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Condos in Philadelphia-Any closet is a walk-in closet if you try really hard

By Mark Wade

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 22Aug2008 Word count: 650 Viewed: 414 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

Space can be at a premium, and certainly at a premium price for a number of Philadelphia condominiums. Be it a Rittenhouse Square condo, or an Old City loft. It certainly begs the question: Which is more important to you - an oversized bedroom, or additional closet space? Do you want a larger kitchen or perhaps a larger living room?

I don't mean to be a big brain here, but I have seen a lot of architects really mess up an otherwise great floor plan with out-of-proportion room sizes. I mean there is one new building in town where the studio units, in a nice 600+/- sq. ft. new construction condo, have a kitchen the size of what you might find inside the Hearst Mansion. It was SOOOO stupid. First of all, consider your audience here - you think anyone who can fit into a 600 sq ft condo is going to have more pots and pans than say Rachael Ray? I don't think those buyers have a great need for an overabundance of kitchen cabinets. Do these young urban buyers even know HOW to cook? Come on. These buyers are 23 year old urban professionals who, at best, know how to reheat a "Hot Pocket". And the living room in this particular unit could barely hold a full sized couch with a few other pieces. And the bathroom was huge, with wide open expanses of tile flooring, with a pedestal sink. Smart. Real Smart.

The one thing I know that people have in their lives is an excess amount of crap. Things we don't use, but don't want to throw away. The attachment may be sentimental, or for supposed future use, EVERYONE I know who lives in a Philadelphia condo could use more closet space for the physical baggage we carry through life. And if there is one thing that most developers seem to miss the boat on is the amount of available closet space in almost all condominiums in town.

After listening to buyers for the past nineteen (19) years, I can attest to the overwhelming desire for buyers to have adequate proportioning to their Center City condo, and especially in terms of closet space. I was really impressed with the 1200 sq ft condominiums at Dockside down on the Delaware River, with two walk-in closets, and additional closets throughout the condo. That building is the exception, in my experience, rather than the rule as far as closet space is concerned. I was in another newer construction high rise building here in Philly the other day (you'll have to guess which one) that had a two bedroom, moderate sized unit for over three quarters of a million, that had limited closet space, but a HUGE oversized master bedroom. That particular room could easily have been carved up to include a second, sensational walk-in closet. But the space was lost on the masses, and the unit remains on the market, nearing two years and counting.

Compensating for the lack of good space planning, I have heard sales spin "of perfect living bliss" inside this or that new condominium project here in Center City Philadelphia . The oversized bathroom allow for furniture (again, no thank you), or excessive cabinetry can be used as storage space of other items. Like shoes. Ick. And you may be told that closet space really doesn't matter, and that any closet is a walk-in closet if you try really hard. But try telling that to yourself when you are looking for a place for your skinny jeans, your families' china, or your boxes of college memorabilia that you can't seem to part with after eighteen years. Space is indeed at a premium in condos in Philadelphia, and I have yet to meet a walk-in closet that was thought to be too excessive, or to impractical.

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