Land Lease in Arlington - does it kill the deal?

Land Lease in Arlington - does it kill the deal?

Real Estate Agent · DC, MD and VA · Member since 2019 · 21 posts · 27 votes

Hey BP Community! Thanks in advance for reading and any comments/opinions.

I see an opportunity for a deal but am pretty confident that it does not make sense. In general, I am looking to buy and hold and rent out property while also looking for a place to live. I live in Northern Virginia where the home prices are very high, but I have been seeing that in Arlington there is one building, 2 stops from the metro, with amazing views of the National Monument and into DC, that is just ridiculously cheap. I look into the building to find out that they are co-ops and that the entire community is on a land lease that has no renewal clause. This is where I know I need to be done looking at the properties and to move on as when the land lease expires, technically you lose all ownership in the building and I would lose any value that the units hold. That being said, for some reason, I can't stop thinking about them and looking for some magical opportunity that others arent seeing. 

They rent for 1% (more or less) of their list price, but I found a set of 4 that are all being sold by the same investor that have sat on the market for 50 days (unheard of in this area). He is trying to coordinate all 4 of the units to close around the same date - so I imagine they are having a hard time finding 4 parties that would all agree/be that flexible. This is where I see some opportunity to make a bundle offer and get all 4 at a discount. If I could write an offer, get them all at a steal, and then earn more than 1% on rent it makes the deal very attractive. The listing agent also has in the listing remarks that the current owner is trying to sell them to do some 1031 exchange, so I imagine there is some eagerness to sell. 

A part of me, and this very likely could be wishful thinking, has a hard time believing that someone, the city government, the state government, the co-op association, etc isnt going to step in and find a solution for this land lease situation. Is this worth the gamble/risk? Is there opportunity here that I'm not seeing that others can help me to see, or can someone throw a bucket of cold water on me and tell me that I could buy these 4 units for $500,000 and lose all my equity when the land lease expires in 2052, OR I could be sensible and put my time and money into something that has a 1% return AND that will have "guaranteed equity" when everything is all said and done?

Thanks everyone! 

0Reply
70 views

Most Popular Reply

Russell BrazilBusiness Member
Moderator
Real Estate Agent · Washington, D.C. · Member since 2012 · 17k+ posts · 30k+ votes
7y

You are referring to Riverplace. I wouldnt touch that building.  Also the question bears asking, do they even allow rentals? Most coops do not.  Theres more than a price/rent ratio here too, as you have excessive coop fees on them, in part due to it being a land lease.  When that lease expires, the value of your asset can go to zero, or the owner of the land can jack up the land rent to astronomical amounts, causing those coop fees to explode more.

Theres a reason Riverplace units are as cheap as they are.

See this reply in the discussion

4 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Russell BrazilBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Real Estate Agent · Washington, D.C. · Member since 2012 · 17k+ posts · 30k+ votes
    7y

    You are referring to Riverplace. I wouldnt touch that building.  Also the question bears asking, do they even allow rentals? Most coops do not.  Theres more than a price/rent ratio here too, as you have excessive coop fees on them, in part due to it being a land lease.  When that lease expires, the value of your asset can go to zero, or the owner of the land can jack up the land rent to astronomical amounts, causing those coop fees to explode more.

    Theres a reason Riverplace units are as cheap as they are.

  • Russell BrazilBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Real Estate Agent · Washington, D.C. · Member since 2012 · 17k+ posts · 30k+ votes
    7y

    And what is expected in 2022 when now they will be within 30 years of their land lease ending, and you can no longer get a 30 year loan on the units, prices are expected to drop dramatically at that point.

  • Realtor · Washington, DC · Member since 2018 · 166 posts · 88 votes
    7y

    They can definitely be rented - no issue with that, some are being sold as rentals.

    Besides the lease, the other issue is that an approved lender told me investors need to put down 40% and she only had 5/1 or 7/1 arms available. If you are financing, what will the lender do for an investor?

  • Real Estate Agent · DC, MD and VA · Member since 2019 · 21 posts · 27 votes
    7y

    That's the one @Russell Brazil, and thanks for the input. Rentals there are allowed, but everything you bring up is very important. It's an interesting case study and I'll be watching to see what does happen at the 30 years left mark. 

    And thanks for your input too @Justin Lanciault

Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.