Location, location: the $75,000 Edmonton parking stall
There's nothing special about the 153-square-foot piece of concrete — except the price tag.
An unidentified buyer recently purchased a sub-penthouse condominium in the Ultima Condominiums highrise. But the condo, just one block south of Rogers Place, only included one underground parking stall and the owner wanted two.
He was able to obtain an extra stall — for $75,000.
That puts the price per square foot at $490.
Developers Westrich Pacific discovered the sale set an Edmonton record and sent out a news release to boast about it.
"I was shocked when I first heard that," said Richie Lam, co-CEO of Westrich Pacific. "We were selling the stalls in the beginning when we launched this project in 2012 for about $25,000 to $30,000."
It comes down to a simple case of supply and demand. There are very few extra underground parking stalls still available at the 33-storey building, so the price keeps increasing, according to the company.
"You're really paying for the location," Lam said. "A stall here versus a stall in Windermere is night and day. So it's the location that drives the price."
Real estate broker Robert McLeod said he wasn't surprised by the $75,000 price tag.
"I believe, in some of the new developments, you will see more of those sorts of dollar figures for parking stalls paid," McLeod said.
"Maybe that's not the new reality for every building, but in that area it doesn't surprise me."
Lam figures the high cost will become a benchmark for other new developments.
"It's good — good for Edmonton, just to let them know we're a big city."
