Sales, rentals of Fitzgerald, Gallery Apartments could show demand for downtown Grand Rapids living

So far in 2011, sales of the upscale condominiums at The Fitzgerald are up and Gallery Apartments has only three units left, says Nick Koster of CWD Real Estate Investment, developer of both properties. Whether or not these are long-term indicators that the demand for downtown Grand Rapids residential properties is up remains to be seen.

"This year we've sold seven of the 39 units at The Fitzgerald," says Koster, VP of operations at CWD. "Last year we only sold two."

Of the 39 condominiums at The Fitz (27 Library St. NE), 12 units, starting at $199,000, are still available after nearly three years, says Koster.

But he says demand for apartments at the new high-rise Gallery Apartments (10 Commerce Ave. SW) is a different story. The apartments are part of the Gallery on Fulton complex that includes the new 40,000-square-foot Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, a city parking ramp and some 2,600 square feet of white-box retail space. Of the 56 apartments, only one two-bedroom ($1,700/month) and two three-bedroom apartments ($2,250/month) are unoccupied after just 10 months.

"People want to be by the action, near restaurants and entertainment," Koster says. "Most of the people at the Gallery work or go to school downtown. We have a lot of Cooley Law students, people who work in or go to school on the Medical Mile, and people who have relocated from Colorado and Chicago."

Residency at The Fitz is "much more diverse than we would have expected," he says, "with investors, retirees and young people."

"We continue to see the demand for housing downtown," Koster adds. "I think it's exciting that people continue to want to be downtown and live downtown."

For more information on Gallery Apartments, click here.
For more information on The Fitzgerald condominiums, click here.

Source: Nick Koster, CWD Real Estate Investment
Writer: Deborah Johnson Wood, Development News Editor

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