[Halifax] The Governor (1451 Hollis) | 26 m | 7 fl | Completed

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by IanWatson

Yeah this development was originally approved with something like 40+ units and the developer went back and got approval to reduce the number to 12. So these units are at least three times bigger.

I'm glad to see the very high quality of construction here, but I do wish it included more units, even if smaller. Given the footprint, 12 units isn't that much more density than a row of townhouses here would be, which does feel like an underuse of such a central location.

[LikesBikes]

Absolutely. I think it's an attractive building too but given its location and the housing crisis you'd think the city would have pushed for more units. It's good to have large apartment units downtown but I imagine the rent for these bad boys is going to be astronomical.

[kzt79]

Originally Posted by LikesBikes

Absolutely. I think it's an attractive building too but given its location and the housing crisis you'd think the city would have pushed for more units. It's good to have large apartment units downtown but I imagine the rent for these bad boys is going to be astronomical.

I heard over 12K/month for some units, and that was a while ago. This building will be full with a waitlist, Killam has done their homework and there is a market for large, nicely appointed units in this location.

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by kzt79

I heard over 12K/month for some units, and that was a while ago. This building will be full with a waitlist, Killam has done their homework and there is a market for large, nicely appointed units in this location.

I wonder who the market is for ultra-ultra high-end rentals? I'm a little baffled that someone able to pay nearly $150,000 a year in rent wouldn't just buy a place, and then at least have an asset as well. Perhaps in cities with a lot of globe-trotting super-rich it makes sense, but I don't imagine there's a ton of that in Halifax. (So maybe 12 units is the right number.)

[ScottCarrots]

Originally Posted by kzt79

I heard over 12K/month for some units, and that was a while ago. This building will be full with a waitlist, Killam has done their homework and there is a market for large, nicely appointed units in this location.

The word on the site, the top floor unit is $13k/month and is leased for 6 months. One of the commercial units on Level 1 is leased. But the rest of the units are still available.

[kzt79]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

I wonder who the market is for ultra-ultra high-end rentals? I'm a little baffled that someone able to pay nearly $150,000 a year in rent wouldn't just buy a place, and then at least have an asset as well. Perhaps in cities with a lot of globe-trotting super-rich it makes sense, but I don't imagine there's a ton of that in Halifax. (So maybe 12 units is the right number.)

At some point, renting becomes a lifestyle choice. You're paying for a service. If someone expects to move in less than say 5 years, doesn't want to deal with maintenance etc. they might choose to rent.

I've seen a lot of threads on a lot of forums go down the endless "rent vs buy" argument with people dug in on both sides. My personal conclusion is that if you're able to look at things objectively (e.g. don't compare a 2 bedroom apartment to a 4 bedroom 3 bath house with a garage), it's financially roughly even. Ownership tends to pull ahead in the longer term bc it functions as a sort of forced savings program, but if a hypothetical renter invested the difference (in the real world most can't or won't) in their lower monthly and up front costs, they should do equally well if not better. There are a lot of lumpy or hidden costs of ownership that people forget about or underplay that are amortized into rent. Obviously all kinds of human factors come into play on both sides, but in the end there's no free lunch. If there truly were a significant discrepancy, market forces should react. So it comes down to personal preference.

[kzt79]

Originally Posted by ScottCarrots

The word on the site, the top floor unit is $13k/month and is leased for 6 months. One of the commercial units on Level 1 is leased. But the rest of the units are still available.

That seems an oddly short term. I wonder if the unit is furnished or something? Granted I absolutely despise moving, so I might be biased. Hopefully they'd have an option to renew if they like the place!

[someone123]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

I wonder who the market is for ultra-ultra high-end rentals? I'm a little baffled that someone able to pay nearly $150,000 a year in rent wouldn't just buy a place, and then at least have an asset as well. Perhaps in cities with a lot of globe-trotting super-rich it makes sense, but I don't imagine there's a ton of that in Halifax. (So maybe 12 units is the right number.)

If you think of it more like a hotel the numbers make a bit more sense. Sounds like you can rent a huge apartment there on a medium term basis for $400 a night or so. Lots of companies do this for one reason or another. Governments might rent these spaces too. Plus there are wealthy people. This is actually nowhere near the high end of what you see in major cities.

A lot of people will go for whatever is "nicest in town" and if you build the fanciest apartments you get those customers, then when something newer is built the building moves down market.

It's good for the city to have a mix of units. I think it's kind of misguided to look at every development and imagine they could have been carved up to fit more people in. That's not really how it works. Some people will pay for certain kinds of developments and not others, and if there is nobody to pay then the building doesn't get built; there isn't a "default" of affordable housing. And if somebody wants to step in and build affordable housing there are plenty of sites.

[Dmajackson]

Halifax Developments Blog (Photo by David Jackson)

[Arrdeeharharharbour]

It appears the exterior is close to completion. It's a beauty eh?

20230606_115730_HDR by AJ Forsythe, on Flickr

20230606_115654_HDR by AJ Forsythe, on Flickr

20230606_115526_HDR by AJ Forsythe, on Flickr

[OldDartmouthMark]

Looks nice. It seems to have changed a bit from its original rendering, though.

[someone123]

Killam has put up some new photos: https://killamreit.com/new-developme...ax-ns/governor

[RoshanMcG]