The Melrose Collection, a new troika of condominium residences in West Hollywood, takes the … [+]
etco Homes
There are few more walkable nooks in Southern California than West Hollywood. WeHo is a dense, eclectic, highly connected enclave where being steps from retail, dining and nightlife is as central to the experience as palm trees and sunshine. And there have been few more ideal moments for this pedestrian-friendly district than the pandemic recovery stage, in which walking seems a much safer mode of transport than cramped buses and rapid-transit trains.
Fortuitously for their developers, a number of residential developments are being or have recently been launched in this distinctive niche at this unusual moment.
Among them: A mixed-use development at 9001 Santa Monica Blvd.; the 53-unit 1250 N. Fairfax Ave.; and the 123-unit 8555 Santa Monica. Gaining perhaps the most attention is The Melrose Collection, so named because the troika of urban communities comprising the collection are mere steps from West Hollywood’s iconic Melrose Avenue. The first unveiled, The Ainsley and The Addison, will together feature 77 luxury condominiums and townhomes, and are expected to be complete in fall 2020. They will be joined later by a third, The Alfred.
Customized for COVID
Developer etco Homes, a privately-held homebuilding company focused on boutique urban infill development, is like other developers in the bustling area betting on demand for wellness, space and local business support, all well-honed characteristics of WeHo.
The developer has given considerable thought to questions like how the public health emergency will shape public and communal amenity spaces, and how the walk down Melrose Ave. will be transformed over the months to come.
The Melrose Collection has responded to COVID by unveiling a number of features and services customized to the health-first needs of residents in this unprecedented era. They include “Wellness Comfort Stations” at community entrances and elevator banks, featuring gloves, wipes and hand sanitizing to ensure compliance with health guidelines. The Ainslie will also feature amenities privatization, so residents seeking social distancing can ensure safety while using the properties’ amenities or scheduled cleaning.
“With a walkable neighborhood and new construction homes topping the list of what buyers are looking for in this changing Southern California market, The Melrose Collection offers a rare opportunity for modern living in close proximity to West Hollywood’s most coveted retail and entertainment district, complete with locals’ favorite coffee shops, eateries, shopping boutiques and more,” says Afshin Etebar, etco Homes president.
“We’re excited to reveal our vision for these vibrant new home collections. Combined with the highest level of on-site concierge services and community amenities, these homes will grant residents the convenience of a connected lifestyle that grants access to the best that Melrose and West Hollywood have to offer.”
Pre-physical transaction
Intent on staying virus-free throughout the pandemic, buyers have shown strong enthusiasm about virtually transacting before physically touring the homes, says Bree Long, company senior vice president of sales and marketing. Among the tech-enabled services to which they’ve responded are virtual tours featuring video calls with brokers who forge rapport by guiding the tour and answering prospective buyers’ questions.
“Across our communities we’ve found our buyers are actually quite receptive to new ways of engaging with our sales teams and communities, despite the doom-and-gloom reports,” Long says. “We are seeing buyers actively transacting as their long-term goals and present opportunity outweigh short-term concerns over the impact of COVID-19.”
California, with its permanent and near-limitless buyers pool, may be better able to weather the storm of falling real estate sales – pegged by the National Association of Realtors at 18 percent month-over-month in April – resulting from COVID-19.
Says Long: “While no market is impervious to the bottom dropping out . . . buyers in this market know the demand for housing here isn’t going away, which means homes will continue to sell and pricing is likely to hold relatively stable while the rest of the world economy sorts itself out.”