So you think it always rains in Seattle? It’s our big secret, but Seattle summers are just gorgeous and this year is proving to be one of the best. People in the Seattle don’t waste a minute when the sun is out and the weather is just fine. Here are some photos from the Fourth of July, 2009 weekend of people and places around Seattle and Lake Washington.
Gorgeous Views of Mt Rainier
Downtown Bellevue from Lake Washington at sunset
Mt Olympus sunset
Seattle-Eastside Condo Real Estate Statistics, May 2009
(pended means the number of condos that got offers this month)
(The absorption rate, the percentage of condos selling, is the number of condos for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of condos sold that month. So if the absorption rate or chance of selling is 10% that means out of 100 condos for sale, 10 received offers and sold.)
1441 condos for sale 177 condos sold 12% chance of selling.
May represented the highest number of condo sales on Seattle’s eastside since June, 2008. The number of condos for sale increased dramatically this month, with the addition of 126 more condos for sale, whereas only 15 more condos sold in May than in April. There was a much bigger jump in the condos for sale than in the number of condos that sold.
Real estate activity, in general, is picking up. It will be interesting to watch how the fluctuating interest rates affect the sales of condos on Seattle’s eastside and in the real estate market overall. We have to remember that rates are still wonderfully low, even if they go up.
Seattle/ Eastside Residential Real Estate, May 2009
The chances of selling a home on the Eastside in May 2009 ranged from a low of 12% to a high of 23%, with an average 16% absorption rate. (The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.) Numbers are rounded off to the nearest whole number, unless the number is exactly .5% between two numbers.
Here are the real estate statistics for single family home sales activity on Seattle’s Eastside:
May, 2009 3841 homes for sale 624 homes sold 16% chance of selling.
April, 2009 3600 homes for sale 497 homes sold 17% chance of selling.
May, 2008 4305 homes for sale 478 homes sold 11% chance of selling.
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(You can still find the MLS charts by clicking on each of the cities below. Those charts have some of the same information as the chart above, but also show the real estate trends for the last 5 years, including median pricing for each city and whether the number of homes for sale and the number of sales are up or down. If you look at the charts by city, you’ll notice the total number of homes for sale and the number of homes sold can vary slightly from those charts to the chart above. The information for the charts is gathered at slightly different times. Regardless of the exact numbers, it’s clear the charts show the same trends, which is the most important piece of information.)
(click on city names for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall Ciy
The chances of selling were 17%.
Median sales price decreased by 15% from $614,900 to $524,950.
Inventory was down by 15% and sales were up by 15% from last year.
The chances of selling were 23%.
Median sales price decreased to $515,000 to $559,950 a decrease of 8%.
Inventory was down 16% and sales were up 43%.
The chances of selling were 17%.
Median price decreased by 11.5% from $699,475 to $619,000.
Inventory was down by 18.5% and sales were up 25%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall/North Kirkland
The chances of selling were 17%.
Median price was down to $459,500 from $499,950, an 8% decrease.
Inventory was down by12% from last year and sales were up by 58%.
The chances of selling were 12%.
Median price decreased by12%, from $679,000 to $599,950.
Inventory was down by 10% and sales were up by 16%.
The chances of selling were 18%.
Median pricing decreased by17% from $1,325,000 to $1,097,975.
Inventory decreased by 2 % and sales increased by 143.5%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
The chances of selling were 17%
Median pricing decreased by 12% from $650,000 to $569,895.
Inventory decreased by 8% and sales decreased by 25%.
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Thoughts on the May 2009 Seattle Eastside real estate market:
Denise Stephens from Hope-link asked that I post this press release because Hope-link is in need of more volunteers:
Prospective volunteers can learn more at orientation in Bellevue, Bothell, Redmond or Carnation. Bellevue, Wash. – Hopelink, a 38-year-old nonprofit agency helping families, senior citizens and people with disabilities in east and north King County, needs more volunteers at its centers in Redmond, Bellevue, Kirkland, Shoreline, Bothell and Carnation. Hopelink relies upon volunteers for such jobs as sorting food in its food banks, helping adults learn to read or do basic math or study for the GED exams, delivering food to homebound clients, or answering phones and helping with administrative tasks. In April alone, more than 700 volunteers donated over 6,000 hours to help Hopelink programs and clients.
Hopelink continues to need new volunteers over age 16 and volunteers between the ages of 12 and 16 with parent/guardian supervision. We welcome anyone interested to an orientation meeting to learn more about Hopelink and its many volunteer opportunities. Space is limited and orientation sessions start promptly, so please arrive early. • Wednesday, June 3, 2009, at Hopelink’s Bellevue center in the Learning Center conference room, 14812 Main St., in Bellevue. (Note: this is a new location for the Bellevue orientations.) Parking is limited on site.
Please contact the Volunteer Coordinator at volunteer@hope-link.org for information about off site parking options. This location is served by Metro routes 221 and 247. An afternoon orientation will start promptly at 1:00 p.m. and end at 2:30 p.m. An evening orientation will start promptly at 7:00 p.m. and end at 8:30 p.m. • Thursday, June 4, 2009, from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. at Hopelink’s Bothell center, 18220 96th Ave. NE in Bothell. • Tuesday, June 9, 2009, from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. at Hopelink’s Redmond center. The orientation will be held in the Rainier Room conference room of the Family Resource Center complex (where Hopelink is located), Building A, 16225 NE 87th St., in Redmond. The Redmond volunteer orientation is a new addition to the schedule. • Wednesday, June 10, 2009, from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. at Hopelink’s Carnation center, 31957 Commercial Street in Carnation.
For more information, go to www.hope-link.org/takeaction/volunteer. For information on how young people between middle school and high school age can help Hopelink, please visit http://youthlink.hope-link.org/ Since 1971, Hopelink has helped homeless and low income families, children, seniors and people with disabilities make lasting change in their lives. Hopelink promotes self-sufficiency by helping people meet their needs for food, shelter, homelessness prevention, family development, transportation and adult literacy. For more information on Hopelink and its services, call 425.869.6000 or visit www.hope-link.org.
Seattle Eastside April 2009 condo real estate statistics
April, 2009 1315 condos for sale,177 sold, 13% chance of selling a condo
(The absorption rate, the percentage of condos selling, is the number of condos for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of condos sold that month. So if the absorption rate or chance of selling is 10% that means out of 100 condos for sale, 10 received offers and sold.)
(pended means the number of condos that got offers this month)
Much good news for the Seattle-Eastside condo sales during April, 2009. April represented the highest number of condo sales on Seattle’s eastside since June, 2008. Only 15 more condos were offered for sale, but 67 more sold in April than in March. I’m sure the first time home buyer credit is spurring on all the activity.
The other piece of good news is HUD, the office of Housing and Urban Development, announced the $8000 first time home buyer tax credit can be used towards a buyer’s down payment. This is a boon to first time buyers. The actual workings of the program have not been released yet, but I will report on it as soon as I hear about it. If you have a lender you trust, you can also contact them to get more information about the program. Remember, the tax incentive must be used before December 1st, 2009. To be safe, if you plan to use it, you should consider buying before the end of October, so your home or condo purchase will close in time for you to be eligible for the credit.
Seattle Eastside Real Estate Activity April 2009
The media was hopping with news stories about the increase in April, 2009 real estate sales in the Seattle area. Local TV stations KOMO and KING5, both had reports on the more positive real estate market. The Seattle Times, Seattle PI.com, and BizJournals all had stories with the same theme.
The chances of selling a home on the Eastside in April 2009 ranged from a low of 10% to a high of 23%, with an average 16% absorption rate. (The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.) Numbers will be rounded off to the nearest whole number, unless the number is exactly .5% between two numbers.
Here are the real estate statistics for single family home sales activity on Seattle’s Eastside:
April, 2009 3600 homes for sale 573 homes sold 16% chance of selling.
March, 2009 3711 homes for sale 372 homes sold 10% chance of selling.
April, 2008 4017 homes for sale 489 homes sold 12% chance of selling
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(This monthly Seattle/Eastside real estate report now includes the chart above because it’s clear and easy to read. You can still find the MLS charts by clicking on each of the cities below. Those charts have some of the same information as the chart above, but also show the real estate trends for the last 5 years, including median pricing for each city and whether the number of homes for sale and the number of sales are up or down. If you look at the charts by city, you’ll notice the total number of homes for sale and the number of homes sold can vary slightly from the chart above. This is because the information for the charts is gathered at slightly different times. Regardless of the exact numbers, it’s clear the charts show the same trends, which is the most important piece of information.)
(click on city names for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall Ciy
Median sales price decreased by 12% from $597,639 to $524,000.
Inventory was down by 12% and sales were down by 12% from last year.
Median sales price decreased from $608,998 to $500,000 a decrease of 18%.
Inventory was down 6% and sales were up 15%.
Median price increased by 8% from $600,000 to $649,900.
Inventory was down by 15% and sales were up 70%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall/North Kirkland
Median price was down to $399,950 from $484,450, a 17% decrease.
Inventory was down by 6% from last year and sales were up by 44%.
Median price decreased by 8%, from $707,950 to $649,000.
Inventory was down by 8% and sales were up by 9.5%.
Median pricing decreased by21% from $1,399,000 to $1,100,000.
Inventory increased by 5 % and sales increased by 18.5%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Median pricing decreased by 14% from $652,450 to $554,950.
Inventory decreased by 9% and sales decreased by 5%.
