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📬 In today’s edition:

• 🏘️ Triple the national inventory growth and prices still didn't budge in Cleveland

• 🔑 By-right up to five stories reduces variance risk. That's the real win.

• 🏠 Private elevator, Lake Erie views, Little Italy address. $119K above Zestimate.

📰 Cleveland Market Minute

Here’s what to know about Shaker Square’s ‘form-based’ zoning

It’s no secret that Cleveland’s complicated and restrictive zoning code stifles new construction, hinders neighborhood walkability, and renders countless existing buildings noncompliant. Yet it remains to be seen how well its emerging Form-Based Code can resolve these issues.

Shaker Square, built in 1927 as the first planned shopping center in Ohio, predates the city’s original 1929 zoning code. That helps explain why many of the apartments, houses, and mixed-use buildings that make up the surrounding neighborhood would be illegal to construct today.

🔗 Read More

West Park Shopping Center to fill vacancy

A filing submitted to the City of Cleveland today revealed the identity of a new tenant that will fill the largest space at the West Park Shopping Center on Lorain Avenue at West 150th Street.

This shopping center, located in its namesake West Park neighborhood, will be its first location in Cleveland proper although it has suburban locations in Beachwood, Brunswick, Middleburg Heights and Willoughby.

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Buyer saves historic factory from demolition

One of Cleveland’s most historic industrial properties is no longer on the to-be-demolished list after it was acquired by a Greater Cleveland-based developer. That property is the four-parcel, 7.3-acre former Winton Motor Carriage Works, 10300-10630 Berea Rd. in Cleveland’s Cudell neighborhood.

Acquiring it are two companies including one created by John Ellis of Mentor. He has a number of Northeast Ohio properties, developments and construction projects on his 20-year resume, many of which include Pinnacle Properties in their names. But this would be his largest endeavor, yet.

🔗 Read More

🏠 Just Sold Spotlight

Rare Edgehill Townhouse with Private Elevator, Lake Erie Views, 4th-Floor Sunroom & Dual Decks Steps from Little Italy and University Circle

📍2351 Edgehill Rd, Cleveland, OH 44106

• 💰 Sold Price: $619,000

• 📏 Size: 2,487 sq. ft.

• 📅 Year Built: 2000

• 🛏 2 Beds | 🛁 2 Full + 1 Half Bath

• 🚗 Attached 2-Car Garage

• 🌳 Lot Size: 3,615 sq. ft.

• 🏫 School District: Cleveland Municipal School District

📝 Investor Takeaway

Closing $119,000 above its $500,000 Zestimate in just 23 days, this Edgehill Rd townhouse sold at one of the largest Zestimate premiums in this edition and the gap is structural, not anomalous.

🏡 Neighborhood Insight

• 📍 Community: Little Italy / University Circle border, Cleveland (44106)

• 🏞 Nearby Landmarks: Little Italy restaurant and gallery corridor, Murray Hill, CWRU, Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland Heights border

• 🚶 Accessibility: Walkable to hospitals, CWRU, University Circle, and Little Italy dining and arts; adjacent to Cleveland Heights

• 🌿 Lifestyle Appeal: Edgehill Rd sits at Cleveland's most prestigious academic-medical-cultural intersection a rare address that combines genuine urban walkability with the kind of institutional stability that makes long-term real estate values structurally resilient

📈 Recent Sales Nearby:

• 2345 Edgehill Rd – $500,000 | 2 Bed | 3 Bath | in-building comp

• 2499 Fairmount Blvd #9 – $723,500 | 2 Bed | 3 Bath | 2.6k sq. ft.

• 2044 Random Rd Unit 102 – $520,000 | 3 Bed | 3 Bath | 2k sq. ft.

• 1569 E 118th St – $435,000 | 2 Bed | 3 Bath | 1.8k sq. ft.

• 2043 Random Rd APT 303 – $637,500 | 3 Bed | 3 Bath | 2.8k sq. ft.

💡 Insider’s Insight

🏛 Shaker Square's Form-Based Zoning Is Stricter Than Many Expect

Cleveland's Form-Based Code reached the Buckeye-Shaker neighborhood at Friday's City Planning Commission meeting. The proposed districts cover the area between Larchmere Boulevard and Buckeye Road. Shaker Square, built in 1927 as Ohio's first planned shopping center, predates the 1929 zoning code.

The current rules show the problem. The city typically requires a 4,800 square foot lot for a single family home, yet some lots near the Square hold under 4,000 square feet. New projects also routinely need variances to get built.

