From its inception, the development of downtown condos appeared to me to be not much more than an investment tool for speculators and to some extent an urban second/third/fourth home retreat for the wealthy. I attempted to get in on the action during the early stages of construction, the days of waiting lists for units seen only in artists’ renditions, without any luck. I would have flipped quickly.

My gut tells me that downtown will feel more pain than most areas over the next 12-24 months as values drop. Purchasing downtown now may be one of the worst RE investments in SD at this time.