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Thoughts on the April 2009 Seattle Eastside real estate market:
Ever since I moved to the Seattle/Eastside (or the Eastside) in 1986, there’s been a rivalry between the eastside of Lake Washington, the eastside, and the westside of the lake, Seattle. I remember picking up a postcard back then with a drawing of a car crossing over to the eastside on the 520 bridge. The caption on the card said, “Honk if you love mauve.” Of course, all home owners on the eastside had the very latest colors, mauve and gray, and all home owners on the eastside did the exact same thing. Seattleites thought there was nothing over here on the “plastic” eastside, but plastic houses filled with plastic people. Everyone lived in a cookie cutter home decorated in mauve and gray, on a cookie cutter cul-de-sac, with 2 kids, 2 cars, and 2 car garages.
Of course, we on the eastside have always known this was not true. There are cookie cutter neighborhoods, but there are slick contemporary homes, mid-century modern homes, mid-entry homes, old bungalows, and McMansions. You can choose to live in a variety of neighborhoods, in a variety of homes, on a tiny lot or acreage, within walking distance of shops and restaurants or in rural privacy.
But more importantly, the eastside is filled with a diverse population. It’s a veritable melting pot with people of all ages, from all over the world, with a variety of interests and lifestyles-very much like the population of the westside of the lake, Seattle.
Fast forward to 2009. The eastside or Seattle’s eastside is now the economic center of the region. The reverse commute is worse than the commute into Seattle. (Thank you Microsoft, Nintendo, Expedia, etc) Bellevue’s downtown is fast becoming a hotbed of luxury shopping, dining, living, and working. Seattle Metropolitan magazine had a recent issue on the terrific economic growth of the eastside.
It’s time to throw down the boxing gloves and declare a truce. Seattle and Seattle’s eastside are both great areas. We grow and prosper because of each other, not in spite of each other. The eastside is an outgrowth of Seattle and we would not be here without it. Seattle would not be thriving if it weren’t for the eastside.
Lisa Hilderbrand was right when she responded to a comment on a post to someone who asked about her using the name the Seattle/Eastside. The comments in her post prompted this piece. Most people outside of this area have no clue where and what the eastside is without the name Seattle attached to it. Mmm..makes me think I should change the name of this blog to Seattle/Eastside Real Estate Buzz. (By the way, you should check out the link to Lisa’s post, she has some gorgeous eastside photos.)
So which is it? The Seattle/Eastside or the Eastside? Does the Eastside stand alone?
Worried about Seattle’s below freezing temperatures? Worrried about possible freezing pipes? KIRO TV had an excellent story with information straight from The American Red Cross about how to protect your water pipes during this unusual cold snap.
Saturday morning a number of Windermere Realtors from the eastside offices met at Target in Factoria to help some local kids buy Christmas gifts for their families. Windermere Real Estate/East, Inc, one of the largest Seattle/Eastside real estate companies, sponsors an annual holiday program, Target for Kids, to help kids buy Christmas presents for their families. The company decided a number of years ago to forgo a Christmas party and have a “shoppping party” for kids.
We had to be at Target at 7:45 AM to meet our shoppers. This was slightly better than the usual 6:45 AM meeting time when I usually have to keep my eyes open with toothpicks! My Windermere office, the Yarrow Bay office, worked with children from Kirkland’s Boys and Girls Club. The kids are always very appreciative and fun to shop with. 
Each Realtor is armed with a gift card for $175.00 and a list of gift requests from the shopper’s family. 
With that and a warm coffee for me, we were off and cruising the aisles, ready to shop.
This year I was assigned to help an 11 year old boy from John Muir Elementary School. He knew exactly what his brothers wanted and quickly zeroed in on gifts. Our only disappointment was one brother wanted Sonic the Hedghog, but it (he) was nowhere to be found in Target. My shopper settled on some Transformers for his brother. This year my shopper was able to buy two gifts for each brother since each of the gifts ran on average $20.00. The kids do not know that they also are able to pick a gift out for themselves. It’s a nice surprise for them.
After we shop, the gifts went to a wrapping area where a group of Windermere wrappers (no, not rappers) worked hard to get all the gifts in holiday wrapping paper. 
Those of us who had braved the aisles and were heavily shopping could then kick back and relax.
The kids are always appreciative and fun to shop with. It is one of the highlights of the season for me.
The chances of selling a home on the Eastside in October 2008 ranged from a low of 6% to a high of 11%, with an average 8% absorption rate. (The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.) Numbers will be rounded off to the nearest whole number, unless the number is exactly .5% between two numbers.
Here are the real estate statistics for single family home sales activity on Seattle’s Eastside:
October 2008 3975 homes available, 320 sold, 8% chance of selling.
September 2008 4117 homes available, 513 sold, 12% chance of selling.
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(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 9 % chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 14% last month and DOWN from 17% last year. Median home prices were essentially the same, from $559,000 to $559,194. Inventory was up by 13% and sales were down by 40% from last year.
Sellers had a 11% chance of getting a home sold, the SAME as last month, and DOWN from 14 % last year. Median sales price decreased from $609,950 to $484,725, a decrease of 20.5%. Inventory was up 13% and sales were down 10%.
Sellers had an 8% chance of getting a home sold, the same as last month, and DOWN from 12% last year. Median price decreased by 14% to $569,900 from $664,950. Inventory was up 5% and sales were down 32%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall/North Kirkland
Sellers had a 9% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 12% last month and DOWN from 13% last year. Median price was down to $533,925 from $549,250, a 3% decrease. Inventory was up by 17.5% from last year and sales were down by 17%.
Sellers had a 6% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 9% last month and DOWN from 11% last year. Median price increased by 8%, to $709,475 from $657,475. Inventory was up by 17% and sales were up down by 41%.
Sellers had a 6% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 8% last month, and DOWN from 10% last year. Median pricing decreased by 6% to $1,399,000 from $1,492,000. Inventory increased by 45.5% and sales decreased by 9%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 7% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 17% from last month, and DOWN from 16% last year. Median pricing decreased by 21% (oops, typo of 421% before!) from $599,475 to $472,425. Inventory increased by 24% and sales decreased by 44%.
October has been the toughest month to get a home sold on the eastside so far this year. This is not a big surprise, given the volatility of the economy, the bailout, and the pre-election jitters. Most neighborhoods saw the chances of selling drop to the single digits, with the exception being the East Bellevue and Redmond area around Microsoft. Eleven percent of the homes for sale in that area received offers last month, while it was toughest to get a home sold in Kirkland as only 6% of the homes sold.
Every area on the eastside experienced a decline in the number of sales when compared to October of last year. Ironically, most of this September’s sales were higher than September of last year. The number of homes for sale on the Eastside has dropped back below 4000 homes for the first time this year.
Median prices have dropped back, in many cases, to 2006 levels. In some areas, such as East Bellevue and Redmond around Microsoft, the median price has dropped below $500,000 for the first time since the beginning of 2006. Even though the number of sales are down, the median price continues to jump up or down. In Kirkland, the toughest area for a sale last month, prices went up almost 8%, while in Sammamish, sales were down, but prices remained stable. As I’ve mentioned in the past, it’s important to look at trends in each area over a few months. Prices and sales go up and down in each area and there isn’t always a correlation between the two.
Will things continue to drop or will they stabilize? Having the election behind us and giving the country a more optimistic focus than we have seen in a long time, it will be interesting to follow. It take a few months after the election before we see any changes.
But if you follow Forbes magazine, Seattle is looked at as the number one city to bounce back.
James Lupori of Kenmore Undressed commented on my post in which I had said I’d been down in the California desert for some work (some) and some play (lots). I told him I hadn’t taken a lot of pictures, but thought I would share some of the differences with the architecture and real estate down there as compared to the Northwest.
In Seattle, people are more private about who owns what and where it is located. Most people know where Bill Gates’ home is, especially since the tour boats go by everyday in the summer. But there are many celebrities’ homes that are hidden away and private. There’s a different celebrity mentality in the desert, possibly because of the Hollywood “glamor” influence. Homes become associated either with the famous person who lived or lives in the home or the architect who designed it. There’s the Elizabeth Taylor house, the Frank Sinatra house, and the Bob Hope house, just to name a few.
There’s The Kaufmann House in Palm Springs, which I wrote about this past spring when it went to auction at Sotheby’s as an art piece and sold for $15 million.
The Kaufmanns were a Pittsburgh department store family who had, arguably, one of the most iconic mid-century homes built in the California desert. The Kaufmanns built the home in the 1940’s, but the home will forever be associated with them, even though it is on its 3rd (or 4th) owner!
While in the desert, I had the good fortune to be invited to The Dinah Shore house. This home is privately owned, but was opened for a party. Donald Wexler, an architect famous for his mid-century modern designs which decorate the Coachella Valley, created the home. (If you click on the link to Wexler, you can see photos of his work, including the Dinah Shore house.) With unbelievable spaces, clean lines, high ceilings, walls of glass framing the mountain views, and fabulous materials, the home is drop dead gorgeous. (I feel like I’m writing a real estate ad.)
In Seattle and on the eastside, there are some neighborhoods with the mid-century flair, but they are few and far between. I wrote a piece a couple of months ago about Hilltop in Bellevue, a unique neighborhood of mid-century homes built by Seattle architects in the late 40’s and early 50’s. Lake Hills, built in the 1950’s, in Bellevue is a huge neighborhood of mid-century homes. When it was built, it was one of the Eastside’s cutting edge suburban developments. The homes in Lake Hills share some of the same mid-century styling with big windows and clean lines, but on a much smaller scale.
