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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; August 24, 2006:

Janis Johnson is part of an Atlanta trend.

The attorney for Bank of America recently moved into one of the city's hottest ZIP codes, 30308, where new housing units have been selling as fast as they can be finished.

According to the Journal-Constitution's annual housing survey, comparing sales figures from 2004 to 2005, the Midtown district of 30308 has seen a whopping 1,720 percent increase in the number of new units. A distant second was the 30305 ZIP code in Buckhead, where new housing units increased by more than 200 percent.

For Johnson, being trendy wasn't part of the equation when she moved into a 950-square-foot unit at the Reynolds on Peachtree, a new luxury condominium complex across from the Bank of America Plaza and a short walk from the Fox Theatre.

"I was looking for convenience to my office and a way to avoid downtown traffic," she explained. "I did an exhaustive search of condos and found what I wanted right across from where I work. With gas at more than $3 a gallon, it was an excellent choice."

Johnson also compared amenities and finishes and was won over by the features at the Reynolds.

  ÒThere's a great workout facility, a pool, a cabana for entertaining and a very attentive concierge staff," she said. "And my unit has hardwood floors and 9-foot ceilings. Plus I liked the security of a controlled-access building."

Buyers looking for upscale accents in their buildings and individual units are part of the bigger trend that is fueling the intown market, said David Tufts, CEO of Coldwell Banker/The Condo Store.

"Move-up buyers, especially those who have already lived in a condo, want to move up to something more sophisticated," Tufts said. "The Aqua at 10th and Peachtree is a great example of that."

Aging baby boomers also play a part in the demand for bigger units and more sophisticated finishes, such as gourmet appliances, granite counters to oversized floor plans.

"That age group is a huge influence in the market right now, which is why we're seeing products that are much more diverse, much larger and more highly finished coming online," Tufts said.

Two other factors are making Midtown and Buckhead big housing destinations, Tufts said.

"The first is the national trend we're seeing of a return to urban living," he said. "With infrastructure getting better in Midtown, it's really taking off there. Things like the expansion of the High, restaurants and the arrival of Publix are making life there better."

Traffic also continues to be a key factor in many buyers' decisions.

"My favorite pun is that traffic is driving the market," said Tufts. "While there are no plans to alleviate traffic and our population continues to increase, why would people want to commute?"

Most of those move-up and baby boomers are looking for condos that afford a maintenance-free lifestyle without yards and house repairs. And condos are still more affordable than single-family homes intown.

"You can still find two-bedroom, two-bath condos with 1,400 or 1,500 square feet for around $200,000," said Todd Emerson, broker of the Harry Norman Realtors Buckhead office. "There's almost nothing available in a single-family home for $300,000 or below. And we're seeing more buyers, especially empty nesters, who want 3,000 square feet so they don't have to sacrifice the space they had in their former homes and can still have that grand piano in the living room."

-H.M. Cauley