Comments on LOCAL.FranklyRealty.com Reviews: Phoenix Condos in Arlington Va Reviewed. Pros & Co...

Here is a recent email from a client that bought a...

2008-07-28T16:49:32.964-05:00

Here is a recent email from a client that bought at the Phoeniz a few months ago:
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Hi Frank!

Good hearing from you. I haven't heard anything about jacking-up the condos fee - but I would think they wouldn't want to brag about that - just hit us with it... :)

The firehouse doesn't really bother me... For me, it's all part of the noises of city life, but that's just me. If you client is a light sleeper, then they will get woken up. In regards to the decibel level, it really no louder than when you hear the siren in ANY part of Clarendon. The sound seems to echo through the area quite nicely... ;)

Personally, I really like it AND I'm not that fussy about things. I like it because of the area and I walk around quite a bit. Parking is fine, I've really not heard too many complaints there. There seems to be some discussion about Comcast and a poor signal, but the condo group is taking care of that. I wouldn't say it's quite a party complex though... I few people are trying to get things going - that might be part of being in a new building...

No problems with more questions if you got them!

Take care!

H

I looked at the Phoenix and other buildings in the...

2008-02-25T16:21:45.050-05:00

I looked at the Phoenix and other buildings in the area. Overall, the Phoenix has nice amenities and is ascetically pleasing in the common areas. The media room is a great addition and the club room is very nice. However, with these amenities come fees. I had to ask myself how often I would use these items when comparing this condo fee to other buildings. The fee seemed a bit high for a brand new building, meaning once it’s turned over to the HOA, they will go up.

I also had concerns about many of the units I saw. The furniture placement looked difficult and the builder placed components oddly, like the thermostat in the middle of what would be your media wall, in multiple units. The representative suggested using a flat-screen with an arm so the TV would cover the thermostat, but then you would have to reach behind to gain access. I liked the upgraded appliances, but those can easily be matched in another building.

Overall, the building had plusses and minuses, as would any property. I would suggest considering how you would place furniture and what is important in living style. That quickly led me to the decision that many units were not what I was looking for, but may work for others.

Word has it that the condo fee just went up from $...

2008-02-25T14:57:44.023-05:00

Word has it that the condo fee just went up from $510 to $522 fr the 2 bedroom. This is a normal annual increase.
But what I would want to know is if they have sufficient reserves and what will the condo fee jump after the HOA takes over.

It is common for the selling party to try to keep the fees down to make the property appear more attractive. But then the HOA takes over and they are like "Um, we can't do anything with this" and they are forced to jack up the rates, sometimes by 5-10%.

Don't just ignore condos with high fees. Just account for those fees. If one condo is $100 more per month, ask your lender, "What would that $100 per month buy me in a mortgage (spending power)"

I bet you will find that $100/mo is $1,200 a year. That is about $20,000 in buying power (at 6%).

Also if you compare a condo to a townhouse, if that townhouse is $100,000 more, but $500 less per month, that equates to the same buying power. You should NOT compare a $500k condo to a $525k townhouse. The Townhouse will probably be a better "value."

It is all about VALUE, not price.

Currently living at the phoenix is a very nice exp...

2008-02-21T21:59:05.402-05:00

Currently living at the phoenix is a very nice experience. While there are no monument views, there are some excellent units for the prices they are offering.

Hi Frank, On Saturday Eddie and I went to an open ...

2008-02-19T19:21:35.817-05:00

Hi Frank,

On Saturday Eddie and I went to an open house at the Phoenix and were not impressed at all.

In fact the opposite as it seemed like the architect made a lot of sloppy decisions which in our mind created a fault with each unit and given the high prices and condo fees we aren't considering buying there (such as kitchen islands that don't come out far enough to put a stool under, a bit support beam in the middle of the living area which resulted in a separation between the eating and living room areas but each area on its own was too small to be very user-friendly given the location of the support beam, lots of other little things but I remember those two off hand).

Thanks for the blog

Kathy

Frank, you mention Zoso in your post. Didn't one ...

2008-02-15T00:02:48.219-05:00

Frank, you mention Zoso in your post. Didn't one of your neighbors in 1021 buy a high-end Zoso unit and pour in tons of money for upgrades? How'd he deal with it going "non-condo"?