Since it’s a private home, I was not able to take photos of the Dinah Shore house, but was able to take some photos of The Greta Garbo house. The Garbo house is now on the grounds of the La Quinta Resort, which is where the Windermere Real Estate Symposium was held. Garbo’s house is more typical of the Spanish style found in many of the 20th century desert homes. Spanish styling is incredibly popular, along with the mid-century dynamic in the California desert. What a great place for the party that was going on!
However, Spanish architecture is fairly rare in the Seattle area. Perhaps our cooler weather lends itself to other styles? Many Spanish style homes are oriented to the outdoors with large patios and courtyards. The Garbo house is divided into two buildings with a massive courtyard, fountain, and fireplace in the middle, which you can see in the first photo of the Garbo house above. The dining room and kitchen were in one building while the other living spaces were across the courtyard. We were only allowed into certain rooms, but we were still able to get a feel for the Moorish/Spanish style used in the home.
Oh by the way, the desert is also famous for its mountains, but they are just a tad drier than the Cascades in the Northwest and not too many evergreens can be found!
The City of Bellevue and The Pacific Science Center have joined forces in Bellevue to create The Mercer Slough Educational Center. Here’s a link to a great article written by Kathleen Cragun on Issaquah Undressed regarding the new eco-friendly center down by the Mercer Slough in central Bellevue. I wasn’t able to make the opening for the center, but think people should know about Bellevue’s commitment to eco-friendly, “green” ideals and the partnership with the Pacific Science Center. Kathleen took some great photos of the center which has some wonderful architecture and eco-friendly designs.
I also found a link to an article written about the metal spans used to build the center.
“The Environmental Education Center uses energy efficient Span-Lok hp metal roofs in Cool Metallic Silver to limit heat island effects, demonstrating how homes can be “green” using metal.”
The center will provide training in “green” techniques for people of all ages. Come on down and visit the center at 1625 118th Ave SE in Bellevue. It’s a hop, skip, and a jump from I-90 and downtown Bellevue.
The chances of selling a home on the Eastside in September 2008 ranged from a low of 8% to a high of 17.5%, with an average 12% absorption rate. (The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.) Numbers will be rounded off to the nearest whole number, unless the number is exactly .5% between two numbers. (Revised numbers)
Here are the real estate statistics for single family home sales activity on Seattle’s Eastside:
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(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 14% chance of getting a home sold, UP from 13% last month and DOWN from 15% last year. Median home prices were down by 14%, from $602,500 to $519,000. Inventory was up by 10% and sales up by 1.5% from last year.
Sellers had a 17.5% chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 19% last month, and DOWN from 19 % last year. Median sales price decreased from $575,000 to $550,000, a decrease of 5%. Inventory was up 24% and sales were up 16%.
Sellers had a 11% chance of selling a home, THE SAME as last month and UP from 10% last year. Median price decreased by 5% to $594,500 from $627,250. Inventory was up 7% and sales were up 19%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall
Sellers had a 12% chance of selling a home, UP from 11% last month and DOWN from 13% last year. Median price was down to $459,950 from $495,000, a 7% decrease. Inventory was up by 19% from last year and sales were up by 15%.
Sellers had a 9% chance of selling a home, THE SAME as last month and DOWN from 12.5% last year. Median price increased by 2%, to $695,000 from $679,975. Inventory was up by 20% and sales were up by 17%.
Sellers had a 8% chance of selling a home, UP from 6% last month, and THE SAME as last year. Median pricing decreased by 15% to $1,314,000 from $1,550,000. Inventory increased by 49.5% and sales increased by 53%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 17% chance of selling a home, UP from 14% from last month, and UP from 11% last year. Median pricing decreased by 4.5% from $549,950 to $525,000. Inventory increased by 11% and sales increased by 58.5%!
Most eastside neighborhoods showed similar real estate activity in September as in August. The chances of selling a home hardly varied with the exception of the Redmond’s Education and Novelty Hill areas and Carnation. The area experienced a 3% increase over August activity. This area also saw the largest increase in sales from last September, 58% more homes sold.
Homes in West Bellevue had only an 8% chance of selling. However, West Bellevue had a huge increase in inventory, almost 50%, resulting in 53% more sales this year than last year at this time.
All the eastside areas dropped in median pricing, with the exception of Kirkland, which was up 2% this month.
The chances of selling a home on the eastside have not varied much in most neighborhoods over the past few months. However, in almost all neighborhoods, prices are down and inventory and sales are up.
This morning KPLU had a story about high end condo real estate in Seattle and on the Eastside. Richard Hagar, the appraiser interviewed for the story, called condos priced above $5 million dollars as the high end, and, he says, these condos are in demand.
I was curious to know how may condos were for sale on Seattle’s Eastside in this price range and if any had sold. I checked the MLS and right now there are two condos priced above $5 million, both new construction in downtown Bellevue.
The most expensive condominium home is the penthouse at Bellevue Towers. It’s priced at $9.2 million with 6397 square feet, 4 bedrooms, and 4.5 baths.
The runner-up is priced at $5.2 million and is located in The Bravern, just a few blocks away. This condominium home is 3923 square feet and has 3 bedrooms and 3. 5 baths.
How many condominiums on the Eastside are priced between $4-5 million? 2
between $3-4 million? 4
between $2-3 million? 11
between $1-2 million? 75
How many condominiums have sold in the last 6 months for more than $5 million? none
between $4-5 million? none
between $3-4 million? 3 pending
between $2-3 million? none
between $1-2 million? 29
Is the high end really above $2 million on the Eastside, not $5 million? The number of condominiums available above $2 million drops dramatically from the condos available between $1-2 million. Seventeen condos are priced above $2 million. There are 75 condos between $1-2 million and 29 are pending or closed sales. Above the $5 million range, there haven’t been any sales and only 3 condos have sold between $2-5 million in the last six months.
We all know most people cannot afford the million dollar range of homes or condos, but it looks as if there is a high end real estate market between $1-2 million and an “ultra high end” when we talk about the Seattle/Eastside condo market.
Microsoft gets it. The Seattle Times gets it. The Eastside Transportation Association gets it. Ron Sims gets it. Each one of these organizations/people are doing something about better transportation and/or voicing their opinion about transportation systems that will work in King County and on the Eastside.
Microsoft is already doing it. It has a world class shuttle/bus/car system to meet the commuting needs of its employees, cutting down on the number of single car trips and, ultimately, reducing the carbon footprint of Microsoft.
The Seattle Times has come out against the Sound Transit ballot measure. The newspaper, too, recognizes the need for better transportation. The Times doesn’t believe this ballot measure will solve our transportation problems, partly because of its exorbitant cost and, partly, because of the many years it will take to complete the light rail system without any relief to our existing transportation problems. From The Seattle Times editorial:
“Buses are cheaper than rail and more flexible. Proposition 1 slights them: The two center lanes on the Interstate 90 bridge, which now serve buses and Mercer Islanders, become rail-only. Buses are kicked out. Buses will also be kicked out of Seattle’s downtown transit tunnel.
Finally, it is said that Proposition 1 is not about us, but our grandchildren. So it is. It is a proposal to extend two costly rail lines and to oblige our grandchildren to pay for them. The sales tax is raised to 9.5 percent. It is a lot, and it goes on for a very long time.”
The Sound Transit plan is very long term, but does not prepare King County and the eastside for today’s commuter needs. I can’t imagine what a mess will exist on our roads for the next decade if this plan gets passed.
What do you think about Sound Transit’s proposal?
Full Circle Farm, 31904 N.E. 8th St., Carnation
- Saturday, September 13, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Ames Creek Farm, 27307 N.E. 100th, Carnation
- Saturday, October 11, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
- Saturday, October 18, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
More information here. To register, contact Tim Bernthal, 206.783.3088 or email him at tbernthal@gowebway.com.
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(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 13% chance of getting a home sold, UP from 12% last month and DOWN from 21% last year. Median home prices were up by 4%, from $549,250 to $572,000. Inventory was up by 19% and sales declined by 22% from last year.
Sellers had a 19% chance of getting a home sold, UP from 16% last month, and DOWN from 25 % last year. Median sales price decreased from $582,475 to $549,000, a decrease of 6%. Inventory was up 43% and sales were down 12%.
Sellers had a 11% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 14% last month and DOWN from 20% last year. Median price decreased by 8.5% to $592,475 from $647,800. Inventory was up 14% and sales were down 38%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall
Sellers had a 11% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 15% last month and DOWN from 16% last year. Median price was down to $478,062 from $502,500, a 5% decrease. Inventory was up by 30% from last year and sales declined by 14%.
Sellers had a 9% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 10% last month and DOWN from 14% last year. Median price declined by 11%, from $649,950 to $585,000. Inventory was up by 29% and sales were down by 14.5%.
Sellers had a 6% chance of selling a home, UP from 5%, and DOWN from 19% last year. Median pricing decreased by 37% to $999,950 from $1,582,500. Inventory increased by 73% and sales declined by 42%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 14% chance of selling a home, the same as last month, and DOWN from 26% last year. Median pricing decreased by 8% from $650,000 to $599,950. Inventory increased by 19% and sales dropped by 34.5%.
July and August’s market activity was very similar, with most neighborhoods seeing the same chances for selling in both months. However, the top area for sales on the Eastside, with the largest increase in chances from last month, was the East Bellevue/West Redmond/Microsoft area. The chances of selling your home in South Bellevue, North Kirkland, Woodinville, Kenmore, Bothell, and Duvall dropped by few percentage points. For the first time this year, West Bellevue’s median price dipped below $1,000,000. We’ve not seen median pricing in West Bellevue below $1,000,000 since 2006.
