The Floridian Announces New Pricing As It Prepares to Re-enter the Market

• January 22, 2010

by Will Smith

UrbanTurf has learned of the new pricing at The Floridian, a 118-unit luxury condominium in the U Street Corridor. From the standpoint of other developments in the neighborhood, the prices are very low.

Looking at the pricing, the thing that jumps out the most is the starting price for a two-bedroom unit. Even without parking, $392,000 for a two-bedroom in a new building in this area is almost unheard of.

The Floridian

“We’ve changed the pricing structure to make it more affordable for the area and for new prospective purchasers,” said Michael Brodsky, founder of The Goldstar Group which recently acquired the project. “We are now well-positioned to meet the market.”

The FHA-approved Floridian consists of two eight-story towers at 919 and 929 Florida Avenue (map). Eighty-six condos will be available for the spring selling season, including studios, one-bedrooms, two-bedrooms and three-bedroom units. One-bedrooms average 750 to 900 square feet and two-bedrooms average 900 to 1,250 square feet.

The Floridian made news a few weeks ago when it was purchased by The Goldstar Group. Goldstar retained the original sales and marketing team, DC-based UrbanLand Company.

Sales are set to begin in the next 60 days.

23 Comments

1. In the know said at 10:27 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   Be wary of “starting at…” 

   the floridian has some really strange units.  i’m assuming those are the ones with the low price tags.

1. Lauren said at 10:34 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   What were the prices before the re-acquisition? This seems in line with the neighborhood to me - compare to the recent sales at the building across the street from this one. Not brand new, but just a couple years old and about the same as this.

1. Katie said at 10:43 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   Lauren,

   I have been looking in the area for awhile and haven’t seen any new two-bedrooms priced this low. Which building are you referring to?

1. Lauren said at 10:47 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   It’s at 2120 vermont- I don’t know if there are any currently on the market but this is one recent sale of a 2br under $400k: http://franklymls.com/DC7013494

1. Patty said at 11:01 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   Very low. This is good news for the area as a lot of new projects around U Street are down to having just a few units left.

1. Paul said at 11:05 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   I’ve seen a significant volume of 2BR selling this year for ~$425 with parking in the Mount Vernon Triangle area. Considering parking is worth ~$30K that is comparable to this pricing at the Floridian.

1. Gerard DiRuggiero said at 11:10 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   Best finishes in town!  Glad it’s coming back online…

1. Erin said at 11:24 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   The finishes and floorplans at this price can’t be beat—Plus, it is just around the corner from the Metro and all that U Street has to offer.  If you have not seen the Floridian, you will want to!

1. mattyillini said at 11:27 am on Friday January 22, 2010:

   Great prices, BUT what are the condo fees?

1. jonathan said at 12:04 pm on Friday January 22, 2010:

   It is nice to see such a great looking building come back on line in a neighborhood without a lot of available units. The prices look very reasonable for what they are offering!

1. annon said at 12:06 pm on Friday January 22, 2010:

   who the hell can afford this?

1. BD said at 12:36 pm on Friday January 22, 2010:

   Anyone know where their marketing material/website is?  I don’t see anything about it on the Urban Land website, although it was there previously.  Would like to look at the floor plans and building pictures again.

1. Janson said at 12:58 pm on Friday January 22, 2010:

   These are amazing prices. Too bad I already own a few blocks away. Puts a knot in my stomach. Not to wish anyone ill, but I hope the fees start from $500 for the studios and go up fast because otherwise these are a solid and frightening discount to what where the market is right now.

1. Lauren said at 1:11 pm on Friday January 22, 2010:

   @ BD, I couldn’t find anything listed on franklymls.com either.

