For these buyers, bigger is better

It had been a parking lot and, before that, back in the 19th century, the story goes, there were four buildings there, one of them a store.

But that was a long time ago. These days, no place in Center City and adjacent neighborhoods remains empty very long.

Since midsummer, the spot in question at 22d and Lombard Streets has been a construction site for three townhouses, with foundations for all three in and ready for framing crews.

The townhouse planned for the corner of South 22d and Lombard Streets is listed at $2.1 million. The two others will go for $1.9 million each, said Philly Living CEO Noah Ostroff, a broker with Keller Williams Real Estate in Center City, who is marketing them for the developer, U.S. Construction.

(Philly Living also is marketing U.S. Construction's BridgeView rental townhouses at Delaware Avenue near Swanson Street, he said, and is planning to work on future projects with the firm.)

Ostroff, also a developer, is no stranger to the neighborhood. His Lombard Estates, 11 townhouses in the 1800 block of Lombard Street, sold for $1 million and more beginning in 2013.

Then there was Rittenhouse Estates, 10 townhouses in the 1900 block of Lombard Street, which he said brought similar prices.

"All were sold pre-construction," Ostroff said.

Unlike those two sold-out projects and Walnut Estates, his latest at 22d and Walnut Streets (two of five townhouses have sold), the one he is marketing at 22d and Lombard has no name.

"It is only three homes," Ostroff said, laughing.

The lot was purchased in early 2015, he said.

"The plan was always to have three houses there, but the original proposal to have all the houses front 22d Street was shot down at zoning," he said.

Neighbors preferred the three to front Lombard Street and wanted them to be 38 feet tall rather than the originally proposed 42 or 43 feet, Ostroff said.

What is it about Lombard Street west of Broad Street that makes it attractive for development?

"In the last few years, this area of Lombard Street has become one of the hottest neighborhoods in the city," he said. "It is right on the border of Graduate Hospital and Rittenhouse Square, and a lot of people are eager to buy west of Broad Street."

What buyers here - young, two-paycheck professionals with families and empty-nesters from the suburbs - are looking for is new construction with two-car garages and living space ranging from 4,000 to 5,000 square feet.

"These buyers aren't satisfied with the typical 16-foot-wide rowhouse," Ostroff said. "They are willing to pay a premium for a bigger product."

The fact that the premium they will pay exceeds $1 million isn't news.

"Prices of $2 million in Center City barely existed a short time ago," he said. "One point five million dollars is the new $1 million and closing in on $2 million."

The latest three "redefine luxury in Fitler Square," Ostroff said.

Each of the 4,800-square-foot, elevator-equipped U.S. Construction homes has a split-level main living space, four bedrooms, 4 1/2 bathrooms, a home office/den, a finished basement with media room, and a full-floor roof deck with views of Center City, University City, and the Schuylkill, Ostroff said. All have pending 10-year tax abatements, too.

"The elevators come standard, as do the hot tubs and outdoor kitchens on the roof decks," Ostroff said.

His own townhouse projects also have elevators, but they aren't being included only because "empty-nesters are demanding them," he said.

"Empty-nesters who do want elevators tend to buy in the high-rises," he said. "Our younger buyers, however, consider them important for resale value, and some of our older clients are looking at these houses to be the last ones they will be buying."

Vacant building sites are getting few and far between, he said.

"There are a couple, but they are not available, and when they are, they're scooped up right away."

aheavens@phillynews.com

215-854-2472@alheavens