To determine the most realistic view of the market, look at several months worth of data. Pay particular attention to the amount of homes for sale in your area. Regardless of what’s happened in the previous months, make sure you know the actual competition in your area before establishing a sales price and going on the market.
Be the best home out there and your home will sell. People are still relocating, changing jobs, needing more space, reasons that still exist for making a move.
The Seattle/Eastside area is still far more fortunate than many other areas of the country. For example, Southern California is looking at a 34% price drop from last year.
Another luxury brand has been snagged by The Bravern in Bellevue. The Eastside of Seattle is becoming the Seattle/Eastside’s answer to New York’s Fifth Avenue, Beverly Hills’ Rodeo Drive, and Chicago’s Magnificent Mile with the presence of Hermes, Jimmy Choo, The Red Door Spa, Bottega Veneta, and Neiman Marcus. The move on the part of all these shops to Bellevue’s Bravern is testament to the economic clout of Seattle’s Eastside. Here’s the notice I received from Margaret Nicoll about the latest Bravern happenings:
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“French Luxury House To Open First Northwest Store At The Bravern
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BELLEVUE, WA (September 9, 2008)- The French luxury house of Hermès will open in The Shops at The Bravernin the fall of 2009. The Bravern will be Hermès’ first location (2,100 square feet) in the Pacific Northwest where the historic retailer joins a noteworthy line-up of firsts for the Pacific Northwest, including Neiman Marcus, Bottega Veneta, Jimmy Choo, Red Door Spa and DavidBartonGym. Schnitzer West has also announced Louis Vuitton and two local landmark restaurants, John Howie Steak and Wild Ginger, as part of the retail mix. The Bravern is currently under construction and scheduled for completion in 2009. The 1.6 million square foot development in downtown Bellevue, WAwill include approximately 305,000 square feet of fashion-leading retail and restaurants anchored by a 125,000-square-foot Neiman Marcus, 455 Signature Residences in two elegant condominium towers and two office buildings, which have been fully leased to Microsoft. When finished, the five-acre site will feature a vibrant outdoor village with gracious arrival courts and European-style piazzas as well as include a 35-acre subterranean parking garage with 3,100 stalls. The Bravern will accommodate 2,300 Microsoft employees, approximately 1,000 homeowners and employ between 300 and 500 staff among the retail shops and services.” |
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Are you interested in mid-century modern architecture? Take a tour of a unique neighborhood, Bellevue Washington’s Hilltop community on Saturday, September 6th, 2008 from 1-4 PM. Click here to get tickets for this special opportunity to see a fine example of a community planned in the late 1940’s by some of Seattle’s foremost archtects of the time, such as Paul Hayden Kirk and Wendell Lovett.
The Seattle Times had an interesting article this past spring in which it discussed the New England sensibility of the community with its one lot, one vote. The homes were designed to incorporate the views of Rainier, Seattle, and the lakes in combination with a respect for nature. The homes are on one acre lots and still have septic systems.
Many of the original home owners were University of Washington professors and local architects. Over the years, as a real estate agent, I’ve had the opportunity to see a few of the homes that have come on the market for sale, but many of the homes never reach the open market and are passed down in families. This is a great opportunity to see a few of Hilltop’s homes.
It’s ironic, because I’ve just come back from a visit to a similar type of community in Maine with one lot, one vote. The community of Long Cove shares a water system, just as Hilltop did when first developed, a clubhouse, and tennis courts. It’s along the shore near New Harbor on Maine’s mid-coast peninsula of Pemaquid. The homes are more rustic in nature than Hilltop, but the sensibility is the same. While there, I had a view of the Atlantic, lobster boats, and Monhegan Island.
Charles Anderson, a professor and home owner in Hilltop, wrote an interesting article about Hilltop. It’s an short, informative read about community flavor of Hilltop and the styles of many of the homes.
(top photo by Bill Johnson)
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(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 12% chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 17% last month and DOWN from 22% last year. Median home prices were up by 1%, from $569,800 to $575,000. Inventory was up by 18% and sales declined by 33.5% from last year.
Sellers had a 16% chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 23% last month, and DOWN from 34% last year. Median sales price decreased from $599,000 to $574,990, a decrease of 4%. Inventory was up 70% and sales were down 20%.
Sellers had a 14% chance of selling a home, UP from 12.5% last month and DOWN from 23% last year. Median price decreased by 19% to $604,950 from $749,975. Inventory was up 24% and sales were down 24.5%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall
Sellers had a 15% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 15.5% last month and DOWN from 26% last year. Median price was down to $475,000 from $550,000, a 14% decrease. Inventory was up by 35% from last year and sales declined by 23%.
Sellers had a 10% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 16.5% last month and DOWN from 22% last year. Median price declined by 25%, from $757,475 to $569,000. Inventory was up by 25% and sales were down by 38%.
Sellers had a 5% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 9.5%, and DOWN from 19% last year. Median pricing decreased by 29% to $1,354,975 from $1,748,000. Inventory increased by 85% and sales declined by 50%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 14% chance of selling a home, UP (barely) from 13% last month, and DOWN from 22% last year. Median pricing decreased by 15% from $644,435 to $549,375. Inventory increased by 18% and sales dropped by 25%.
The activity for May is included at the top of this article because July’s market performance is very similar to the market performance in May. June was a stronger month for sales for most of the Eastside neighborhoods than July has been. South Bellevue, and Education Hill, Carnation, and Union Hill areas were all stronger performing areas, but only by a fraction. Every other area of the Eastside showed less of an absorption rate than in June. West Bellevue, Medina and Clyde Hill, our most expensive areas, were hit the hardest with the biggest decline in activity and pricing.
To determine the most realistic view of the market, look at several months worth of data. Pay particular attention to the amount of homes for sale in your area. Regardless of what’s happened in the previous months, make sure you know the actual competition in your area before establishing a sales price and going on the market.
Remember sellers, it’s price and condition in this market. Homes are selling, but as we all know, there’s competition. Be the best home out there and your home will sell.
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The following is excerpted from a press release from Margaret Nicoll at Gruman-Nicoll and Tami Elwin at Schnitzer West: Top-Rated Luxury Brand To Open First Northwest Boutique at The Bravern
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BELLEVUE, WA August 5, 2008 – When Schnitzer West opensThe Shops at The Bravern in September 2009, it will be home toBottega Veneta, rated the number one luxury brand in a recent survey conducted by the Luxury Institute. The Bravern will be Bottega Veneta’s first location in the Pacific Northwest where the leather goods purveyor joins a star-studded line-up of firsts for the region, including Neiman Marcus, Jimmy Choo and Red Door Spa. “Bottega Veneta epitomizes the character of The Bravern in its commitment to fashion design, extraordinary craftsmanship and personal service,” says Tom Woodworth, senior investment director with Schnitzer West, developer of Bellevue’s only outdoor, upscale lifestyle shopping village. “With the addition of retailers such as Neiman Marcus, Bottega Veneta, Louis Vuitton, Jimmy Choo and Red Door Spa, Schnitzer West has assembled a line-up that both validates the strength of the Pacific Northwest economy and will position The Shops at The Bravern and Bellevue among the top shopping destinations in the country,” says Maria Royer, principal with commercial brokers Real Retail in Seattle. Currently under construction and scheduled for completion in 2009, The Bravern’s vibrant outdoor village will feature gracious arrival courts and European-style piazzas. The 1.6 million square foot development in downtown Bellevue, WAwill include approximately 305,000 square feet of fashion-leading retail and restaurants anchored by a 125,000-square-foot Neiman Marcus, 455 Signature Residences in two elegant condominium towers and two office buildings, which have been fully leased to Microsoft. When finished, the five-acre site will accommodate 2,300 Microsoft employees, approximately 1,000 homeowners and employ between 300 and 500 staff among the retail shops and services. The project also will include a 35-acre subterranean parking garage with 3,100 stalls. |
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When I read the above press release, it is clear that even during this economic slowdown, Bellevue continues to be the stronger economic region of the Seattle/King County area. Luxury brands new to the area are choosing to move to the eastside, rather than to Seattle, because of this point.
Every year I look forward to the annual Bellevue Arts Museum Fair in July. It’s one of the top art fairs in the country and one of the highlights of the summer for me. Each year there are some of the great standbys mixed in with some new artistic talent. Where else can you go to an art fair in a shopping mall parking garage!
Here are some of my favorites from this year’s show:
Nancy Sinatra would have thought “these boots were made for walking” by the Heliotropium Gallery in Mount Vernon, Washington.
Gorgeous ceramic vessels with an Asian esthetic were presented by Brian O’Neill.
This artful design is from Seth Rolland Custom Furniture Design in Port Townsend, WA.
Larry Halvorsen is known for his black and white pottery creations.
Mark Hudak creates wonderful, practical pieces that are very affordable and fun.
Dean Pulver from Dean Pulver Studio Furniture made this whimsical bench.
Time for a game of Monopoly? Too bad, this is actually a painting by pop artist Doug Bloodworth! The detail is just fabulous and makes you want to try to buy Park Place. What would you expect from a Realtor?
Ok, the battery in my camera died, so we have 7 favorites here, although I had many more I wanted to photograph. Another great fair this year. What were your favorites? See if we can complete the list of 10 here.
