From the Los Angeles Times:
Luxury condo tower in Century City is completed
Deluxe high-rise living is relatively new in Los Angeles, but more projects are targeting buyers in the top financial strata.
By Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times
July 24, 2010
The Art Deco-inspired Century City condominium tower expected to be the home of wealthy widow Candy Spelling and many other moneyed residents has been completed after nearly six years of planning, demolition and construction.
With high-rise living still rarer in Los Angeles than in other international cities, the dramatic 41-story Century on Avenue of the Stars is targeted at a sliver of home buyers willing to spend as much for a condo as they would for a sumptuous home in an exclusive neighborhood such as Beverly Hills or Malibu.
The Century is further challenged by hitting the market after one of the most painful housing slumps in history, which depressed prices at all levels including the top end. In recognition that times have changed, developer Related Cos. reduced prices as much as 25% on the building's 140 units.
A handful of other deluxe condominium projects have opened in recent months, chasing the same plump wallets.
"These kind of service-rich condos and townhouses have been around in New York and Chicago, but they're relatively new in L.A.," said real estate consultant Larry Kosmont, president of Kosmont Cos. "It's really hotel-quality five-star living."
The developer stopped marketing the Century as the recession took hold, said Susan de Franca, president of sales for New York-based Related. In 2008, before the worst of the housing downturn, the company sold an upper unit for $15 million and the top two floors to Spelling for $47 million.
The prices, exceeding $2,700 per square foot, were a record high for Los Angeles-area condos. Related has since lowered prices for buyers, including Spelling, who committed to the building before the market turned, de Franca said. The reduced figures have not been disclosed.
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Luxury condo tower in Century City is completed