But, I just recently came across two articles that look at the costs of going” green” more closely.  Just because something is “green” doesn’t mean it truly reduces our carbon footprint or helps you to  save you money. One of the biggest offenders is bamboo flooring.  Since most bamboo is sourced in the Far East, the cost and impact on our carbon footprint for transporting bamboo may outweigh the fact that it’s a renewable resource.

During these crazy times it’s important to analyze how you spend your money on your home.  It’s important to think about the payback to you and the environment, in addition to the payback for when you might sell, even if selling your home is in the future. Going “green” is important to consider, but according to some, there are different ways to handle going green.

Two recent posts on different blogs talked about this very issue.  The Bigger Pockets blog listed 7 green items that could be a waste of money. I’m not sure I agree with all that is said.  For example, CLF’s, Compact Fluorescent Bulbs are more expensive than standard light bulbs, but they are a fairly inexpensive way to reduce our carbon footprint.  Sure they are more expensive than standard light bulbs and may become cheaper, but it’s important to start now and with CFL’s, it is a great place to start. From the EnergyStar website:

If every American home replaced just one light with a light that’s earned the ENERGY STAR, we would save enough energy to light 3 million homes for a year, save about $600 million in annual energy costs, and prevent 9 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions per year, equivalent to those from about 800,000 cars.

CFL's

Other things, such as location, factor into making a “green” decision. Bigger Pockets felt solar panels were not efficient enough yet to warrant the cost.  If you live in Seattle, it probably isn’t cost effective to install solar panels, especially with all the gray 65 degree days we’ve had this summer!  However, in Southern California it makes perfect sense.  I have a friend who installed solar panels and is receiving a substantial rebate for the first five years, plus a check from the utility company for helping to supply power back to the grid.  The payback for these people will be 5-7 years.  Not a bad return for a fairly expensive item.  But these folks have no plans to move, so the investment should more than pay for itself over the years.

Worldchanging tackles this same subject with a video of how to “green” a new construction home and other thoughts about how to reduce our carbon footprint. The post mentions a book by Eric Corey Freed and Kevin Daum entitled “Green Sense for the Home: Rating the Real Payoff from 50 Green Home Projects.”  The book is divided into three handy sections.  The first covers things that can be done now, like using CFL’s or insulating a hot water tank, to more expensive changes like adding solar power and new windows, to building a “green” new home.

The bottom line is everyone should be thinking about making changes, both big and small to save energy and money.  Some things work better for some people, homes, and locations than other “green” changes.  It is important to decide what works for you.  Do the research and make good decisions to maximize your dollar and to save energy.

What ways do you find to save energy and reduce your carbon footprint?  If you’ve got some “green” tips, ideas, etc., please do share.

For example, most people don’t think about the floor plan or how easy it is to live in a home.  Think of buying a home that’s a great deal, but has 4 levels, meaning a lot of running up and down stairs.  This style of home is great, but can get tiring, literally and physically.  It gets old after awhile when you have to cart groceries and laundry up and down stairs.  Most home buyers don’t think about a floor plan that’s easy to live with over many years.  But there are floor plans out there that work for a lot of people and a lot of lifestyles.

Enter “Aging In Place.”  The name suggests we’re talking about older people who want to stay in their homes.  But “Aging in Place”  has another term associated with it, Universal Design, design that works for everyone, young and old alike.  The teen who breaks a leg playing soccer or the Mom who is navigating the front doorway into a home with a baby stroller and packages are all people who benefit from “universal design,” design for everyone.

Most people think aging in place or universal design has too many restrictions to be attractive to multi-generations.  This is not true, if a home is designed and done right.  The Aging Well Consortium blog has terrific photos of a variety of homes with universal design elements.  The design would easily appeal to most buyers who live on Seattle’s eastside.  Plus if universal design features are incorporated into a home when it’s built, it’s not any more expensive to build.

Gourmet Kitchen with Wider Passageway

Maybe one way to save money over time when buying a home is to look at a home as truly a long term investment, a home that works for you no matter what may change in your life. Few home buyers ever do this.  Moving can be expensive when you’re selling a home and buying a new home because you no longer can stay in your home.  Think about it.

What do you think?

(Photos from  Zai architect Emory Baldwin’s home.)

So even though the city ends up on a lot of “top” lists, it’s great to see some green maintained in the heart of the city.  Take a walk down there and check it out.  It’s a beautiful piece of nature for all to enjoy.

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King & Snohomish County Real Estate, 7-31-10

There were no sellers’ market in July. “Red” indicates a sellers’ market with homes selling in less than 3 months.  If you look at the map above, all  the Seattle markets are either a buyer’s market or a balanced market between buyers and sellers.