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(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 16.7% chance of getting a home sold, UP from 12.7% last month and DOWN from 25.3% last year. Median home prices were down by 2.6%, from $604,475 to $589,000. Inventory was up by 17.5% and sales declined by 22.6% from last year.
Sellers had a 23.2% chance of getting a home sold, UP from 13.5% last month, and DOWN from 42.5% last year. Median sales price decreased from $624,500 to $549,500, a decrease of 12%. Inventory was up 80.4% and sales were down 1.3%.
Sellers had a 12.5% chance of selling a home, UP from 11.5% last month and DOWN from 24.9% last year. Median price decreased by 15.7% to $588,975 from $699,000. Inventory was up 25% and sales were down 37.4%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall
Sellers had a 15.5% chance of selling a home, UP from 9.6% last month and DOWN from 26.8% last year. Median price was down to $498,875 from $522,475, a 4.5% decrease. Inventory was up by 37% from last year and sales declined by 20.9%.
Sellers had a 16.5% chance of selling a home, UP from 9.6% last month and DOWN from 23.5% last year. Median price declined by 4.5%, from $724,950 to $694,000. Inventory was up by 28% and sales were down by 10%.
Sellers had a 9.5% chance of selling a home, UP from 7.3%, and DOWN from 34% last year. Median pricing decreased by 13.7% to $1,294,750 from $1,500,000. Inventory climbed by 95.7% and sales declined by 45.5%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 13.2% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 21.2% last month, and DOWN from 25.5% last year. Median pricing increased by 12.2% from $598,000 to $671,035. Inventory increased by 25.5% and sales dropped by 35%.
Inventory on Seattle’s Eastside dropped significantly from last month, by 195 homes, a 5% deline in inventory. All the eastside areas showed an increase in the absorption rate, the number of sales compared to the amount of homes for sale, except in the Education Hill, Union Hill, Carnation area. This area was the highest performing area last month, with the sales activity declining this month. West Redmond/East Bellevue had the best absorption rate of the Eastside once again. May was the only month this year that the area east of 405 and south of highway 908 was not the best performing area on the eastside.
To determine the most realistic view of the market, look at several months worth of data. Pay particular attention to the amount of homes for sale in your area. Regardless of what’s happened in the previous months, make sure you know the actual competition in your area before establishing a sales price and going on the market.
Remember sellers, it’s price and condition in this market. Homes are selling, but as we all know, there’s competition.
Hold on! Could it actually be sunny on the Fourth of July? Could it be great weather to celebrate the outdoors? It could be wonderful. But now I’m hearing it could be damp and rainy. I’m heading to my 23rd Fourth of July in the Seattle area and have seen more cool and damp holidays than I care to remember. I’ve heard more than once that around Seattle, “Summer begins on July 5th.” This week, starting with this past weekend, it appears that summer has arrived in full swing. Let’s hope it stays this way for the fourth.
Here’s where you can spend your Fourth of July in the Seattle area:
If you want to travel across the lake, there are the two grandaddies of all the holiday celebrations:
Rated by Time Magazine as one of the “top five fireworks shows in the country.”
Enjoy food, a beer garden, Chinook helicopter fly-over and more.
Gas Works Park, 2101 Northlake Way
!2 noon with fireworks at 10 PM
Come down to Eliot Bay to view the 44th annual Ivar’s fireworks show.
Fish and Fireworks is a special opportunity to watch the fireworks show from the Aquarium, enjoy the fish and sea life, and avoid the crowds and traffic.
Bellevue has the Symetra Fourth of July sponsored by Washington.
Bellevue Downtown Park from 6-10:30 PM.
Bothell’s Fourth of July celebration
Bothell starts the celebration on July 3rd with dances, pancacke breakfasts and a reenactment of the battle at the Concord bridge.
Check out the City of Bothell website for more details.
Kirkland starts its celebration in the morning.
This morning, The Seattle Times had a list of everything you can do on the Fourth all over Puget Sound.
Seattle’s Seafair Marathon ran by yesterday from Seattle through the Eastside cities of Bellevue and Kirkland. The runners showed lots of grit, guts, sweat, humor, and appreciation. Pretty impressive, given that I was seeing this when the runners were hitting their 23rd mile and the temperature kept climbing to one of our hottest days of the year.
Volunteering to help with the race, I was responsible for directing the cars crossing the course as they headed into Houghton Beach Park along Kirkland’s Lake Washington Boulevard.
Whe the runners came, it happened really fast. Shortly after 9 AM the first three runners came by right on each others heels. The men were the Kenyans, who were the men to beat. I read later that they ran the race together like this until mile 24, when number 7, Edward Kiptum broke from the group to win the race by 33 seconds.
At 9:35, the first woman runner ran by.
The winning woman was not far behind at that point.
9:45 a steady stream of runners had crossed mile 22.
10:45 Team in Training sister alumni racing for the cure of blood cancers for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
10:45 First marathon walkers with ski poles.
The runners/walkers were incredibly polite and appreciative. Countless people thanked me for volunteering and picking up the water cups others threw down on the ground.
One runner yelled, “You guys are brilliant.” I responded, “No, you guys are.” He shot back with “Right now, I’m not so sure it was so brilliant to sign up.”
Another runner from the Marathon Maniacs team said, “Oh, you’re taking my picture? Sorry my hair is messed up,” as he doffed his cap and showed his bald head. (Picture before he took his cap off!)
Then there were the two women with Statue of Liberty hats.
When I shouted encouragement to people, several shot back about the hill in Bellevue. I’ll never look at Bellevue Way heading south from Kirkland in quite the same way anymore!
Congratulations to all who ran, walked, and volunteered. A race well done!
The Seafair Marathon is crossing the 520 bridge with most of the route on the eastside of Seattle this year for the first time. This Sunday, the 29th, the marathon begins at 7 AM in Husky Stadium and treats the runners to fabulous views of Lake Washington as they run across the bridge to the eastside cities of Bellevue and Kirkland. The race heads as far south as Enatai and swings back up through Bellevue’s Bridle Trails to Rose Hill on over to the Kirkland Highlands, through East and West of Market, along Lake Washington Boulevard back down to the Bellevue Downtown Park and the finish line. There’s a 1/2 marathon which will cross the bridge and circle through Bellevue.
Give those Team in Training members a big cheer. These will be the runners in purple jerseys. They’re running to raise money for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and blood borne cancers. These runners have been training and raising money for the past 6 months. I participated in a 1/2 marathon for Team in Training a few years back up in Anchorage, Alaska. It was a wonderful and rewarding experience.
Expect to see world class runners coming through your neighborhood!
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(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 12.7% chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 15.4% last month and DOWN from 29.8% last year. Median home prices were up by 3.1%, from $596,450 to $614,900. Inventory was up by 36.8% and sales declined by 41.7% from last year.
Sellers had a 13.5% chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 19% last month, and DOWN from 63.8% last year. Median sales price decreased from $619,000 to $559,950, a decrease of 9.5%. Inventory was up 128% and sales were down 51.5%.
Sellers had a 11.5% chance of selling a home, Up from 10.6% last month and DOWN from 29.1% last year. Median price increased by 1.5% to $699,475 from $689,075. Inventory was up 48% and sales were down 41.4%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall
Sellers had a 9.6% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 12.5% last month and DOWN from 24.9% last year. Median price was down to $499,950 from $525,000, a 4.8% decrease. Inventory was up by 47% from last year and sales declined by 43.3%.
Sellers had a 9.6% chance of selling a home, UP from 8.46% last month and DOWN from 31.3% last year. Median price declined by 15.1%, from $799,950 to $679,000. Inventory was up by 55.4% and sales were down by 52.3%.
Sellers had a 7.3% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 9.03%, and DOWN from 29% last year. Median pricing decreased by 11.4% to $1,325,000 from $1,495,000. Inventory climbed by 103.2% and sales declined by 48.9%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 21,2% chance of selling a home, UP from 14% last month, and DOWN from 33% last year. Median pricing decreased by .08% from $654,950 to $650,000. Inventory increased by 60.9% and sales dropped by 3.2%.
County wide, inventory is up from January’s numbers. On the eastside 2963 homes were on the market in January and now there are 4349 homes for sale, a 32% increase. The median price was up in four areas on the eastside in April, but only in two areas in May.
To determine the most realistic view of the market, look at several months worth of data. Pay particular attention to the amount of homes for sale in your area. Regardless of what’s happened in the previous months, make sure you know the actual competition in your area before establishing a sales price and going on the market.
Remember sellers, it is price and condition in this market. Homes are selling, but as we all know, there is competition.
Since the late 1980’s the Eastside of Seattle has exploded with development. Within the last few years, we’ve entered a completely new phase of development impacting many of the Eastside cities. Bellevue, Redmond, Issaquah, and Bothell are all undergoing big changes.
Here’s a list of some of the changes you will see on the Eastside. Much of this information was provided courtesy of Al Hodge, a commercial real estate broker with The Broderick Group, Inc. He has his ear to the ground and is very familiar with the latest happenings on the Eastside. Al Hodge made a presentation a couple of weeks ago at my Windermere office.
Downtown Bellevue is undergoing massive changes. I met a friend for dinner downtown the other day and we commented on how different things will be in downtown Bellevue over the next couple of years. There will be less of a need to go across the pond for great food and entertainment. (Not that there aren’t already some wonderful restaurants and entertainment venues on Seattle’s Eastside.)
Bellevue:
Microsoft has 3 million square feet of space.
Kemper Freeman is planning a $42 million upgrade of Bellevue Square.
