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Published June 21, 2006 in the St. Petersburg Times, Neighborhood Times
Rentals to become affordable condos
By PAUL SWIDER
ST. PETERSBURG - Another apartment complex is converting to condominiums, but the owner in this case is aiming to serve those in need of affordable housing.
Jay Sterling of Seraph Development started last week to convert Lakeside Villas into condos on the shores of Jorgenson Lake near the main St. Petersburg library on Ninth Avenue N.
Not only has he priced the units from $102,000, he is also marketing to those seeking less expensive housing, helping existing renters to buy, offering help with closing costs, and donating a portion of every sale to All Children's Hospital's building fund.
"I feel very strongly about affordable housing," said Sterling, who moved here from Maryland about six years ago and has been accumulating property ever since. "People deserve to buy rather than rent, but there's just nothing out there."
Sterling bought the two 30-year-old buildings two years ago for $1.5-million. He said the property was in poor shape so others ignored it, but he thought it could be a worthwhile conversion. Since his purchase, he said he has remodeled the kitchens and bathrooms, as well as replaced all windows in the complex and refurbished the exterior.
There are one-bedroom and two-bedroom units for sale ranging from $102,000 to $159,000. Smaller units are 550 square feet while the largest are 900 square feet. The two-story concrete-block complex's 32 units are not fancy but are solid and safe, said Rachel Sartain, who is handling sales through Smith and Associates Realtors.
"We're interested in offering quality, not luxury," Sartain said. "We'd like to target the teachers and police officers and nurses and let them know there are some alternatives out there."
Sterling said about half of the units were empty at the time of conversion, but that he is aiming to not displace any of his renters. He has kept some units out of the conversion because tenants are using federal housing subsidies and Sterling felt they wouldn't be able to find any other place to move.
In other cases, and for all prospective buyers, Sterling is offering $2,000 in closing costs if they finance through his preferred lender, First Financial Associates.
"He knows I am going to qualify people," said Valarie Nussbaum, the mortgage broker with First Financial, who has discounted her services for the complex. "We're not trying to make a lot of money on these."
Nussbaum said she has arrangements through lenders and government assistance programs that could finance the low-end Lakeside units for as little as $650 a month, including the $130 maintenance fee.
Sartain said 13 units are vacant and on the open market. Two of the occupied units were purchased by existing tenants. Sterling said he is teaching his renters how to buy into the complex.
Sterling is also contributing $5,000 from every sale to All Children's Hospital's "Building Miracles" fund for its new development.
He said he is a twin and he and his brother were premature babies needing extra care, so he feels he should contribute for children's health care.
Sterling owns about 90 other rental units scattered in smaller complexes around the city, mostly downtown. He said he doesn't think any of those properties would be appropriate for an affordable condo conversion, but he may turn some units near Mirror Lake into a more upscale development. Sterling said he is always looking for overlooked properties like Lakeside that he could convert for affordable-housing clients, but there are fewer and fewer all the time.
"People are starting to discover St. Pete and they're driving up the prices of everything," he said.
