A NEW CONDO CRAZE IN DC?

Is the office condo market the next big thing downtown?

That's the betting of developers and brokers who brought together a capacity crowd for lunch at the City Club earlier this month to describe three such projects they’re undertaking.

CB's Bruce Pascal, above right, told them that currently out of 1100 buildings downtown, there are only 4 or 5 office condos, but that he sees it as the "next wave for DC brokers." Joining him in describing their projects were, from left, Lincoln Property's Ed Gilpin and Akridge's Gene Kenney.

The theory is that selling individual units in buildings will make office space a far easier option for many purchasers—not only smaller businesses, but even big trade associations and firms that have shied away from buying whole buildings because it’s too big and risky an item for their balance sheet. And, that this is a way for them to lock in both space and equity in an era of rising rental rates and building prices. Not so different from the logic about residential condos, of course, except that residential condos are overbuilt whereas office condos barely exist.

J Street Development's Bruce Baschuk, above left with CB’s Art Santry, has taken on his first office condo project at 111 K, NE, which is being marketed by Bruce Pascal. Because the two Bruces are new sponsors of ours, we are pleased to provide further detail on their offering in a special section to the right.

Also on hand, Summit's Guy D'amecourt , Lincoln's Jamie Connelly, Randall Hagner's David Smith, and CB's Harry Dematatis.