El Gaucho restaurant is (rumored) to be opening in the new 26-story City Center Plaza off of NE 6th.
Other possibilities already reported in earlier posts:
John Howie of Seastar fame will open another restaurant.
Wild Ginger will also be on the Eastside.
Issaquah:
Opus Northwest will continue to have the largest retail center.
Group Health Hospital will keep its 26 acres of land/space.
Kirkland:
Parkplace is going through the review process for redevelopment.
Google is building 195,000 sq ft of space to accommodate about1000 employees.
Lake Street restaurants, including Hector’s, will closed and
The McLeod project is still under discussion. Approved by the city’s Design Review Board, the plan was voted down by the City Council.
Redmond:
4,000 space parking garage will be built to accommodate Microsoft employees. This billion dollar project will consist of a park and baseball field.
Nintendo, located nearby, recently sold Microsoft 40 acres of additional land for developing.
HP & EMC have moved in to the area
Angelo’s Nursery sold for $12 million for a future Elder Care facility.
Downtown Redmond:
Whole Foods has started the chain of new developments.
Costco will soon develop on 28 acres alongside the Business Park.
Xbox will stay for now possible move after Microsoft parking garage is built.
What do you think about all this growth, all these changes? Is it a good thing for the Eastside, or not?
On Monday Metropolitan King County officials and Port of Seattle Commissioners met to sign the paperwork for the complicated deal between the Port of Seattle, King County, and the BNSF railroad. The Port will buy the BNSF tracks from the railway and allow King County to keep the right of way in the public domain.
But what’s the future of the rail line? What’s the future of a trail? I’ve added links to the some of the news articles about the deal and will highlight some of the key issues raised in each article. It’s interesting to compare what’s reported in each article. The different newspapers do not see the issues in exactly the same light. This is not surprising since the issues surrounding the trail and/or rail line are still unclear and very much up in the air.
Several constants in this saga are:
The BNSF is selling the rail line to the Port for $107 million dollars.
The Port has granted King County an easement to develop a trail on 32 miles of the corridor.
Federal law requires the train line be “rail banked”, kept for possible future use as a train line. The tracks will remain in place. This will keep the line available for public use and ownership.
The port will receive $1.9 million dollars from King County for the use of an easement for a hiking/biking trail along the Renton to Woodinville stretch of the rail line and the 7 mile spur from Woodinville to Redmond.
The Everett Herald had an interesting story summarizing Monday’s inking of the deal. The Herald reflected the Snohomish County Council point of view.
“ Snohomish County wants leverage sooner and is working to keep the rails in place for commuter trains all the way to tech job centers on the east side of Lake Washington.
“We think we can have the rails and the trails,” Somers (Snohomish County Council Chairman) said.
Somers is pushing for a deal with a private company called GNP Railway to provide daily commuter trains on the route from Snohomish to Bellevue as soon as next year. The county is negotiating with the company chairman Tom Payne.
“If we can team up with Tom Payne and get status with the federal government, the port and King County have to deal with us.”
Snohomish County wants rail.
“The port isn’t interested in long-term ownership of the corridor, so questions to be worked out include who would ultimately own the corridor and run commuter rail over it, said Port Commissioner John Creighton. “We’re holding the corridor now, but if Sound Transit determines it can make use of the corridor, we would like to sell it to Sound Transit, get our money out, and invest it in our core business.”
Both The Seattle P-I and The Seattle Times weighed in with their take on the future for the rail/trail. The Seattle P-I’s article was the most comprehensive summary of the story. Here are some additional issues raised in the P-I article:
Previously, a study was done to the tune of $800,000 by The Puget Sound Regional Council. This study stated:
“In May 2007 the Puget Sound Regional Council published a study that found Sound Transit and the state Department of Transportation’s strategy of using a series of rapid buses to serve commuters was more feasible than developing high capacity rail transit along the Eastside rail corridor.”
A new survey is being conducted and will be completed by February, 2009. The cost for this study is $340,000, after $800,000 has already been spent to say the commuter line is not viable in King County! Part of the money for the study is being paid by the Discovery Institute, which has a vested interest in seeing the commuter line developed, since this very group is hoping to develop the commuter line. This second study is being conducted with funds from a source that hopes to gain from the outcome of the study. Hmm….
It’s important to have thorough and impartial studies completed, studies which demonstrate the actual cost per rider and the full cost of developing the trail and rail line. It’s important to have the proper public process for the trail and/rail line. Whatever is decided must be the result of careful, thorough analysis and not just a band-aid solution resulting from the failure of Proposition 1.
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(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 15.4% chance of getting a home sold, UP from 14.5% last month and DOWN from 29.4% last year. Median home prices were down by 6.2%, from $637,000 to $597,639. Inventory was up by 48.8% and sales declined by 22% from last year.
Sellers had a 19% chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 21.7% last month, and DOWN from 46.0% last year. Median sales price increased from $569,000 to $608,998. Inventory was up 110% and sales were down from 63 sales to 55 homes, a 12.7% decline.
Sellers had a 10.6% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 12.3% last month and DOWN from 25.9% last year. Median price decreased by 19% to $600,000 from $741,150. Inventory was up 54.5% and sales were down almost 36.7%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall
Sellers had a 12.5% chance of selling a home, a minimal change from 12.3% last month and DOWN from 37% last year. Median price was down to $484,450 from $514,950, a 5.9% decrease. Inventory was up by 60.1% from last year and sales declined by 45.9%.
Sellers had a 8.46% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 10.7% last month and DOWN from 30.5% last year. Median price declined by .03%, from $710,000 to $707,950. Inventory was up by 62.6% and sales were down by 54.8%.
Sellers had a 9.03% chance of selling a home, UP from 7.26%, and DOWN from 28.3% last year. Median pricing increased by 42% to $1,399,000 from $985,000. Inventory climbed by 106.2% and sales declined by 34.1%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 14.0% chance of selling a home, DOWN slightly from 14.8% last month, and DOWN from 20.9% last year. Median pricing increased by 13.1% from $577,015 to $652,450. Inventory increased by 71% and sales dropped by 14.5%.
County wide, inventory is up from January’s numbers. On the eastside 2963 homes were on the market in January and now there are 3985 homes for sale, a 26% increase. The chances of selling in the different eastside areas varied very little from March’s numbers. However, if sales were down in an area, there was no absolute correlation with median price. Even if sales were down, the median price could still go up. The median price was up from last April in four of the eastside areas and down in three of the areas.
If you are trying to get a feel of the market in a particular area, look at several months worth of data. This will give the most realistic view of the market. Pay particular attention to the increase in inventory in your area. Sellers. regardless of what’s happened in a previous month, make sure you understand how much actual competition there is in your area before establishing a sales price and going on the market.
Remember sellers, it is price and condition in this market. Homes are selling, but as we all know, competition for the buyer is fierce.
Come to King County Council’s meeting on April 28th at 9:30 AM on the 10th floor of The King County Courthouse building, 516 3rd Avenue, Seattle. Listen, learn, speak about the trail opportunities on the existing rail line.
For more about the meeting and the issues, check out this post on my Kirkland blog and this article in this morning’s Seattle Times.There will be several meetings coming up on the eastside in the next week in which you can learn more about the issues. I’ll let you know about these upcoming meetings.
I just received the April email newsletter from Bellevue Towers, The LEED certified high rise condos in Bellevue. The newsletter announced the restaurants coming to the complex.
(Photo taken a few months ago)
Purple Cafe and Wine Bar’sowners will open 3 different restaurants in the complex. The Bellevue Towers will be the home to the 4th Purple Cafe and Wine Bar, after Kirkland, Seattle, and Woodinville. Two other new concept restaurants will also open at the Towers, a coffee/dessert cafe, and a Latin/Mexican restaurant.
(Original Purple Cafe and Wine Bar in Woodinville.)
From the April Bellevue Towers email newsletter:
Sellers had a 16% chance of selling a condo on Seattle’s Eastside in March of 2008. ( click on 2008 year to date statistics in the link above for a chart showing the condo report)
March, 2008 1277 condos for sale, 208 condos sold, 16% chance of selling.
February, 2008 1230 condos for sale, 140 condos sold, 11% chance of selling.
March, 2007 535 condos for sale, 405 condos sold, 75% chance of selling.
The eastside certainly doesn’t follow expected trends. Even with the more than double the inventory, pricing is still 7.4% higher than last year. Usually, if there are more properties available and less sales, then the prices go down, but not on Seattle’s Eastside.
_____________________________________________________________
(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 14.5% chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 16.4% last month and DOWN from 40.4% last year. Median home prices were down by 2.4%, from $593,950 to $579,500. Inventory was up by 59.7% and sales declined by almost 42% from last year.
Sellers had a 21.7% chance of getting a home sold, UP from 15.6% last month, and DOWN from 58.8% last year. Median sales price decreased from $598,725 to $539,950. Inventory was up 127% and sales were down from 70 sales to 59 homes, a 15.7% decline.
Sellers had a 12.3% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 13.4% last month and DOWN from 40.7% last year. Median price decreased by 1.5% to $669,950 from $659,950. Inventory was up 60.6% and sales were down almost 51.2%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall
Sellers had a 12.3% chance of selling a home, as 12.3% last month and DOWN from 35.1% last year. Median price was down to $525,000 from $540,450, a 2.9% decrease. Inventory was up by 57% from last year and sales declined by 44.9%.
Sellers had a 10.7% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 12.5% last month and DOWN from 28.2% last year. Median price declined by 2%, from $714,950 to $699,999. Inventory was up by 57.2% and sales were down by 40.2%.
