Renting an apartments while the economy settles is a good way to get your capital, credit and job security in order. By renting, you are essentially buying time. The real estate market is changing. But apartments remain the same. Tenants are finding affordable prices, high quality living, with more amenities than ever. It is the perfect time to rent if you are moving to a new city. It will give you the time to plan and learn your new surroundings.

Many condominiums have languished on the local market for months, and several developers continue to sit on large numbers of unoccupied units.

In 2005, Oliver redeveloped the upper floors of the former Duluth city water and gas building at 411 W. Superior St., creating eight condominium units, four of which remain empty.

He also converted the former Proctor Junior High School into condominiums. There, Oliver has managed to sell just 10 of 23 units.

“There’s been virtually zero activity the past several months,” Oliver said, noting that he hasn’t made any new condo sales since the third quarter of 2008.

He believes much of the problem stems from people’s hesitancy to put their homes on a market that’s perceived to be weak.

“Either people don’t want to sell their homes in the current environment or they’re afraid they can’t, so they don’t even try,” Oliver said. “A lot of it has to do with confidence.”

Developers will deal

Oliver said many would-be condo buyers fail to realize that even though they might not receive top dollar for a house in a soft real estate market, they may be well-positioned to get a good deal on a condominium at a time when developers are hungry for sales.

“I haven’t changed my listing prices, but if a serious buyer offered me substantially less, I would have to entertain that offer right now,” Oliver said.

Frank Messina, who spearheads sales for Lester River Condominiums, agreed that today’s consumers will find some attractive deals. “Three years down the road, we’re going to hear people saying,

‘I could kick myself for not buying a condo back in 2009, when units were at these prices.’

”Half of the 30 units at Lester River Condominiums have been sold to date, and to help make ends meet, five to six vacant units at the development have been rented.

Messina said the pool of prospective condo buyers has shrunk for a number of reasons besides wobbly home sales.

“A lot of baby boomers also got hurt by the stock market,” he observed. “People are on hold, waiting to see what’s going to happen.”

But it’s not all doom and gloom in the condominium business.

So there you have it, renting apartments in Duluth is a good opportunity for future home owners. If you plant to move to Duluth, be sure to use a rental service company. It's the only way to move.

Michael Russell writes about a variety of subjects. This article discusses Duluth apartments. For more information, visit Promove.