Cooper Grant Homes
Camden, New Jersey

Description

• 18 new units
• First market-rate development in Camden in over 25 years

Developer
Pennrose Properties

Architect
Kitchen and Associates
Collingswood, NJ

General Contractor
Domus, Inc
Philadelphia, PA

Management
Pennrose Management Company

The Challenge

The City of Camden, like many other cities in the Northeast, suffered drastically from the loss of its manufacturing base over the last 40 years. Unlike other cities, Camden was unable to make the switch to a service economy. The financial situations of the city were so bad that the State of New Jersey took it over in 2002. Outside of state or HUD-funded affordable housing, there was no other residential development in the city. The challenge was to find a way to develop new market-rate housing in a community that had not seen it for over 25 years.

The Solution

The problem is easily stated, if not easily solved. The market in Camden was such that a realistic sales price would not cover the cost of construction. Pennrose was able to write-down the sales price through a three-prong approach. First, there was no acquisition cost because the City of Camden Redevelopment Agency and Rutgers University agreed to donate the land. Second, Pennrose was able to obtain funding with no restrictions on the income of the homebuyers from the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, the Camden Empowerment Zone and the Economic Recovery Board, the entity administering the state takeover of the city. Finally, Pennrose worked out tax abatement with the city, which allowed purchasers to use the tax savings for debt service, thereby increasing the size of their mortgages.

The results have been astounding. Eleven of the 18 units were sold the first day there were offered for sale. The remaining units were sold within the next two weeks and there is now a significant waiting list. Construction will commence in February of 2007.

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