Clearwater condos now offered at 50 percent discounts

Clearwater's so-called 'Ghost Tower' is coming back to life thanks to deep discounts.

A new company purchased the luxury condo tower, Water's Edge, and now they're selling the units for more than 50 percent off the original price.

The Water's Edge condominium tower is the tallest building in Clearwater, as it sits on the intracoastal shore.

Maxwell Drever's company now owns the ritzy tower.

"It'll be a lynch pin, we think, to get the whole area going and we'd like to buy more here," Drever said.

However, before he buys anymore towers, Drever wants to sell the 153 empty condo units at Water's Edge.

To attract buyers during the downturn in the economy, Drever is offering up to 56 percent off the original price.

"The way we're able to do this is because we made a reasonable buy, number one," he said. "And number two, we believe in moving things quickly."

The Water's Edge condo offers great waterfront views that don't require owning the penthouse suite. The building was designed so that 85 percent of the units have a water view.

Water's Edge cost $100 million to construct and the original company that built the tower filed for bankruptcy last year and lost the tower at a foreclosure auction.

Afterwards, Water's Edge received a nickname, the Ghost Tower, because only a few people have lived there since 2008.

Fashion designer Craig Taylor is one of the people who has lived in the tower and he plans on being an owner soon.

"We've been renting for two years, holding out for this moment," Taylor said. "And actually it worked out to be a good thing that we waited."

Drever says the deep discounts won't last loong.

"It's time sensitive," he said. "We're going to start increasing prices probably in the next month or so."

Now, most of the units cost between $250,000 to $600,000 and the new price list was just released.