert building near Albert Park Lake offers residents a health club, day spa, on-site yoga, indoor garden retreat and concierge service at ground level.

On the top floor are a sun deck, hot tubs, fully equipped barbecue, kitchens, dining, lounge, cinema and poker rooms all shared.

Another architecturally striking building about to begin construction in A'Beckett Street called MY80 will feature a private rooftop nightclub-bar and lounge on the 53rd floor.

As well as a pool, residents get a business centre, cinema and barbecue terrace.

Link:
Welcome to the vertical village