Publication: San Francisco Business Times
Date: February 13, 2014
KB Home plans to build its second San Francisco project at 2655 Bush St., 81 condos with 3,800 square feet of retail in Lower Pacific Heights. The project is slated for a six-story, luxury building that the developer expects to complete in January 2015.
Condos have been selling briskly in San Francisco, with only about 80 new units available at the moment, according to condo marketing and research firm the Mark Co.
KB Home bought the Bush Street site from Ares Management LLC. Construction, led by contractor Midstate Residential Construction Inc., has already started on the project. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“The acquisition of Bush Street demonstrates the successful execution of KB Home’s ongoing growth initiatives in the Bay Area, and serves to further establish our home building presence in San Francisco,” said Chris Apostolopoulos, president of KB Home’s Bay Area division. “KB Home is committed to building the highest quality homes in choice locations, KB Home, with regional headquarters in San Ramon, is also building a nine-story, 74-unit building at 72 Townsend St. in the South Beach neighborhood, a site the developer bought last summer.
The developer is now selling units in 15 communities in Northern California stretching from Dublin to Hollister. It’s projects tend to be single-family or attached townhome style developments. Apostolopoulos told the Business Times that the firm also has expertise in high-density projects and wants to do more infill condo projects in San Francisco.
The Bush Street development, on a 0.75-acre site, was entitled by Thompson Dorfman and designed by KTGY Group Inc. The project was under construction as of last month, according to news reports at Curbed SF.
Thompson Dorfman, which partnered with Ares Management on the development, envisioned the property for an apartment project, but then made an off market deal to sell the site to KB Home, said Brett Betzler, a broker with Moran & Co. who represented the buyer in the deal.
“We had reached a point in the market when condo prices were quite high, so I thought this project could do really well as condo,” Betzler said. The deal made sense for KB Home since it was ready to start construction.
Units in 2655 Bush will range from one- and two-bedroom with an average size of 1,080 square feet. Amenities in the project will include a gym, rooftop common areas, community gardens, and a gated garage.
KB Home did not specify prices for the units, but new condos have been selling for about an average of $1,050 per square foot in San Francisco, according to recent data from the Mark Co. Read our story from yesterday about booming condo prices.
If KB Home’s pricing follows the average, the Bush Street condos could sell for upwards of $1 million per unit.