📌 The four scales in the new code

• House: single family through sometimes fourplexes, up to 2.5 stories

• Neighborhood: adds townhouses and small apartments, 2.5 or 3 stories

• Community: adds larger apartment complexes, 3 to 5 stories

• Urban Flex: residential over ground floor retail, 3 to 5 stories

On the proposed map, most Two Family zones become House 3, which allows no fourplexes and no commercial use. North and South Moreland boulevards would get Community Flex 4 and 5. Urban Flex 3, 4, and 5 would line East 116th Street, Buckeye Road, and parts of Larchmere and Shaker boulevards.

📌 Where the code is stricter than today

• Design guidelines would apply citywide, versus about 17 percent of the city now

• Proposed heights on Larchmere and Shaker fall below several existing tall buildings

• A five story apartment building near the Square would not fit Urban Flex 3

• Mid to high rise blocks on Shaker Boulevard keep current zoning until a fitting district exists

Planners call this "phase one," and pilots are already active in Hough and St. Clair-Superior, Detroit-Shoreway, the Opportunity Corridor, and Innovation Square. The Zoning team joins the Ward 6 Community Meeting October 13 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Fairhill Partners, 12200 Fairhill Rd.

🔑 Investor Takeaway

Do not read this as deregulation. The code adds citywide design rules and lowers height ceilings in several places, which could cap upside on parcels that allow more today. The benefit is predictability, since by right mixed use up to five stories should reduce variance risk and timeline uncertainty.

📈 Cleveland Inventory Surges 16.7 Percent While Prices Hold Flat

September report shows Cleveland buyers with far more choice than a year ago. Active listings rose 16.7 percent year over year to 4,417, more than triple the national increase of 5.4 percent. New listings edged up 2.1 percent while the national count slipped 0.7 percent. Steady fresh supply gives buyers less reason to rush.

Prices did not move despite the added supply. The median list price came in at $259,900, essentially unchanged from last year, while the national median of $419,250 slid 1.4 percent. Realtor.com reads that stability as a sign demand stayed strong enough to keep sellers from cutting.

📌 Cleveland versus the nation, September 2026

• Active listings: +16.7 percent versus +5.4 percent nationally

• Median list price: flat versus -1.4 percent nationally

• Days on market: 44 days (+2.3 percent) versus 61 nationally

• Listings with price cuts: 21.1 percent (+2.7 points) versus 20.8 percent nationally

Homes took slightly longer to sell than last year but still moved well ahead of the national pace. More than one in five Cleveland listings carried a price reduction, a real opening for buyers willing to negotiate. Realtor.com points to homes that have been sitting as the best negotiating targets, while well priced homes still sell quickly.

🔑 Investor Takeaway

Rising inventory, more price cuts, and slightly slower sales with flat list prices describe a market shifting toward buyers without prices breaking. The 2.7 point rise in price cuts is the number to track, since cuts usually lead asking prices lower. For acquisitions, target stale listings with cuts instead of bidding on fresh ones.

🏡House of the Week

Rooftop Outdoor Kitchen, Fireplace & Little Italy Address at $228/sqft

📍 1891 E 119th St, Cleveland, OH 44106

• 💰 Price: $489,900

• 📏 Size: 2,145 sq ft

• 📅 Year Built: 2009 | Extensively Updated 2024-2026

• 🛏 3 Beds | 🛁 2 Full Baths + 1 Half Bath

• 🚗 Attached 2-Car Garage

• 🏡 Townhouse | Little Italy / University Circle

• 🏫 School District: Cleveland Metropolitan School District

🧘 Vibes: A fully updated Little Italy townhome steps from University Hospitals, Cleveland Clinic, and Case Western with a rooftop terrace featuring a fully equipped outdoor kitchen, a fireplace in the living room, a custom bar in the dining room, a new Cristal chandelier, and wired sound throughout.

👉 Listed by: MarieRose J. Nader & Hani M. Nader | Howard Hanna

📞 216-407-1974 ✉️ [email protected]

🛠 Tools & Resources We Recommend

• PropStream → Lead generation + property comps

• AirDNA → Short-term rental profitability data

• BiggerPockets Cap Rate Guide → Know how to calculate investment ROI

• Cleveland Housing Court Tracker → Spot eviction risks and distressed deals

• Cleveland Real Estate Investor Facebook Group → Share deals and insights with local investors