I was trying to get a feel for the rental market in downtown condos so I skimmed through the 6/25/06 Union-Trib’s rental ads.

Looks like $1300/mo is the low end of the market – that gets you a 1 bdrm condo.

$1800/mo lets you choose from several 2 bdrm units but most of the 2 bdrm units are $2200-2600/mo.

Then there are these:

> 2/2 in The Grande for $3600/mo
> 2/2 in The Grande for $3500/mo
> 2/2 in The Grande for $5500/mo
> 2/2 in the Rennaissance for $2950/mo
> 2/2 near Petco Park for $3000/mo
> 2/2 in the Pinnacle for $3000/mo
> 1/1.5 in the Meridian for $2600/mo

Are these $3000+ rents realistic? Are units actually renting at these prices? How long do they take to rent? Are people renewing leases at these prices or do they move out after the lease is up (high turnover rate)?

Here are rents in other areas of town that I am more familiar with:

> Mission Hills 3/2 Craftsman house with 3 car grg and fplc $3195/mo
> Mission Hills 4/4 house $3200/mo
> Mission Hills 2/2.5 house panoramic view $3500/mo
> Pt Loma 2/2.5 house panoramic view $3000/mo
> La Jolla 2/2 oceanfront condo $3500/mo (2 at this price)
> La Jolla 4/2 house with pool and fplc $2900/mo
> Mt Soledad 3/3 house with mountain & city views, gated community $3500/mo

I admit to being heavily biased against downtown condos but this quick review of the U-T rental section tells me that my bias is justified.

I can get more bang for my rental buck in other parts of town and I don’t have to put up with downtown traffic or homeless people using the bathroom on the side of the building that I am living in.