Jump to content

The Vue

cooperdawg

By cooperdawg
in Charlotte

 Share

Recommended Posts

jandea Crossroads

jandea

Posted
Posted

Maybe I'm expecting too much here but I can't understand why nobody seems to know anything definite about the situation at the Vue. It would seem that the developer would have to give out some information, at least to the people who bought into the project. Is everybody completely in the dark?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 2.6k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

Popular Posts

turbocraig
turbocraig

And on another note, how many more decades do we think the “VUE Now Leasing” sign will remain on the south facing side at the top?  They’ve really gotten their money’s worth out of those banners. 

SgtCampsalot
SgtCampsalot

I had a conversation just a few weeks ago where I learned that that specific banner cost somewhere around $30k.

daviddocusen
daviddocusen

Just saw this thread...not sure if anyone is still on this one. We had the fire station under contract for over six months with plans to move forward with a coffeehouse/venue called Ebenezer's Coffeeh

Posted Images

QC-NC Unincorporated Area

QC-NC

Posted
Posted

I think one of the other posters pointed out that this was previously planned (prior to the stoppage)... I believe that crane was lower than the other and wasn't needed.

Thanks for that clairifier dbull75.

I swear all this drama uptown is going to drive us crazy! Guilty myself, this stuff is all getting in our heads and messing with our confidence...quite the mood change from our previous swagger of "the Dubai of the South" - where any and everything can and will be built... <_<

So any VUE contracted buyers hear any news yet?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
dubone Megalopolis

dubone

Posted
Posted

I heard a rumor today while on the Uptown Living Showcase from someone who plausibly could know. He confidently expressed that a new investor was found for the Vue that would allow them to work out their issues with the construction loan.

I sure hope that proves true. I must say, though, that I am surprised that the Vue pulled out yesterday from participating. To me, their non-participation is a possible sign that that rumor is not true, unless they figured they'd spare themselves the need to explain their on hold status until they were prepared to make an announcement.

Time will tell, but I was very heartened to hear that, and the source spoke with convincing confidence.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/123/story/986836.html

Wow. My source was dead on. Including the part about an announcement in about a week. I am beyond ecstatic as I had started to question this rumor when I didn't see anything last week.

I was walking by today after a week away at the beach and was just kind of depressed at the thought it would sit in repose for a long time. Now pretty much, the outside will be done by year end and the units will be done next year!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
atlrvr Metropolitan Area

atlrvr

Posted
Posted

Also, the loan terms could stipulate that x% of units had to be sold by some milestone, and if they didn't, they could be in technical default. If this is the case, the bank has an out (they could foreclose), but honestly, as I mentioned before, I don't see a strong case to foreclose. BofA only needs to look at The Park to realize that they would get far less than 50 cents on the dollar. I'm guessing the BofA is holding them hostage to raise more money somehow to limit their risk. I obvously don't know about the MCL's inner workings, but possibly they could offer some other project as additional collateral to the bank to get the money flowing again, though this obviously wouldn't be ideal, as the bank would require collateral at a substantial premium to whatever additional amount they would lend.....but if you're the developer, what are you going to do? Probably not walk away from $80MM of personal and investor money, if you can help it.

Apparantly, this is almost exactly what happened. Anyway, good to see things resolved for the time being.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
2hearts Crossroads

2hearts

Posted
Posted (edited)

Assuming there was some kind of default in the loan agreement the bank probably had an opportunity to improve the terms of their deal with the developer. This could have included stronger guaranties, additional collateral, and an interest rate floor (the construction loan was probably libor plus a spread now paying the bank only 2-3%) of 5-6%. They may have also agreed to include closing benchmarks to assure the bank that they would be more agressive with pricing. All of this will probably serve to create much more urgency on the part of the developer to get units closed. If the developer is wise he will be very proactive with the existing buyers about offering them generous discounts in order to minimize walk aways. One way or another they're going to have to face the reality that the world has changed since the original pricing for this project was established. At this point, developer profits are very likely not going to materialize and in order avoid losses of equity and loan the developer should be swift to lower prices 20-25% for existing and new buyers alike enough to convince all of them that the initial cut is going to be sufficient to get all the units closed. Otherwise, IMO the smart money will sit on the sidelines and wait to purchase at a discount after the intial wave of (old contracts) overpriced units close. Again, if the developer tries to wrestle these old contracts to the closing table (at existing pricing) that will make it very difficult to make any new deals at current market pricing between now and several months beyond the opening of the building. This would mean forgoing as much as a year of time to court new buyers.

Also, I disagree with the comparisons to the Park. That project was a disaster from the getgo. It was clearly conceived by an inexperienced team and this was apparent in almost everthing about the project from floorplans, to amenities and exterior appearance. All of this quirkiness makes that project at risk of being functionally obsolete from the outset. And that's before consideration of all the risks associated with getting it out of construction moth balls. BoA would have had little trouble finding another developer like Related or Cousins willing to step into complete the Vue, especially at a reduced basis that would have enabled them to offer class a luxury condos at steep discounts. Again, I suspect MCL realized this and renegotiated loan terms and committed to be more aggressive with their pricing strategy.

Edited by 2hearts
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.