Roundup: SW Waterfront Redevelopment Gets New Blood, Google Gazillionaire Sells Loft

• May 27th 2010

by UrbanTurf Staff

Here’s a quick rundown of interesting real estate stories making headlines this week:

• The ambitious plan to overhaul DC’s Southwest waterfront is close to getting a much-needed boost as lead developer PN Hoffman has enlisted a new co-developer, Madison Marquette, for the $1.5 billion, 26-acre project. The deal between the two firms has been signed but finalization is pending the last of the due diligence, reports The Washington Post. If the project moves ahead according to the developers’ vision, Southwest will be transformed from DC’s forgotten quadrant into a waterfront gem with parks, promenades, a marina, three hotels, and 800 residential units — a big deal not only for Southwest but for the entire city.
   
• Notwithstanding national headlines to the contrary, would-be home buyers in many popular and even transitional neighborhoods in DC know that, at least locally, it’s a seller’s market these days. Tales abound of DC buyers’ attempts to acquire a home being thwarted by competitive offers and all-cash buyers. Evidently those frustrations are being felt in New York as well. New York Magazine has a piece on bidding wars in the city plus advice on how to avoid them.
  
  For our own coverage of the trend here in DC, see DC’s Housing Scarcity: Great for Sellers, Frustrating for Buyers
   

• Ah, to be a Google gazillionaire. A lead engineer at the company has put his spectacular 4,500-square-foot Tribeca penthouse on the market for $14.75 million. But you can ogle (oogle?) the photos for free!
   
• Mortgage rates fell ever lower this week as capital from around the world flooded into US Treasuries. If the trend continues, mortgage rates could break their record, which according to a report from Freddie Mac was set just six months ago, the week ending December 3rd. Back then, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.71 percent; this week it averaged 4.78.
   
• David Garber, author of the neighborhood blog And Now, Anacostia, has completed the rehab of a 100-year-old home in Historic Anacostia. Garber has been chronicling the experience on his blog, and tomorrow we’ll publish a story about the whole saga. See photos of his final product on Redfin, where it’s listed for $315,000.
  
  Also be sure to check out our recent profile of the Historic Anacostia neighborhood.

Finally, here are UrbanTurf’s three most popular posts of the last week in case you missed them:

1. The Neighborhoods of 2015
2. Unique Spaces: A Studio 27 Renovation on Capitol Hill
3. DC Area Home Prices Increase Notably Over Last 12 Months

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/roundup_sw_waterfront_redevelopment_gets_new_blood_google_gazillionaire/2110.