There’s a mix on Seattle’s eastside. Some markets are buyers’ markets such as West Bellevue and the Sammamish plateau cities of Sammamish, North Bend, Preston, and Fall City.  Homes in these real estate markets took on average over 6 months to sell.  The majority of Seattle Eastside real estate was a balanced market with homes selling between 3-6 months.

The state of the real estate market is a huge contrast from just three months ago when there was no “green” on the map at all.

Clearly, the tax credit did its magic during that time. Is it the economy, job situation or is it the lack of urgency with interest rates slated to be low for a long time that is keeping buyers from making a home purchase?  I’ve heard opinions about all three reasons as the cause for the slow moving real estate market.  What do you think?

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What do the numbers on the map mean?

The map is divided into the numbered areas as defined by our Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS).  Downtown Bellevue is area 520 and East Bellevue is area 530, as an example.

What do the colors mean?

Red means it’s a sellers’ market, a sellers’ advantage.

Yellow means a balanced market between buyers and sellers.

Green means it’s a buyers’ market.

If you take each area as shown on the map and look to the area number on the side of the map, it will tell you how long it would take to sell every home currently for sale if no other home came up on the market in that area.

Seattle Eastside Condo Sales July 2010

(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.)

July, 2010                    1552 condos for sale      144 condos sold                   9%  odds of selling.

June, 2010                   1487 condos for sale     131 (was 154) condos sold      9%  (was 10) % odds of selling.

May, 2010                    1425 condos for sale      117 (was 125)  condos sold         8% (was 13%)  odds of selling.*

July, 2009                   1441 condos for sale       159 condos sold,           11% odds of selling.

*Adjusted from previous month’s original numbers to reflect the actual number of condos sold and closed.  Some of the sales originally reported last month failed and did not close.   Some of the reasons sales fail are the buyer and seller don’t agree on the building inspection, the condo does not appraise for the sales price or the buyer’s financing does not come through.

Sales have clearly slowed down from April’s peak.  This may be because many first time buyers rushed to buy a home while the tax credit was in place and not as many buyers are out there right now.  It also could be because people are  fearful of the future.  It’s unfortunate as there are some good properties out there and great interest rates.

View Larger Map

How did July, 2009 stack up to July, 2010 in your neighborhood?

(Click on the cities below to see real estate trends for the past 5 years.  You’ll find the median pricing for each city and whether the number of homes for sale and the number of sales went up or down.  The odds of selling a home in each area is a result of the number of homes for sale divided by the actual number of home sales.)

The plateau:  Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City

The odds of selling a home were 12.5%.

Median sales price increased from $525,000 to  $539,950.

The number of homes for sale increased by 2% and sales were down by 24% from last year.

West Redmond/East Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 16%.

Median sales price dropped from $470,000 to $422,475.

The number of homes for sale increased by 8% and sales were down 27%.

South Bellevue/Issaquah

The odds of selling a home were 16.5%.

Median price decreased from $617,000 to $599,475.

The number of homes for sale dropped by 16% and sales were UP by 5%.

Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall/North Kirkland

The odds of selling a home were 14%.

Median price dropped by 2%, from $460,000 to $449,950.

The number of homes for sale declined by 9% and sales were down by 13.5%.

Kirkland

The odds of selling a home were 15%.

Median price decreased to $549,900 from $599,000.

The number of homes for sale declined by 16.5% and sales were UP by 3%.

West Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 11.5%.

Median pricing was UP from $950,000 to $1,299,000.

The number of homes for sale decreased by 24% and sales decreased by 31%.

Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation

The odds of selling a home were 17%

Median pricing increased from $499,000 to $548,000.

The number of homes for sale increased by 1% and sales decreased by 5%.

Although real estate numbers are mostly down on Seattle’s eastside, 3 areas, similar to last month,  showed an increase in median prices while the others all showed a reduction.  Most likely, this was a result of more high end sales than seen previously this year. Many of the first time buyers bought because of the tax credit, so there are fewer first time home buyers making entry level purchases.

The high end real estate market is performing better than it was earlier this year.    In July, West Bellevue had a 37% increase in the median pricing, a direct result of the homes that sold that month.  This number greatly influenced the trend in the eastside showing the median pricing to increase in July.  Median pricing is a function of the actual homes that sell during that particular month.

So I’d recommend not getting too excited if the median pricing went up this past month in your neighborhood.  It will be important to see if the trend continues and it’s not just because more high end homes are selling.

The number of home sales were down in almost all of the Seattle eastside neighborhoods, which follows a typical pattern for summer when people choose to do other things, like go on vacation,  than look for a home.    Slower sales may also be impacted by the fear about jobs and the economy.

Seattle-Eastside Residential Real Estate Sales, July 2010

The odds of selling a home on the Eastside in July, 2010 ranged from a low of 11.5% to a high of 17%, with an average 14% absorption rate.(The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in a month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.)

