Trend-bucking developers sell luxury at a discount

 Not every developer is aiming for a record setting price per square foot or the tallest residential buildings. Some trend-bucking developers are focusing on building moderately priced Manhattan apartments, without skimping on the amenities.

But this trend isn’t altruism. In Manhattan, where the going rate for new construction is about $2,500 a square foot, these builders are simply looking to undercut the competition, with apartments priced under $2,000 a square foot, according to the New York Times.

Most of these developers bought land at the nadir of the housing crise, and today their goal is to sell out buildings quickly instead of holding out for astronomical prices. For instance, Bazbaz Development, Fisher Brothers and BlackRock collectively purchased 101 West 87th Street in 2011 through a foreclosure. Since then they have renovated the building, adding amenities and enlarging the existing units.

“Our mantra was affordable luxury on the Upper West Side,” said Sonny Bazbaz, the president of Bazbaz Development. [NYT] –Christopher Cameron