Downtown Nashville's Condo Presales Are Tomorrow's Resale Inventory

What does someone who signed a contract at Paramount actually own today? Paramount's sales are run by Giarratana, and its president, Tony Giarratana, told the Nashville Post that 45 of the tower's presales were signed contracts backed by 10 percent deposits. Three more were reservations backed by 1 percent deposits. Presold units ranged from $1.4 million to $12 million and averaged about $2.93 million. At that average, a 10 percent deposit comes to roughly $293,000 on a building scheduled for completion in May 2028.

Those buyers signed while the downtown resale market was moving the other way. In its August 2026 report, Greater Nashville Realtors said downtown condo closings fell 38 percent year over year that month and were down 9 percent for the year to date, with inventory at 22 months. A presale is a bet on a finished building years from now. Once that building delivers, its owners become part of the same downtown resale supply that buyers have plenty of leverage over today.

What a presale contract buys

The Paramount numbers show how far the presale market sits from the rest of the city. Units range from 984 to 4,664 square feet and average 1,853. Reserved units have priced between $1,026 and $2,617 per square foot, with an average of $1,598. The Nashville Post put the total value of presales at $140,684,000 as of its report, and Giarratana said the company would end 2025 with half of both the Penthouse and Signature collections presold.

Construction is moving forward. The Nashville Downtown Partnership's Q3 2026 market conditions report says Paramount has reached the halfway point, with crews starting the 30th floor at 1010 Church St. Completion is still targeted for May 2028. The two sources count the condos differently. The Nashville Post reported 140, and the Partnership's Q3 report lists 360 apartments and 125 condos.

Competition is also shaping how these units are sold. The Nashville Business Journal reported in January 2026 that condo competition had pushed Giarratana to open a sales gallery for the first time, with "new luxury developments all vying for the same customers."

Two downtown condo markets side by side

The downtown condo statistic and the tower presales both say "downtown condo." Here is how far apart they are.

The county figure includes more than downtown. Davidson County recorded 616 condo closings at a $340,000 median in July through September 2026, against 2,101 residential closings at $520,000. That puts condos at about 23 percent of the county's closings. The average Paramount presale price is more than eight times the county condo median. Most Davidson condo buyers are shopping in a different market from the one the towers sell into.

The pipeline is future resale supply

Presale buyers aren't taking anything off the downtown resale shelf. They're reserving units that haven't been built, and every one of those units will eventually be a downtown condo that can be resold. These are the named projects with a condo component, in order of delivery:

1. The Emory at Nashville Yards. The Downtown Nashville Partnership's development map lists 312 condominium units delivered in 2025. Nashville Yards describes The Emory as its first and only for-sale residential option.
2. Pendry Residences Nashville. This is a 30-story building at 701 Seventh Ave. S. in SomeraRoad's Paseo South Gulch, with 180 hotel rooms and 146 condos ranging from one to four bedrooms. The Nashville Post reported one-bedrooms starting at $1.25 million and a 2027 opening target.
3. Paramount. A 60-story, 750-foot tower at 1010 Church St., set to be Tennessee's tallest building, with completion targeted for May 2028.
4. Nashville EDITION. The development map lists 84 condominiums in this Gulch hotel tower with a 2028 delivery date. The Nashville Business Journal covered its sales gallery in March 2026.

Sales are still moving at these projects. The Nashville Business Journal reported in April 2026 that Pendry had signed $26 million in condo deals. By July, the Nashville Business Journal reported that the Pendry team had brought in a New York real estate firm to market the condos to out-of-town buyers. In February, the Nashville Business Journal also reported that a $4.3 million penthouse of more than 2,500 square feet was the first Voce Hotel & Residences penthouse to hit the market. A developer that reaches for buyers in other cities is still finding demand. The local buyer pool for this price point is not the only source of demand.

What the leverage looks like for a resale buyer right now

The 22-month figure belongs to the existing buildings, and that is where buyers have room to negotiate today. Jack Gaughan, president of Greater Nashville Realtors, said in the August release that "buyers have considerable leverage and more opportunities to negotiate, while sellers must be realistic about pricing and prepared for their property to take longer to sell."

Across the nine-county region, condos are behaving differently from houses. In August 2026, the regional condo median fell to $339,995 from $353,450 a year earlier, while the single-family median rose to $515,725 from $505,000. Condo inventory grew from 2,431 to 2,813 listings over the same period. September brought more activity but little price movement. Gaughan's October 11 market column reported regional condo sales up 13 percent year over year, with condo prices up just under 1 percent against 4 percent for single-family homes. More condos are selling, and sellers aren't getting much more for them.

The same column says that, depending on the property and the seller's circumstances, concessions such as mortgage rate buydowns or contributions toward closing costs may help make a purchase more manageable. Rates still matter for anyone financing. The Nashville Post put the national average 30-year fixed rate at about 6.9 percent in its August coverage. With my background in mortgage lending, this is where I'd put the negotiation. When a seller expects a long wait in a 22-month market, a buydown or closing-cost credit can lower your monthly payment more than a small price cut would.

The investor's comparison is the apartment next door

For a small investor buying a downtown condo to rent out, the competition is the large apartment stock, not other condos. The Partnership's Q3 2026 report puts downtown rental occupancy at 90.4 percent. The average unit is 839 square feet and rents for $2.82 per square foot, or about $2,330 a month in effective rent. The same report counts 1,798 downtown residential units under construction and 9,394 planned. Paramount alone will add 360 apartments next to its condos. Your rent estimate should be built from that benchmark and checked against the new supply, not taken from a listing's projected income.

FAQ

Is the 22-month figure for all of Nashville? No. Greater Nashville Realtors reported it specifically for downtown Nashville's condo market in August 2026. The release doesn't define the boundary it uses for "downtown."

Do strong tower presales mean resale prices downtown are about to rise? The presale numbers describe a separate buyer pool paying well above $1,000 per square foot for buildings that deliver in 2027 and 2028. Those units add to downtown condo supply when they finish. They don't take resale listings off the market today.

Are deposit terms the same at every tower? The 10 percent contract deposit and 1 percent reservation deposit figures were reported for Paramount. Each project sets its own contract terms, so read the purchase agreement for any building you're considering. This post is general information and not legal or financial advice. Confirm deposit and contract terms with a real estate attorney and your lender.

If you're comparing a resale unit in an existing downtown building with a presale contract on a tower that delivers in 2028, Parker Brown can run the payment math on both, including what a seller-paid buydown would change. Let's connect and start your Nashville search with the downtown condo numbers in front of you.