Welcome to Kami’s Korner where we’ll take a deep dive into Arlington’s condominium market by focusing on what’s coming next. From emerging developments to shifting trends, this space will spotlight the opportunities and insights shaping the future of condo living in Arlington.
I had the pleasure of attending the local Urban Land Institute’s Building Healthy Places Summit this week at Georgetown University. Our region benefits greatly because the ULI Global Headquarters is here in DC. More info about this fantastic organization here: https://washington.uli.org . As a longtime member of ULI, I am continuously curious about the places that “thrive beyond the 9-5” and what is required to create active and economically vibrant neighborhoods in Arlington.
This includes a strong employment base, growing residential population, restaurants, entertainment, walkability, reliable transportation, mixed use development, safety, parks, and services that support daily life. In Arlington, we have a few of these exciting environments such as Clarendon and Shirlington, maybe Ballston, Columbia Pike, and Crystal City.
There is a new high-end condominium district emerging in Rosslyn centered on Gateway Park which will transform Rosslyn into more of an 18-hour city. As much as we like Rosslyn, it’s not there yet, but with three new communities coming, it’s the area that will see the heaviest influx of new condos in the next cycle. Residents are looking for an experience in their neighborhood.
Rosslyn is at an inflection point and with early renewed economic confidence, a micro-district surrounding Gateway Park is emerging. The condominium market has suffered a one-two punch and has yet to return to normal. The real estate development world was hit with COVID and brought the market to a standstill. I fondly call the current time period the “COVID hangover.” Let me explain.
It takes years to bring a new condominium to market including at least 1-2 years of entitlement and financing, 1 year of design, and 2 years of construction. If you count back 5-6 years, no one local was doing any of that with any real enthusiasm. Commercial markets then got hit with interest rates that roughly doubled, and then federal downsizing upset the situation.
Arlington is well poised for the return of luxury condos. It’s the second most educated city (behind Cambridge, Mass.) in America with 77% possessing college degrees. All the capital wealth makes 22207 the 36th most expensive zip code in the US with a median home price of $2.6M. Virginia is in the top 10 of US states for millionaires (roughly 275,000 or 8% of the residents). What do these people expect in the urban environment?
The next 3 luxury condo projects will all be overlooking Gateway Park, the new social epicenter of Rosslyn. To understand the effect this has today, just go visit Columbus Circle or Meridian Hill in DC. The parks are beautiful and safe again. Residents are visiting, smiling, taking pictures, enjoying the weather, lingering for longer, spending money, socializing, and proud to be there.
I, for one, can’t wait to witness the transformation. It will be a few years in the making and I’m here for it. Gateway Park is the connector for the next luxury condo district coming to Rosslyn in Arlington and it should produce an area that will “thrive beyond the 9-5.”
Do send along your questions, inquiries, and design preferences for the next generation of condominiums to our market. My personal email is: [email protected]