   But I did find this small, but cute, house for just a little more than the 2brs:
   http://franklymls.com/DC7232191

1. Karen said at 8:21 am on Saturday January 23, 2010:

   “Starting prices” mean little. These are higher than their original starting prices, which you should have noted. Prices originally started at $299,000 for one bedrooms and from $349,000 for two bedrooms (its in the MLS), so these are actually higher. And sadly, Gerard and his team are much of the reason the project didn’t sell the first time around; they are inept and rude. I won’t bring clients there.

1. roots said at 1:05 pm on Sunday January 24, 2010:

   Agree with the posters here that have to see what exactly “starting prices”. These units will be gone by the spring with the way condos have been moving the last few months. Especially with the talk of the Howard U. project (condo development with a grocery store).

   As for the August sale of the unit in the Rhapsody that is referenced by Lauren, that price was basically negotiated at the “bottom” (if we can call it the bottom) so I’ll be interested to know if a similar deal is currently on the market.

1. Simon Landau said at 2:42 pm on Sunday January 24, 2010:

   Great to see Floridian is back on track and ready to go.  Hopefully these lower prices will attract buyers to the Floridian, which is right in the heart of the U Street excitement!

1. aj said at 12:08 pm on Monday January 25, 2010:

   these places look like cheap crap to me. I looked at them very briefly when I was on my home-buying search. I think the design and construction are pretty cheap and I wouldn’t put my money in these buildings.  they should be rentals, not condos. don’t be fooled by fancy finishes, the quality of construction is what matters.

1. Mike Kiefer said at 12:09 pm on Monday January 25, 2010:

   At 2120 Vermont Ave. there are currently 2 units that are under contract 2 bedroom 1 baths at $359,900 and $369,900 respectively as potential short sales. So using that info consider your options carefully.

1. Jen Angotti said at 1:14 pm on Monday January 25, 2010:

   The 2 bedroom at 2120 Vermont that sold for 379K was a short sale.

1. Citi said at 7:15 pm on Monday January 25, 2010:

   I looked at a two bedroom in the Floridian a year ago - they showed me two different floor plans.  The finishes very cool, as well as the amenities, but the spaces were very tight.  I was quoted between 385K and 425K, - one had a strange floor plan with an obstructed view (air-conditioning units), so the price was less.  If I was young and single in my twenties, I would have loved it.  They were very willing to negotiate.  I almost gave in to their persistent phone calls, but I’m glad I didn’t settle.  With the help of my realtor, I found a beautiful and very spacious 2-level condo near Logan Circle for less - it was a foreclosure.

1. Jesse Kaye said at 12:43 am on Sunday January 31, 2010:

   Its an interesting building.  I personally thing that the Florida colors may be best kept, well, in Florida (the same goes for the Solea Condominium too).  I have to say though that while the finishes are modern and clean and unique (with the original chalk marks on the bare concrete of the ceilings) the one main piece of the puzzle missing is one floor of retail.  Kady would have done much better with a developer retained bar or coffee shop or something to attract owners closer to the “edge” and Kady could have had long term recurring income.  The ratings for the Floridian Condominium are not as high as expected.  What do you think?

1. muncher said at 8:20 pm on Monday February 1, 2010:

   I called Urbanland, the Realtor for the Floridian condo and I was told only one of the small condo on the 5th floor is priced at 333K. The rest of the one bedroom start at 350K. I was told they are huge at 800 square foot but the fact that parking is no included makes the building undesirable. In this bad economy, buyers market, spending 35K for parking spot is insanity. From my understanding, they are hopping to sell out the whole building in a few months. I will definitely sign a contract in march and close out by early April but it won’t be in a place with no roof top pool and you have to spend 35k to buy a parking garage. The Shaw neighborhood is a great neighborhood but, the exact location of the Floridian is just terrible. It is located in a heavy traffic 9 street that connects to Floridia Ave and next to 9:30 club. Give me a break, just because you lowered one of your tiny one bedroom condo to 333k and two bedroom condo to 392K doesn’t make it fairly priced. Just remember we are in this rotten economy because of some real estate sells person who is really good in creating hypes and deluding people.