Last night's news about a new condo project in the Mill District of Minneapolis raised several questions.
The most frequent question from readers: What will the condo units cost?
Unit prices were not listed in the early documents published by the City of Minneapolis Thursday evening. And as of early Friday afternoon, the developer, Shamrock Development, had not returned phone calls we placed. But Shamrock has built several condo buildings recently in the same area of Minneapolis -- known broadly as East Downtown -- that offer some guidance.
In 2014, Shamrock completed Stonebridge Lofts, located next door to the new project, which is being called The Legacy. Most of the 164 units at Stonebridge Lofts sold before the building opened. I found an old listing (from when it was still under construction) for a 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom unit on the 7th floor for $637,900. A more recent listing for a corner unit with two bedrooms, one full bathroom and one partial bathroom was being marketed for $849,000. Both units were between about 1,500 and 1,800 square feet.
Meanwhile, Shamrock is currently selling condos at the 17-story Portland Tower, which is under construction on the northwest corner of Portland Avenue and 8th Street S. The units range from $300,000 to $850,000, according to its marketing website.
Shamrock, led by Jim Stanton, usually sells his condos for lower prices than other developers because of its cost efficiencies, said Joe Grunnet, a realtor with Downtown Resource Group.
"Jim's projects have typically sold for $350-plus per square feet," Grunnet said. "Most developers won't even consider building condos without asking $400 a square foot."
He estimates a two-bedroom, two-bathroom unit in this new project will start around $350,000, topping off with penthouse units from $700,000 to $1 million, depending on layout and views.
It's unclear how much location and changing market conditions will impact the prices for The Legacy.
