National market report

Chicago

A slew of proposed high-rises could transform the Windy City’s skyline, much the way such towers are doing in New York. Chicago already has six “supertall” buildings, defined as over 984 feet, with the Willis Tower the tallest at 1,451 feet. Two more are slated to soon join the list: Vista Tower, a three-tower hotel/condo project that would top out at 1,144 feet, and 1000 South Michigan Avenue, a proposed 1,030-foot condo tower. Three more over 800 feet are in the works, including a residential tower at the mixed-use Wolf Point project that would be 950 feet, just short of supertall. Downtown Chicago land values have nearly doubled in the past three years amid a new construction cycle, Crain’s reported, and international investors’ interest in funding big projects is rising. China’s largest developer, Wanda Group, is partnering with Chicago-based Magellan Development Group on Vista Tower, designed by starchitect Jeanne Gang.  “Foreign capital is attracted to taller buildings and more iconic architecture,” David Carlins, Magellan’s president, told Crain’s. “An international investor wouldn’t come to Chicago to build a 35-story building.” The high-rise boom comes less than a decade after work on the Santiago Calatrava-designed 2000-foot-tall Chicago Spire fizzled amid the financial crisis. The  site today is a 76-foot-deep hole in the ground. The developer lost the property. to creditors in 2014.

South Carolina

Last month’s devastating floods in South Carolina renewed calls for better planning around mega-developments being built in the state’s lowest-lying region. Record rainfall inundated the state, hitting the Low Country hard, including areas north of Charleston where three subdivisions are under construction: Cane Bay Plantation, Nexton and Carnes Crossroads. These neighborhoods are expected to draw 75,000 new residents in the next two decades. Shopping malls and office centers are also being built on the site of former swamps and lakes. A surge in population flocking to the state for jobs with major employers like Boeing and Daimler AG has increased demand for housing. State officials are pushing to accelerate development in some of the most vulnerable areas. The South Carolina Legislature is considering at least a half-dozen bills to boost development and cut regulations protecting wetlands and rivers. “Development is occurring at a very fast pace, and trying to keep up with that pace — and doing it in a smart way — is a big challenge,” Elizabeth Fly, a coastal climate extension specialist, told the International Business Times.

Denver

Denver’s residential real estate market is decelerating, and it appears to be more than an autumn slowdown. The market for homes over $500,000 is cooling the most, with homes above that price point seeing steep price drops after just weeks on the market, according to Anthony Rael, chairman of the market trends committee with the Denver Metro Association of Realtors. Rael reviewed two-dozen listings over $500,000 and found about 20 had dropped their prices. Lower-priced homes are still selling fast but not as quickly as they did from February to June, according to the Denver Post. In the metro area, a typical single-family home spent 30 days on the market in September, a week more than in August. September saw 4,960 homes and condos sold across 11 counties, down 8 percent from August, the DMAR said. The median price of a single-family home fell to $340,000 in September, from a June peak of $360,500.

New Hampshire

Bedford and Nashua are hot. The two towns south of Manchester had the fastest-selling inventory and most views per listing in the state on Realtor.com for the first six months of 2015. “This has been a very good year,” said Maxine Goodhue, president of New Hampshire Realtors and an agent in Bedford. Goodhue is encouraging realtors to court millennials, who outnumber baby boomers and make up 32 percent of the market in the state. The Manchester-Nashua area has taken a stab at this demographic by catering to startups and has received national attention for its budding high-tech industry, according to the New Hampshire Union Leader. Jonathan Smoke, chief economist at Realtor.com, said the state’s tech sector and startup businesses are not only producing jobs but also the kind of households that immediately qualify for owning a home. “The fundamentals here look great,” Smoke said. Closed sales of single-family homes increased 10 percent in the first eight months versus the same period in 2014. The median sales price rose 5.3 percent to $241,115, New Hampshire Realtors data shows.

Danville, California

Lara Logan

NBA Hall of Famer and new St. John’s Red Storm coach Chris Mullin took a loss on his Mediterranean-style mansion, which sold for $2.59 million. The home — built in 1995 and purchased by Mullin for $2.78 million in 2001 — has a four-bedroom main house, a one-bedroom guesthouse and, of course, a basketball court. The 5,500-square-foot manse sports views of the rolling hills east of San Francisco. It also has four fireplaces, coved ceilings, hardwood floors and a swimming pool. 

Washington, D.C.

CBS chief foreign affairs correspondent Lara Logan sold her three-bedroom Tudor-style home for $1.8 million. Built in 1935 and updated over the years, it features oak hardwood floors, a master suite with a cathedral ceiling, stone tile patio and rectangular saltwater pool. Logan bought the three-story home in 2008 for $1.5 million. It’s been on and off the market since 2013. 

Napa, California

The price on the former home of late comedian Robin Williams has dropped $3 million to $22.9 million. The 639-acre estate has a working 18-acre vineyard and more than 100 olive trees, along with the 20,000-square-foot home Williams commissioned and nicknamed the “Villa of Smiles.” Built in 2003, it features five bedrooms, 10 bathrooms, a 12-seat indoor theater and climate-controlled wine and art storage. The master suite has a bridge that leads to a private tower overlooking wine country. There’s also a nine-stall horse barn, tennis court, hiking trails and a spring-fed fishing pond.