July, 2010               3468  homes for sale     501 homes sold                  14% odds of selling.

June, 2010              3360 homes for sale     475 (was 503)  homes sold       14%(was 15%) odds of selling.*

May, 2010               3209 homes for sale     492 homes sold        15% odds of selling.*

July, 2009               3819 homes for sale     516 homes sold        13.5 % odds of selling.

June, 2009              3859 homes for sale     563  homes sold         15% odds of selling.

*Adjusted from previous month’s numbers to reflect the actual number of homes sold and closed. Each month some sales  fall apart and don’t close.  A lower number of home sales may be reported at a later date to show the actual number of sales that did close.

For the past few months, the absorption rate for all the Seattle-eastside areas has been in the teens, hovering around 13-15%.   May, June, and July all had similar absorption rates.  Since May of 2009, the number of homes that have sold each month has not varied all that much, with the exception of March and April of this year. March and April had higher sales because of the tax credit.

Where we see more of a difference is in the number  of homes for sale on Seattle’s eastside.  Last year  there were 3819 homes for sale in July, 2009.  This year there are 10% less homes on the market.  But even with less homes on the market, the odds of selling are about the same.

We have the lowest interest rates since 1971.  Plus, our Seattle eastside real estate market is clearly a buyers’ market again, since the absorption rate is so low.  It’s very obvious when shown on a map of the area. I’ll  post a map of the Seattle eastside showing where buyers and sellers markets are located later this week.  The reality is, however, that most of the real estate markets are buyers’ markets right now.

So why are real estate sales so sluggish? My guess is the “fear factor.”  People are still worried about the economy.  Plus, with interest rates predicted to remain low for the foreseeable future, there’s also no sense of urgency to buy.

Why do you think the Seattle eastside real estate market is slower?

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July, 2009 Seattle-Eastside real estate market compared to July, 2010:

• The average asking price of pending homes (recently sold homes) went from $558,397 to $573,617. (This does not show what the homes actually sold for.)
  
• This week, there were 14,414 King County homes (houses and condos) for sale.
  
• Two weeks ago  may have been the peak of the number of homes for sale this year when 14,639 homes were on the market.
  
• Home sales on Seattle’s Eastside:   down 13%.
  
• Number of homes for sale on Seattle’s Eastside:  down 10%
  

Best odds of selling: Carnation and Redmond, from downtown to north and east, with 17% of the homes getting accepted offers. Ironically, last month this area had the worst odds of selling at 9%.

Worst odds of selling: West Bellevue, with 11.5% of the homes getting accepted offers.

Biggest increase in sales from last year: A 5% increase in South Bellevue home sales, which is the biggest increase.

Smallest increase in sales from last year: Kirkland, with a 3% increase.  There were only two areas with an increase in the number of home sales on Seattle’s eastside.

Decline in real estate sales from last year: There was a decline in 5 out of the 7 Seattle-eastside areas with the largest decline in home sales  in West Bellevue with a 31%  decline in the number of homes sold.

The peak of homes for sale in 2008: July,  4370 homes.

The peak of homes for sale in 2009: June,  3859 homes.

The number of eastside homes for sale at the start of 2010: 2584 homes

The number of eastside homes for sale in July, 2010: 3468 homes.

Rate of home sales that failed and did not close: 6%

For a picture of King County sales, check out The Seattle Times. The headline states sales are down, but prices are up.  Keep in mind the headline may not represent each area.  Prices are up slightly in some areas, down in others, and sales are down in 5 out of 7 eastside areas.

Seattle Sunset From Across Lake Washington

Kiplinger’s study had an important tenet when evaluating cities.  The top cities included smart people, great ideas, and collaboration.

After researching and visiting our 2010 Best Cities, it became clear that the innovation factor has three elements. Mark Emmert, president of the University of Washington in Seattle, put his finger on two of them: smart people and great ideas. But we’d argue that it’s the third element — collaboration — that really supercharges a city’s economic engine. When governments, universities and business communities work together, the economic vitality is impressive.

This is a hub of innovation as the home of Microsoft, Starbucks, Amazon, and Expedia are among many strong innovators in the Seattle area.  The economy, the schools, the natural beauty with lakes, mountains, and Puget Sound

Mt. Rainier, the Bremerton Ferry, and Puget Sound

are all draws to the area.

Did I mention Seattle is within driving distance to three national parks?  Mt. Rainier, Olympic National Park, and The North Cascades National Park.

Did I also mention that the fresh food and produce available in the N0rthwest is fabulous?

