The City of New Westminster is about to start charging high-rise condominium developers a bonus formula of $25 per square foot for the extra space achieved through higher-density zoning, according to city planners.
The charge will apply only to new development applications this year and will be charged only on the extra space permitted, not to the entire building footprint.
There are now 14 new condo projects marketing in the Royal City and the supply of unsold units in high-rise projects exceeds demand, according to a study by Strategics, a Vancouver research firm that tracks the new condo market.
Sales have slowed over the past six months even as new projects came to the market, such as the 196-unit Trapp+Holbrook tower. There are now about 530 new and unsold high-rise units on the Royal City market. Prices for high-rise condos in New West average $534 per square foot, but some new projects are priced from $415 per square foot, Strategics found.
Vancouver-based Salient Group's Trapp+Holbrook tower on Columbia Street has 100 high-rise condos priced under $300,000.
For a complete report on New Westminster, see this month's Western Investor.
