Comments on: For sale: The Blairs

By: shell

shell — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 11:10:08 +0000

I live at the Blairs and we recently got a memo stating that the Blairs were no longer for sale and would remain under the ownership of The Tower Company. We were invited to a breakfast to celebrate this news.

Forget the breakfast.... fix my apartment!

Editor's note: Thanks, Shell. The Penguin newsroom got the same memo. -- JD (Mar 18, 2008)

By: Iloveyuppies

Iloveyuppies — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 18:02:04 +0000

Darn Pennster, you got edited. Bad boy.

By: Pennster

Pennster — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 14:46:45 +0000

I thought many of the Blairs buildings had been renovated in the last few years already (aside from the new construction). The whole Blairs property could probably use the demolition of a building here or there with a newer, smarter arrangement of buildings, parks, and parking lots.

Note: This comment has been edited for content (Jul 3, 2007).

By: Jennifer Deseo

Jennifer Deseo — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 22:41:00 +0000

Hello all!

Here are a few guidelines to play by when commenting on this blog:

Stay on point. Take your personal gripes somewhere else.

That's all. Thanks!

By: Iloveyuppies

Iloveyuppies — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 21:20:16 +0000

While I haven’t seen the report, the 30% below the ‘going rate’ is probably referring to the property’s potential. For example, if the building and apartments were renovated and brought up (as close as possible) to new construction finishes and amenities, that the owner could reasonably increase rents by about 30%.

It doesn’t mean that The Blairs could increase rents by 30% on their existing product.

It could also be referring to rent increases for existing residents who may be paying far below current market rates (down market or not). If they are paying 30% below market, they would be hard pressed to move out and find something similar for less rent.

By: IHateYuppies

IHateYuppies — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 20:37:49 +0000

Funny how Pennster lectures about language when he hurled the “F” word at me in a Silver Spring Scene blog comment. That was completely uncalled for by the way. Perhaps, if some people demonstrated some maturity with internet message posts, then we would have more civil exchanges.

By: Jennifer Deseo

Jennifer Deseo — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 16:54:18 +0000

Play nice, people.

By: Pennster

Pennster — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 15:33:27 +0000

A) Watch your language. B) You complain about apartment rates changing, IHateYuppies, and sound like you’d like the county to somehow subsidize more and more, which you would probably also complain about. I guess unfortunately for you, the yuppies are moving into the downtown Silver Spring area. But they’re just renting, not buying condos.

By: Blairs

Blairs — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 13:54:32 +0000

I actually live in the Blairs and, with regard to the expensiveness/inexpensiveness of living there, for the area, I think the price is good. I pay on the order of $1400 for a one bedroom, which is fairly common around the downtown area. What makes it a ‘deal’ is that the price includes both utilities and parking, which other apartments charge extra for. Oh, and my rent is only going up $20 when I re-sign (~1% increase). Not too shabby. For the ideal location, I feel like the Blairs is the best deal around. (but I wish I had a washer/dryer!) :)

And I agree about MICA. They’re nice and everything, but you could buy a small home for the price of a two bedroom condo + fees. Definitely NOT for the moderate income.

By: SSS

SSS — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 20:54:22 +0000

Hopefully they’ll tear some of those buildings down are start new. If they try and convert all those buildings to condos like the Mica, we’re in trouble.