Sellers had a 7.26% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 9%, and DOWN from 35.2% last year. Median pricing increased by 2.9% to $1,250,000 from $1,215,000. Inventory climbed by 136.9% and sales declined by 51.2%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 14.8% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 15.8% last month, and DOWN from 48.9% last year. Median pricing decreased by 11.5% from $678,225 to $600,000. Inventory increased by103% and sales dropped by 38.5%.
King county wide, inventory is up from January’s numbers. On the eastside 2963 homes were on the market in January and now there are 3637 homes for sale.
As I mentioned in a previous post, if you’re considering a move, whether you’re buying or selling, it’s important to break the data down regarding the inventory and the absorption rate even further than what is reported above. The information here is a great snapshot for the eastside. But when looking at the price for a particular home, it’s best to look at the information in a smaller area than what’s shown above.
Also, look at several months worth of data. It’s interesting to see how things can fluctuate each month. For example, in West Bellevue, median price has been declining over the past few months and this month median pricing is up. If you look at several months worth of statistics, you’ll get a more realistic flavor of the market in a particular area. It obviously is still a tough market for sellers and a much better market for buyers. Pricing and condition is key in selling a home. It always has been, but now it’s even more critical.
Bellevue is the best place to “Live and Launch” in the entire United States, according to Fortune Magazine. Bellevue has a terrific economic climate, natural beauty, a steady supply of hi-tech workers, and traffic! The Seattle/Eastside area is a great place to live, but the traffic wars must be fought everyday. The commute into downtown Bellevue is always interesting. Below are photos showing some of the progress for the new overpass going in at NE 10th. This will provide another access route into downtown Bellevue and make getting to work just a little bit easier. Right now it’s the perfect spot for Evel Kneivel.
Construction on the NE 10th overpass is moving right along. It was just about a month ago that I did a piece showing the beginning of the overpass. These photos show the progress to date. 
Photo taken in February looking west from NE 116th over 405 towards downtown.
New and improved view looking west in March, 2008. Construction of the overpass is getting closer to crossing over 405.
Looking east from 112th Ave NE over what was the Paragon Hotel across 405. (405 is below camera range) Looks like a parking garage? The big concrete structure just above the fence is the overpass perched at the edge of 405. Right now, it’s a road to nowhere. Where is Evel Kneivel when you need him!
Here’s the side view of the ramp as it hangs just before 405, the perfect jumping point for Evel Kneivel. Could he have made the jump over 405 to the other side?
By the way,The Paragon Hotel on NE 112th Ave NE was just knocked down. This is last section standing of the hotel. Someone ought to tell the hotel they are no longer there, since the hotel is still advertising on the internet. It may be a little chilly if you book a room there!
Announced on CNN, Fortune Magazine listed Bellevue, Washington as #1, tops to live in and launch a business. The photo is a shot of Bellevue looking west towards downtown. Only a few of the cranes that hover over all the new construction, commercial and residential, can be seen.
According to The Downtown Bellevue blog:
“ The (Fortune magazine) rankings were based on the following: affordable housing, plentiful leisure activities, plentiful cultural options, job growth, sunny weather, short commute time, and good health care access.” The Northwest is a great place to live with the abundance of lakes, mountains, and culture.
Are there issues? Yes, not everyone would agree there’s affordable housing, short commutes, and lots of sun. But the reality is, if we are a dynamic, growing region with the prospect of economic growth, nothing is perfect. However, the whole package is pretty terrific and hard to beat when compared to other parts of the country. Sure, you can find less expensive real estate. It’s all over this country. But the natural beauty, the culture, the job growth, the level of educated citizens fueled by this job growth, is not as strong in these other areas.
Bellevue is an exciting place. People are looking to move to the downtown core and the Eastside in general.
What are your thoughts about Bellevue as the #1 place for small business growth?
Concerned about what could be happening on the BNSF rail line that runs along Lake Washington through the eastside cities of Renton, Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, and Woodinville? You should be.
I’ve written a lot of pieces about the trails and rails on my Kirkland blogand watched it evolve over the last few years. We’ve gone from a trail to who knows what at this point in time. The latest I’ve heard is the rail line will not work for light rail. The talk is more about DMUs, Diesel Motor Units. If you check out Brian and Emily’s blog, you can see and hear some examples of DMUs in action.
A group of concerned citizens is forming called Eastside Trail Advocates. The group is dedicated to creating a trail on the BNSF rail line. The group is not against better transportation, but wants to ensure transportation improvements make sense. There don’t seem to be any ridership studies completed for a commuter train, but there’s a lot of talk about developing a commuter line. A critical piece is missing here. Is the cart before the horse?
Here are some key points:
The trail advocates are concerned about:
No matter what your opinion, get educated about the rails/trails issues. If you are in support of the trail log onto Eastside Trail Advocates and lend your support.
Gorgeous, gorgeous, The Bravern is one of the premier condominium towers being built on Seattle’s Eastside. The Bravern is at the corner of NE 8th and 112th Ave NE, perhaps the new luxury corner of downtown Bellevue? Comprised of residential condominium towers, an office complex, and luxury shops anchored by Neiman Marcus and Jimmy Choo, The Bravern will be one of the premier destinations and addresses in Bellevue.
Here are some of the features of the complex:
24 hour concierge
7 floors of parking for homeowners with a private elevator
valet parking available
25,000 square foot private roof garden
Protected easterly views
Auto court, similar to the Fairmont Hotel in Seattle
Luxury shopping with the feel of a European Village
I attended an open house a couple of weeks ago and had a chance to see some of the floor plans and finish work of the model homes.
The office space has been leased to Microsoft. The retail space is filling up, although names of all the tenants are not yet public. Premier restauranteurs, such as John Howie of Seastar fame, will be opening restaurants. The first eastside outpost of the Seattle’s wildly popular Wild Ginger restaurant will also be in The Bravern. The Bravern should be a dynamic new addition to Seattle’s Eastside and downtown Bellevue.
Sellers had a 14% chance of selling a condo on Seattle’s Eastside in February of 2008. ( click on 2008 year to date statistics in the link above for a chart showing the condo report)
February, 2008 1230 condos for sale, 140 condos sold, 11% chance of selling.
January, 2008 1059 condos for sale, 149 condos sold, 14% chance of selling.
February, 2007 515 condos for sale, 328 condos sold, 63% chance of selling.
Again, inventory is over twice as high as last year. However, our median price continues to defy expectations. Last year, the median price was $320,639 and this year it is $327,818, a 2.2& increase.
Last month I said:
This number (the median price) may be an anomaly as pricing for all 2007 condos increased by 8%. The median price for any month is a reflection of the sales for that particular month, so last January’s sales may have included more entry level condos, which resulted in a huge increase in median pricing this year when more expensive condos sold. When we see February’s statistics, which will come out in March, we will have a better feel for the actual increase in pricing.
Now in February, we see this 2.2% increase in median pricing. Pricing has gone up, despite the increase in inventory and competition. But the increase is not as dramatic as the 8% reported previously.
I report on real estate statistics on this blog all the time, but this post is about a different set of statistics.
The stats from the Seattle Times article today which is entitled, Euthanasia Cut Nearly in Half at King County Animal Shelters caught my interest. Adoptions have been going well and the euthanasia rate is down to 18% per month, half of what it was at this time last year. This number is at an all time low, according to the article. It’s up to people who are getting pets to help keep these numbers low.
My husband and I adopted a dog last summer from The Humane Society and he’s just fabulous. He has a great personality and is wonderful to have around. This is the second dog we’ve adopted and I highly recommend doing this rather than getting a puppy.
Interesting fact: The King County Council is keeping the euthanasia rate to 20% in 2008 for the shelters in Bellevue and Kent and at 15% in 2009. I’m glad to see the council taking the initiative with this one.
There’s been a lot of press this past week about the torching of The Street of Dreams homes. My previous post was about this story. People were horrified by this senseless act. When reading other posts about the event, particularly the one on The Seattle P-I Real Estate Professionals blog, I noticed another thread in the blog comments about the tragic event, many people were voicing an opinion against the mega-houses The Street of Dreams shows represent.
I thought this might be a good time to visit a different form of American architecture, log homes.
Log homes evoke the past, a sense of adventure, and the “Wild West.” We think thoughts of Abe Lincoln and Laura Ingalls Wilder. The rustic nature of logs brings people close to the wood in its natural state. For some, it can create the perfect ambiance of a rustic, warm getaway and still be a primary residence. A log home is a great antithesis to today’s hectic lifestyles.
There are a number of log homes all around Seattle’s eastside. Most are in areas such as Union Hill or in cities like Duvall, Carnation, Fall City, Woodinville, and Issaquah. However, there are log homes everywhere. There’s a great log home in my neighborhood in Kirkland, one on Market St., and one on Rose Hill.
One recent issue of Realtor Magazine had a interesting article about log homes. According to the article, log homes were first seen in this country in the 1700’s. Early settlers had to make do with what was available. Without “city” conveniences and lumber mills, the full logs did the trick. Homes were often built without nails since nails were scarce.
Remember Lincoln Logs? My brothers had those when we were kids. Lincoln Logs were toy sets for building log homes. The toy logs had the same notched style construction as the original log homes. When I read the above article, I discovered Frank Lloyd Wright’s son created Lincoln Logs. I wonder what his Dad would have thought!
The Log Council , a member of NAHB, The National Association of Home Builders, is an industry trade group and information resource. Numerous architects and builders specialize in log home design and building. The above linked article will give you a great introduction to the concept of log homes in the 21st century.
