Bringing the Good Life Downtown

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Downtown Trends

Imagine purchasing two penthouses in downtown San Diego and removing walls to create a 4,400-square-foot Tuscan villa situated inside an ultra-urban condominium. That’s just one example of the effort condo buyers make to bring their affluent lifestyles downtown.

“At this level of the market, people just do what they want,” says Jaimi Julian Thompson, president and owner of San Diego’s Artisan Design Studio. She has seen the cost of downtown condominium project changes and additions ranging from $10,000 to $250,000. Her firm offers a number of services for homeowners and developers, including design consulting, home furnishing, pre- and post-closing construction options and urban expertise.

Thompson sees a number of trends for the second-home market in downtown San Diego. Many renovations involve electrical and lighting changes. Condo dwellers also insist on keeping their space more open and flexible. They use decorative glass as an accent and decorative glass panels as room dividers.

“We help our clients understand what goes into an urban environment,” she says. “They want options. Developers work hard with the builder to provide customization features.”

She believes that the frenzy has slowed down. Those who now buy condos downtown now, Thompson says, do so to enjoy and live in them rather than flip them for sale. “It’s a better-quality buyer,” she says.

Downtown living also requires most condo owners to downsize to a smaller space. Stania Rensberger, a professional organizer in the area, works with people who need assistance in downsizing for condo living. If a couple is moving from a 3,000-square-foot home to a 1,200-square-foot downtown condo, they need to realize it can accommodate only 40 percent of their belongings, she says.

Rensberger suggests buyers come downtown before they move and try to visualize what they will do there. She says they need bring only what will support that lifestyle.

“If I talk to people before they move downtown, they can prepare,” she says. “If not, they are overwhelmed in the condo.”

Gina Freize and her husband downsized from their 2,600-square-foot home in Sacramento to a two-bedroom condo half that size in Horizons in January 2003. They held a massive garage sale before the move and sold almost everything, giving them money to buy new things, says Freize.

“We found this the perfect opportunity to simplify and redecorate,” she says. “It has been really refreshing to simplify. We’re on a strict ‘something comes in, something must go out’ system when it comes to purchases.”

Attracting Out-of-State Owners

Many people from other states purchase second-home condos in downtown San Diego. Steve Love and his wife, Nancy, bought a one-bedroom, two-bath condo in Horizons while he worked as a court executive officer in San Diego. For three years he lived in the condo during the week and in their Scottsdale, Arizona, home on the weekend.

“For the most part, I lived in the condo by myself,” Love says. “I’m not sure we could live in that space full time—it’s a little tight at less than 1,200 square feet.”

This is in contrast to their Arizona lifestyle, living in a large home on a golf course. Ever since Love retired to Arizona full time, they make an effort to go to San Diego in the summer.

Sam Taylor and his wife purchased a 1,100-square-foot downtown condo in Sapphire Tower. They sold their 4,200-square-foot home in the Canadian Rockies and plan to move to San Diego full-time. They own another home in Calgary and beachfront property in Belize. At this point they expect to sell the Calgary home and live in San Diego and vacation in Belize.

Taylor says they have given their three kids lots of their antiques. It’s hard, he says, because you get attached to these things you really don’t need—like his 25 suits, when he uses only two a year.

“We didn’t think we needed any more space than 1,100 square feet,” he says. “If we’re going to downsize, let’s downsize!”

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