To push their properties in less-than-buzzworthy neighborhoods, some marketers are taking a page from new high-end developments that typically offer upscale amenities and tantalizing incentives.
Brokers are organizing transportation and parties to lure buyers to new construction on the fringes of Manhattan and just outside. They’re offering financial incentives and luxe toys like flat-screen TVs more commonly found in higher-end buildings.
At the Peninsula at City Place in Edgewater, N.J., the 201-unit condo conversion recently instituted a rent-to-own program. Tenants sign up for a year-long lease to try out the lifestyle. After nine months, anyone who decides to buy has the rent from this period applied toward a down payment.
One bedrooms go for $1,795; two-bedrooms are $2,525. Condo prices range from $420,000 for a one-bedroom to $1.075 million for three-bedrooms. About 10 deals, including several sales, closed during the program’s first three weeks.
“A development like this takes the lead from what’s going on in Manhattan,” said Cliff Finn, director of Citi Habitats Marketing Group. “First-timers who may be priced out of Manhattan want to buy, but they’re looking for value, and they want to test the market.”
Property tours and open houses are nothing new, but for the last two years, Brian Phillips at Prudential Douglas Elliman, a broker who specializes in Harlem, chartered mini-buses to shuttle between showcased properties. Taking place during the week, the tours mainly attracted brokers.
To build more buzz and attract buyers uptown, last month, Phillips rolled out a weekend Harlem Open House Tour Expo 2008. He chartered two buses to visit more than 40 condos and townhouses for sale.
“I’m trying to create a stir because people are more likely to make offers if they’re not the only one there,” he said.
Several participating developers offered refreshments and souvenirs to intrepid tour-goers, including wine and cheese at the Townhouse at 16 East 130th Street and an elevator ride to the unfinished 22nd floor at Fifth on the Park at Fifth Avenue and 120th Street. Observatory Place, at 110th Street and First Avenue, handed out green housecleaning products.
Several properties partnered with restaurants and businesses for promotions. At the Bridges NYC Condos at Third Avenue and 124th Street, the 10th visitor received a $75 gift certificate at Ricardo Steak House, on Second Avenue.
There are signs that modest incentives are working their way Downtown: 88 Greenwich Street invited prospective buyers to enjoy servings of champagne on Wednesday evenings, a party once limited to brokers; the Clement Clarke at 140 West 22nd Street has offered to pay a buyer’s city and state transfer taxes; and 206 East 95th Street put flat-screen televisions in every kitchen to make an impression on buyers, said JoAnn Schwimmer at DJK Residential.
“These things don’t necessarily help, but they can’t hurt,” she said. “People see so many apartments that they all tend to blend together, so it’s easier to remind a client about a place when you can say, ‘That’s the one with the TVs in the kitchen.'”