Riverbend cuts prices for “workforce”

A potential signal of a cooling Charlottesville condo market came last week as Riverbend Condominium developers Dupont Fabros slashed prices 10 percent and began rolling out a “Workforce Housing initiative,” which provides a price break for anyone employed in “key public service sectors.”
    Police officers, teachers and nurses, among others, are eligible for a $5,000 discount on a two-bedroom unit ($2,500 for a one bedroom unit). Prices for Riverbend now range from $150,000 to $220,000.
    Developers say the reduction will be much appreciated. “We think it will help significantly with the down payment, in combination with 10 percent price slashing,” says Hamid Afsharieh, vice president of residential for Dupont Fabros.
    “Combined with 100 percent financing options that are out there, someone can come into a home with no money down and almost have the same payments as if they were renting, helping the workforce on the way to wealth creation,” says Jeff Gaffney, chairman of Real Estate III, the firm assisting with sales. “The community is much better served if we can come up with a way that police officers, firefighters, nurses and teachers can afford to live in the community they serve.”
    Riverbend units haven’t been exactly flying off the market. Since September, only a third of the 125 units have been sold or reserved. In contrast, the 184 units in Hessian Hills Condominiums near Barracks Road sold within about a year of becoming available.
    Dupont Fabros, a Washington, D.C.-based company, bought Riverbend (along with Walker Square Condominiums) in September from an LLC that included Coran Capshaw as a partner.