Several opportunities to learn about disaster preparedness are coming your way, courtesy of the cities of Sammamish, Bellevue, and Kirkland.
The City of Sammamish is sponsoring a class on March 10th and on March 17th to learn about disaster preparedness. The Eastside Business Journal reported on the upcoming class. Here’s the basics as reported in the Eastside Business Journal online:
Free seminar on disaster preparedness sponsored by the Sammamish Citizen Corp.
Enter to win a free disaster prep kit at disastersareweready@gmail.com
Dates: March 10th and 17th
Time: 7 PM – 9:30 PM
Location:Pine Lake Covenant Church, 1715 228th Ave SE, Sammamish, WA 98075
Seminar topics include:
Do you have to be a Sammamish resident? No. I also heard about these classes in a press release from the City of Kirkland. Most of the information being presented is invaluable, no matter where you live.
The City of Bellevue has a 10 minute DVD on disaster preparedness available which you can pick up at City Hall or see as a streaming video on the city website. The DVD is available in 7 languages: Mandarin, Cantonese, Spanish, Russian, Korean, Vietnamese, in addition to English. The Bellevue city website also has terrific information to help you get prepared for a disaster.
The City of Kirkland has two buttons on the front page of the city website dedicated to disaster preparedness and emergency bulletins.
As a Kirkland resident, you can sign up for the next Mapping Your Neighborhood class, which is on:
Saturday, March 15, 9:30 AM, Kirkland Stake Center, 7910 NE 132nd St (corner of Juanita Drive). This is a state designed program to help neighborhoods prepare for and deal with disasters.
Check these websites and classes out. You’ll need to be prepared in the event of a disaster. The police will take care of major emergencies first. It’s up to you to be prepared!
Here’s what you can buy in a new glass condo tower in Brooklyn and on the Eastside of Seattle.
On my way back from Inman News Real Estate Connect, I sat next to John who makes a monthly commute from NYC to Seattle meetings at The Cancer Care Alliance. John and I had a long talk about his experience with New York real estate. John purchased a condo in Williamsburg this past year and during our conversation I was able to find out what 700k will buy. I thought it would be interesting to compare Bellevue and Williamsburg, since both are located across a bridge from the “big city.”
First a bit of history about Williamsburg where he purchased a condo:
His condo is in a section of Brooklyn, Williamsburg, which lies across the East River from Manhattan and has traditionally been a working class community. Developers jumped on the gentrification bandwagon after the State of New York allocated money for a new park that will follow the East River. John made a purchase in a new glass tower which will be right by this new park. The park is scheduled to have play areas, walking/biking paths, and that all important dog park.
Besides its fabulous location, the complex, known as Northside Piers is one of the few all-glass residential buildings in the New York area.
With 10 foot high ceilings and floor to ceiling windows offering unobstructed views of the river, the building will be state-of the-art. John purchased his unit for $700,000 in February, 2007, almost a year ago. Each month prices go up making his unit worth considerably more before he has even taken occupancy. (The building is behind schedule and is still not complete.)
So what did $700,000 buy in this new glass tower in Williamsburg?
It bought a one bedroom unit with about 737 square feet, storage and a laundry area, top of the line finish work, and high end appliances, such as Subzero, Wolf, and Viking. The unit comes with spectacular views of the river and Manhattan. Parking is not included and there are only 170 spaces available for about $300-400 dollars a month in rent.
Homeowner’s dues or maintenance fees, as they are called in NYC, are $700 per month for a unit of this size. Fees give you a lot for the money: interior, exterior, and grounds maintenance, garbage, heat and A/C, hot water, and gas. Electricity and phone are not included.
Here is a New York moment:
The units also come with $6.00 a month in real estate taxes! Yes, you read it correctly, $6.00 a month or $72.00 a year for 25 years. At Inman News Connect we heard about this incentive created by Mike Bloomberg, New York’s Mayor. If new condominium complexes include 20% of the units for lower or middle income housing, the home owners who purchase units at market rate get a tax break. Overall, the units become more affordable with the low real estate taxes. (By the way, real estate taxes are usually much higher than Washington State, almost double.)
John thought his 700k would buy him a 400 square foot studio in Manhattan, so the Williamsburg condo is a fabulous deal.
Northside Piers
$700,000 1 bed/1 bath/ 737 sq ft/ parking not included/ $700 H.O. Dues/ $72 yr. real estate taxes.
What do you get in a “glass” tower/condo on the Eastside of Seattle?
Lincoln Tower
$679,000 1 bed/1 bath/719 sq ft/1 parking spot/ $352 H.O. Dues/views/ $3757 real estate taxes (originally 720k)
$699,000 1 bed/1 bath/757 sq ft/1 parking spot/ $370 H.O. Dues/views/ $3904 real estate taxes (originally 740k)
Bellevue Tower-LEED built building.
$609,900 1 bed/1bath 1200 sq ft/1 parking spot/$588 H.O. Dues/taxes TBD
$619,000 1 bed/1 bath/ 977 sq ft/1 parking spot/$487 H.O. Dues/taxes TBD
$719,000 1 bed/1.5 bath/ 1041 sq ft/is parking spot/$516 H. O. Dues/taxes TBD
$637,000 1 bed/1 bath/ 808 sq. ft/ 1 parking spot/ $299 H.O. Dues/taxes TBD
$641,000 1 bed/1 bath/ 926 sq. ft/ 1 parking spot/ $343 H.O. Dues/Taxes TBD
(Taxes are usually determined upon closing for new construction. It’s safe to say taxes will be similar to Lincoln Tower, which are the only resale condos listed here.)
Here is the new kid on the block. The Bravern is on NE 8th over by 112th Ave NE. I attended an open house for Realtors the other day and I’ll do a more detailed post about the complex. Studios have been predicted to start in the 400k range.
Downtown Bellevue prices are similar to an up-and-coming Brooklyn neighborhood with views of the city and the river. Bellevue is not downtown Seattle and Williamsburg is not Manhattan. Both areas are expensive, but better priced than the heart of the big city. The proximity to the “big city,” plus the more for your money value helps to drive interest to Bellevue and Williamsburg.
But the other reason for the burst in high rise condos on the Eastside that doesn’t compare directly to Williamsburg, is the growth of the job market on the Eastside. The Eastside is more the economic center of King County. People live in Bellevue because the downtown experience is becoming more dynamic, but also because they work on the eastside. Just take a look at traffic during rush hour. The reverse commute is far worse!
A better downtown Bellevue commute is coming! Here’s the start of the new NE 10th overpass over 405. It will run between Overlake Hospital on one side and the new Group Health facility on the other. (Hence the Emergency Department sign) This overpass should help reduce traffic on NE 8th heading into downtown Bellevue.
I wrote an article earlier on this blog about all the changes happening to 405. Sometimes change is good!
January, 2008 2963 homes available, 346 sold, 11.6% chance of selling.
December, 2007 2594 homes available, 295 sold, 9% chance of selling.
January, 2007 1895 homes available, 506 sold, 26.7% chance of selling.
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(click on the each area name for a chart showing the latest stats in the area)
The plateau: Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City
Sellers had a 13.3% chance of getting a home sold, UP from 12.2% last month and DOWN from 32.6% last year. Median home prices were down by .8%, from $624,900 to $619,900. Inventory was up by 55% and sales declined by almost 36.5% from last year.
Sellers had a 15.8% chance of getting a home sold, DOWN from 16.1% last month, and DOWN from 33.6% last year. Median sales price increased from $539,450 to $567,250. Inventory was up a whopping 112% and sales were exactly the same as last January, 36 homes.
Sellers had a 7.2% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 8.9% last month and DOWN from 21.3% last year. Median price decreased by 13.1% to $630,000 from $724,975. Inventory was up 51.6% and sales were down almost 48.3%.
Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall
Sellers had a 14% chance of selling a home, UP from 9.3% last month and DOWN from 25.7% last year. Median price was down to $459,950 from $499,950, an 8% decrease. Inventory was up by 50% from last year and sales declined by 18%.
Sellers had a 9.8% chance of selling a home, DOWN a hair from 10.2% last month and DOWN from 17.2% last year. Median price declined by 3%, from $672,475 to $652,250. Inventory was up by 38% and sales were down by 21%.
Sellers had an 7% chance of selling a home, DOWN from 9.7%, and DOWN from 21.6% last year. Median pricing dropped by 13% to $937,500 from $1,077,500. Inventory climbed by 78% and sales declined by 42%.
Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation
Sellers had a 12.4% chance of selling a home, DOWN ever so slightly from 12% last month, and DOWN from 32.8% last December. Median pricing increased by 2.5% from $648,950 to $664,925. Inventory increased by 59% and sales dropped by 40%.
This will continue to be a more realistic year. Here is the evaluation of the market from my January, 2008 article in which I summarized 2007 Seattle/Eastside real estate. The remarks still hole true for this month’s report:
“The market is softer for sellers, but not dead on the arrival of 2008 like in many areas of the country. Sellers need to be competitive with pricing and have a top notch marketing plan and presentation to capture a buyer’s attention and get the sale. Realistic sellers should not have a problem getting a home sold. Those who decide to sell should expect longer market times and flexibility in pricing.
Buyers have great choices, interest rates, negotiation opportunities, and a chance to think before jumping on a home in today’s market. Buyers, however, who plan to buy should stay put for at least 3-5 years. ” So this may not work for everyone.
Condo stats are coming soon!
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