While the rent-to-own sales plan showed little momentum in many New York City developments recently, Downtown Brooklyn condominium Oro may be finding some success in the strategy. The 303-unit building at 306 Gold Street has sold 20 apartments through the rent-to-own program, according to Robert Scaglion, a senior managing director at Rose Associates, the building’s exclusive sales agent. Oro, which launched sales in February 2007, first began offering the rent-to-own option a year ago. TRD [more]

Northside Piers

From the December issue: With the market creeping back, developers now can start to figure out
what saved some of them from ruin. Rent-to-own programs likely won’t be
on that list.
The buzzworthy idea of 2008 seems to have produced little sales for
struggling condos during the depths of the recession. A few leases,
sure, but not the kind that turned into sales contracts.
Rent-to-own, which allows renters to put their monthly payments
toward the cost of buying their home, seemed like a way for developers
to turn renters into buyers.
Toll Brothers’ Adam Gottlieb, the project manager at the Northside
Piers condo in Williamsburg, said that while the strategy did bring in
foot traffic, a lot of the potential deals never materialized. [more]

Inside a unit at the Oro condominium

The Oro condominium in Downtown Brooklyn announced today that it will offer a rent-to-own program for interested buyers. Under the program, 50 percent or more of the monthly rent cost goes toward a down payment. The development, which slashed prices on its units by as much as 25 percent in October, has notoriously struggled with sales in the two years since it began marketing units. As The Real Deal reported in the December issue, approximately 12 buyers at Greenfield Partners’ Oro — at 306 Gold Street — are currently disputing their contracts. The building currently has approximately 40 percent of its 303 units
sold and is financially stable, according to Rose Associates, which is
marketing Oro. Robert Scaglion, senior managing director at Rose, said
that the program has been implemented in order to help buyers secure
financing for their purchase. “In today’s market, obtaining financing
is often the greatest hurdle,” Scaglion said. “Oro’s rent-to-own program gives buyers the flexibility of having a 12-month period to obtain financing, improve credit scores or make a larger deposit.” TRD [more]