Fresh Berries at Pike Place Market

My client bought his first home from me 5 years ago.  It was a new home in a city with an excellent school system, but not the top school system on Seattle’s eastside. Now that his daughter is 5 years old, he’s looking at the different school systems even more closely.  He’s done his homework and checked out such websites as Great Schools and Education. com.  He’s read about the different school systems in the area and narrowed his choice down to the Bellevue, WA Schools.  The Bellevue Schools have been honored in a variety of places.  The high schools listed are in Newsweek’s Top 100 list and US News’ list.

But is the Bellevue School district affordable? My client wanted to know.  He had questions about what he could afford and find in Bellevue. He owns a 5 year old home with 2300+ square feet out in Sammamish.

According to the article, Bellevue is not an affordable town.  (Affordable is a relative term and each area will have a different affordability scale.) No matter where you live and what the affordability is of homes in your area, the rule of thumb is if a home is in a desirable school district, then it’s probably more expensive than a similar home in a less desirable district.

But even in some expensive school districts, prices can vary.

So what types of homes and prices can you find in Bellevue, WA? Here’s a snapshot of a typical week’s homes for sale during a week in July, 2010, which is representative of the housing available in Bellevue.

In Bellevue, homes can be found ranging from the high $200′s to multi-million dollar homes. If you divide Bellevue into areas, it’s easier to see what you can get in each area of Bellevue. Bellevue is divided into three main areas, West, East, and South Bellevue.

West Bellevue

The home of Bill Gates Jr, Charles Simonyi and other billionaires and uber-millionaires has some of the most expensive real estate in the country.  (West Bellevue, also includes the towns of Hunts Point, Yarrow Point, and Medina, some of the priciest locations in the state and the country.)

Here’s a sampling of the homes available this week in West Bellevue:

Under $500,000- 4 homes

some of which are truly lot value with small, older homes.  One home is a remodeled, most need to be remodeled and are small.

$500,000-$1,000,000-  35 homes

Ranging from homes built in the mid 50′s to the 60′s  with 1400-2000 square feet to larger homes with a huge variety of square footage.   Most of the homes were built from 1950-to the end of the century.  Newer homes in this price range are generally smaller.

$1,000,000+  66 homes

often with gracious appointments, lush grounds,  views or waterfront.  There’s an abundance of styles, ages, and square footage available.  These homes are among the priciest homes in the area with a significant number of multimillion dollar homes.

East Bellevue

Under $300,000  10 homes

older ranch style homes with square footage usually around 1500 square feet.  Some homes are bank owned, some in need of remodeling.

$300-$500,000    105 homes

(notice how many more homes are available in this price range than the other Bellevue neighborhoods.  Here’s where you can find more home for your money and in less expensive neighborhoods)

$500-$1,000,000   79 homes

You’ll find large ramblers, 2 story hoomes, and all other styles.  the homes in East Bellevue in this price range are usually terrific homes.  East Bellevue is the most affordable part of Bellevue to find a home.

$1,000,000+  18 homes

some with waterfront on Lake Sammamish, others are new construction.

South Bellevue

Under $300,000   4 homes  One is a short sale, 1 is partially remodeled, and two are older smaller homes.

$300-$500,000  33 homes

Ranging from small rambler (ranch style) homes of 1000 square feet  up to two story homes built in the 1960-1980′s with 2800 square feet.  There are mid-entry and tri-level homes along with one and two story homes in this price range.  Mid-entry and tri-level homes will be the most affordable and offer the most square footage for the money.  If you want a home with some size and in good condition, you’ll be spending closer to $500,000.  The lower end of this price range buys you a small home.

$500-$1,000,000  57 homes

Here you’ll find larger one level homes with 3 and 4 bedrooms.  Two story homes built after 1980 with square footage ranging up to 3000+.  You’ll also find large mid-entry and tri-level homes.

$1,000,000+ 37 homes

Upscale neighborhoods with drop dead gorgeous views of Seattle, Bellevue, the mountains, and lakes abound with homes ranging from mid-century modern ramblers on large lots to all styles of homes with views and lots of square footage.  Many of the homes were built after 1980.  Homes can be found with substantial square footage, high end amenities, and excellent quality and finish work.

The most affordable part of Bellevue is East Bellevue, although there are affordable houses all over.  However, what you can get for your money is vastly different in each of these areas as you can see from the above. There are options, though, and everyone has to decide the value of the schools in relation to the type of home available.

Are there great schools in other parts of the Seattle-Eastside? Yes, if you look at the lists above, other schools in Lake Washington School District, as an example pop up.  Woodinville High School is another great school.  These are not the only great schools.  There are more out there on the eastside.  Bellevue has some affordable housing, but some home buyers may want newer or larger homes for the money and may need to look at other Seattle-eastside cities.

The beauty of the Seattle-eastside is there are great schools and some great housing all over. There are options.