While tragic, last week’s sudden death of highly acclaimed architect Zaha Hadid should give her unfinished projects—and the people who bought into them—new life. In the art world, it’s common for paintings, sculptures and other works to increase in value upon the artist’s death; the same often goes for buildings designed by world-renowned architects. Take, for example, Hadid’s One Thousand Museum, currently under construction on Biscayne Boulevard in Miami. At the architect’s first high-rise residential project in the Western hemisphere, prices start at $1,200 a square foot and go above $2,000. The luxury residential tower is not expected to be completed until late next year; it’s just one of many works left in-progress by the Iraqi-born British architect. Buyers may find themselves holding onto unexpectedly valuable assets. “For buyers and owners in buildings Hadid has designed, [her passing] may prove to be a positive, similar to how different paintings go up [in value] after the artist dies,” said Jack McCabe, real estate analyst and consultant at McCabe Research & Consulting in Deerfield Beach, Florida. The developers at One Thousand Museum have not commented on the project’s future without Hadid, but the architect’s press office told Mansion Global that, as with all of their projects, teams will continue to work on them until completion.
Zaha Hadid is remembered as work continues on One Thousand Museum, the late architect's first residential skyscraper in the Western hemisphere. Daniel Azoulay “The ongoing liaison between our office and all our clients will continue as always,” a spokesperson for Zaha Hadid Architects said. This is standard operating procedure, according to experts. “Usually, you have a company with the ability to continue the succession,” said Kobi Karp, founder and principal of Kobi Karp Architecture and Interior Design in Miami. “I am sure that is the case here.” But David Richards, chair of the American Institute of Architects’ practice management committee, noted that the fate of unfinished projects depends on how well the original architect communicated their vision to team. “They can be implemented,” he said, of projects that lose their architect unexpectedly, “but they won’t have that ongoing impact of the visionary.” But, he added, he expects Hadid’s team to fulfill her original vision in full. The first female architect to receive the Pritzker Award, Hadid also designed 520 West 28th Street, currently under construction alongside Manhattan’s High Line. Prices at the condominium range from $4.895 million for a two-bedroom residence to $50 million for the largest penthouse, according to the developers. Sales launched quietly in late October but volumes weren’t available. While the developers of One Thousand Museum in Miami said they couldn’t share specifics about sales numbers at this time, they did note that there’s been a dramatic increase in inquiries since Hadid’s sudden passing. New contracts have been signed as a result, and they anticipate this trend to continue. Write to Andrea López Cruzado at andrea.lopez@dowjones.com