Converting Apartments To Condos Carries A Heavy Price

"Landlords seeking to exploit skyrocketing real estate prices are converting apartments into condominiums at a blistering pace, a trend that is providing new buying opportunities for some of the region's middle-class residents but is also pushing thousands of less-affluent residents out of their homes.

Five thousand area apartments become condos in 2003, and a whopping 14,500 in 2004, according to Delta Associates, a real estate consulting firm. The number of conversions this year is expected to far surpass last year's total, housing officials say."