Tucson Lofts Downtown

April 7, 2008 | By Kelley Koehler | Filed Under Tucson Neighborhoods

There was an article about loft projects in Tucson today in the Arizona Daily Star (will go behind registration wall soon, but registering is free).

There’s always a lot of talk about loft projects, especially in the downtown Tucson area. I often get calls from people in other states, looking to purchase a little loft downtown, especially as a vacation home. They want to live in a low maintenance place, where they can get to a grocery store and restaurants and other shops within easy walking distance. Some are ecologically minded, wanting to use a car less, some are just drawn by convenience.

All, however, want something affordable. Which is a little harder to find.

In general, I see interest in loft projects, but not at the current pricing. And I think that’s reflected in the number of loft projects that have stalled.

Take a look at the article, it has a list of "lofts in limbo" and "lofts pending."

Among the pending lofts is the Post Lofts, at 56 E Congress. The developer has promised to start construction, but they’re already well behind schedule. These lofts went into MLS for a short period of time and then were all withdrawn. Units started in the high $200s.

44 Broadway is under construction, but as far as I know, there is an interest list but no reservations or sales taken yet. And no pricing that I can see.

The Ice House lofts started much earlier, and sold out in 2005, while the Academy Lofts started in 2006, I believe, are partially rental units due to the agreement when the place converted, but of the 11 units that could be sold, only 6 have.

Did Tucson hit the loft market too late? There’s certainly still interest in living downtown, but the timing – is there enough downtown to keep people living there right now? Will there be if and when some of these loft projects finish? You need people downtown to support downtown businesses, but you need the businesses there to draw the people.

Something to keep an eye on. If prices were lower, I’d be more interested, personally.

tags: lofts, real estate, tucson

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