Interest in condos at new PNC high-rise strong despite economy
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Helen Hanna Casey, president of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, shows off the million-dollar view from the 22nd floor of The Residences at Three PNC Plaza, above. -
The Residences - Three PNC Plaza - the 26-story project has upscale condominiums located on floors 14-23 of the tower.
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It might be the ultimate nose bleed seat, and an expensive one at that. But it's also one gorgeous view.
From a condo on the 22nd floor of Three PNC Plaza, it will be possible, with the help of a pair of binoculars, to watch a Pirates game from the comfort of your living room, except perhaps for balls hit into the right field corner.
But a bird's-eye view of PNC Park isn't the only visual treat awaiting buyers willing to plunk down more than half a million dollars in the midst of a recession to purchase one of 28 condos for sale at The Residences.
It's a vantage point rarely found Downtown, except maybe for hot air balloon riders. Market Square, so familiar on the ground, becomes a tapestry of cobblestone and brick. Intricately carved lions' heads peer from the top of the Diamond Building at Fifth and Liberty avenues.
"When you live down there nobody even knows there are lions' heads or architecture there. When you live up here, you look at that stuff and say, 'Wow, that's really cool,'" said Rob Cicco, development manager for Oxford Development.
Howard Hanna, which is marketing the units for PNC Financial Services Group, hopes the views, along with top-of-the-line amenities, will sell people on the condos, which start at $514,500 and can reach $2.5 million to $3 million for an entire floor.
Standard features include hardwood floors, wool carpeting, granite counter tops, Toto plumbing fixtures, a wine refrigerator and floor to ceiling windows to soak in the views. Like the rest of the $200 million building, the units will have a green and sustainable design.
The one- to three-bedroom condos are being built on the west side of the new Fifth Avenue office tower and will run from the 14th to 23rd floors. The top floor will feature a penthouse that will span the west side of the building.
Howard Hanna plans to take sealed bids for the penthouse. Helen Hanna Casey, president of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, said the company was looking for "in excess of $3 million" for that space.
Despite the glum economy, interest in the condos has been steady since Howard Hanna first started marketing the units in late October-early November, Ms. Casey said.
So far, the realtor has secured five buyers with contracts "in various stages." The prices of those units ranged from $700,000 to more than $1 million.
The fact that Howard Hanna has been able to generate sales in the midst of the recession is "a very positive thing for us," Mrs. Casey said.
"Certainly it is a challenge," she added in a separate interview. "But I think it depends really on what you are selling. Certainly the high-end product, which is very specialized ... is different than a lot of the other condos you see."
The biggest worry for buyers has not been the size of the investment but concerns about being able to sell their existing home, Ms. Casey said. "I would say that's the bigger fear -- what's the timing going to work like."
Condo buyers will have access to valet parking and room service from the luxury 185-room hotel to be operated by Toronto-based Fairmont Hotels and Resort, which will share the same floors as the condos but on the east side of the building.
"You can choose as much luxury as you want," Ms. Casey said.
She expects interest -- and sales -- to increase once the Three PNC Plaza lobby is completed and visitors are able to take standard elevators to the top floors rather than the temporary one that now lurches its way up the side of the skyscraper.
During a recent visit, most floors had yet to be divided into individual units, the smallest of which will run about 1,297 square feet. There will be a maximum of three units per floor. A more finished product could make a difference in sales as well, Ms. Casey said.
The condos will be part of a building that will include the hotel, the new home for the Reed Smith law firm and PNC offices. Reed Smith is expected to start moving in by late spring or early summer. The condos should start being available by late 2009 and into 2010.
In addition to the condos, the building can meet U.S. Green Building Council-established Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Standards, or LEED, in its core and shell, the Reed Smith and PNC spaces and the hotel.
First Published April 10, 2009 12:00 am
