June 18, 2008

Oakland: Would You Believe, Condo-esque Apartments? Plus Ashland Auction

Jerry Brown, Oakland’s last mayor and California’s current Attorney General, had a vision. That vision was condos. Lots of ‘em. All around Oakland. Especially downtown. Why? I think it was a build-condos-and-they-will-come-type-of-thing. Take shiny new condos, add lots of people and presto: get the critical mass needed to “jumpstart” this great diamond-in-the-rough of a city.

So Oakland built condos. Oakland even allowed apartment buildings to be converted into condos. And now we are flooded with them. It seems as though Jerry’s vision and the housing boom that brought us apartments-cum-condos has trainwrecked (is that a word?) into the housing downturn.

Which brings us to: The Uptown. The Uptown (pictured above) is a development on Telegraph between 17th and 21st streets in downtown Oakland. Floating in a sea of brand new condos, V Smoothe (a very savvy local Oakland blogger) has pointed out that the Uptown is special since the development was planned from the start to be apartments. Ok. Fine. Rentals for folks who can’t buy. But these aren’t just any old rentals. They are brand-spanking-new, luxurious even, apartments. Take a look at their current website: for $1580 you can have a studio. Junior-one bedrooms start at $1745; “regular” one bedrooms start at $1895; two bedrooms can be had for $2420. What? Pricey, you say? Perhaps. But you’ll be getting brand new:

Whirlpool sleek white-on-white appliances, custom white finish cabinetry with stainless steel accents, Moon Dust granite counter tops in kitchen and bath, custom top-mounted double stainless steel sinks in kitchens, upgraded fixtures and faucets. Natural maple finish wood laminate flooring in living room and kitchen, updated woven Berber-style carpeting in bedrooms, ceramic tile in baths. Designer pendant and track lighting. In-suite washer and dryer.

So what do you think? Worth it to rent?

And if you still want to buy condos on the cheap, the unincorporated yet “census-designated-place” (never knew there was such a term) of Ashland has a condo development called City Walk up for auction at the end of this month. On Sunday evening, June 29th, 32 units will be presented for sale by auction at the San Mateo Marriott. One-bedrooms start at $145,000. See the Accelerated Marketing Partners website for more information. And if you’re wondering (like I was) where Ashland is, it’s in Alameda County, between San Leandro and Hayward, east of San Lorenzo.