Archive for the ‘South Seattle’ Category
January 23, 2008
Is the new year bringing a new flock of buyers? Traditionally sales pick up a little in January, gearing up for spring and summer, when the weather is more hospitable to home shopping.
Word at Altos Research is Seattle is still a buyer’s market. Inventory is at 3,351 as of January 20, about 400 more than December’s figures. Even with buyers coming out of holiday hibernation, the overloaded market won’t bear all those new homes. My prediction is January’s figures will be more bad news.
Drawing from a few different neighborhoods in North and South Seattle, here are some of the larger price drops around town.
Hillman City
$555,950 $485,000 $472,500 $462,500 $399,900
4248 S Spencer St
4 br/1.5 ba; 2,240 sq ft
MLS#: 27196491
$329,900 $319,900 $274,900
3951 S Graham St
4 br/2 ba; 2,260 sq ft
MLS#: 27147574
Seward Park
$769,000 $749,000
8304 54th Ave S
4 br/2.75 ba; 2,400 sq ft
MLS#: 27208542
Wedgwood
$474,950 $449,950
8274 30th Ave NE
2 br/1 ba; 1,610 sq ft
MLS#: 27195392
Greenwood
$400,000 $380,000 $340,000
352 N 81st St
1 br/1 ba; 830 sq ft
MLS#: 28003066
Cedar Park
$250,000 $230,000
12300 33rd Ave NE #202
2 br/1.75 ba; 999 sq ft
MLS#: 27194008
January 15, 2008
Here are some smallish homes that sold over the holidays. Were the sellers laughing their way to the bank, or were the buyers making smart deals in a slow market?
4701 46th Ave S
Listed originally at $469,000; sold for $444,500 in about 2.5 months on 12/28/07
3 br/1 ba; 970 sq ft
4632 46th Ave S
Listed originally at $410,000; sold for $380,000 on 12/28/07
2 br/1 ba; 790 sq ft
4832 49th Ave S
Listed originally at $475,000; sold for $440,000 in about 3 months on 12/14/07
2 br/1 ba; 1,060 sq ft
5235 S Pearl St
Listed originally at $550,000; sold for $547,500 in just over a month on 12/19/07
1 br/2 ba; 1,700 sq ft
January 14, 2008
Long live the 500 block of East Pine Street! Save Oddfellows Hall! Up with booze and dancing! Down with condos! These are the cries heard from the peaks of Capitol Hill.
Residents of the Hill are not the only ones mourning favorite Seattle locations:
But there is some good news for preservationists:
Want to know more about preserving neighborhood historic buildings? Historic Seattle facilitates creative preservations like the Queen Anne High School condos.
Into Googie gems like the Denny’s and the Space Needle, along with other modernist styles? Check out docomomo-wewa.org (Documentation and Conservation of the Modernist Movement - Western Washington).
Meanwhile, what would you put in the old Ballard Denny’s if it becomes a landmark? My vote: anything but Denny’s.
January 6, 2008
My celebrity sightings are limited: I’ve said hi to Morgan Freeman and Wesley Snipes, and watched Paul Simon and Edie Brickell’s backs retreat along Central Park West. I’ve never laid eyes on Brittany Spears, and the idea of chasing after beleaguered popstars to be the first to document their misery is beyond distasteful to me.
Yet those snap-happy intruders are in business for a reason: we all love a train wreck.
Would that I were a bubble blogger, sitting in my rent-controlled apartment high above the fray of the current market. Alas, I am not only an observer, I am a participant. Our listing has earned a 45-days+ tag, and I’ve stopped checking the page to watch that number tick higher.
In the business of real estate, I am on both sides of the lens: breaking into the crime scene in search of truth, but also wanting to extinguish a flashbulb or two with my fists.
Remain positive, and you’re a Pollyanna, misleading the public–or worse, trying to manipulate them into buying. Take a negative stance, and as part of the media hype over the recession, drive buyers away. It’s enough to make a real estate blogger’s head spin.
Without opining, here are some big price reductions in South Seattle ($25,000-$50,000). To some they will read as bargains. To some they will be proof of the demise of the Seattle market. Which lens do you see it through, and which side are you on?
Oh, and smile pretty for the camera.
Price: $340,000 $290,000
11227 12th Ave S
5 br/2 ba; 2,220 sq ft
MLS#: 27026173
Price: $395,000 $365,000
9710 41st Ave S
3 br/1.75 ba; 1,440 sq ft
MLS#: 27186406
Price: $399,950 $374,950
11248 14th Ave S
3 br/2 ba; sq footage not listed
MLS#: 27207720
December 15, 2007
Tucked between I-5 and the Duwamish waterway, hemmed in by industrial neighbors is the hip little neighborhood of Georgetown. As the first sentence on the home page of the Georgetown Neighborhood website reminds us, “Georgetown is Seattle’s oldest continually-settled neighborhood.”
Georgetown is tiny, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in energy. The people who form the community have sprouted a vibrant neighborhood with great gardens, excellent shopping, and cool bars.
They’re also vocal, involved community members who stick up for their neighborhood. When a plume of industrial waste contaminated the groundwater, the Georgetown Neighborhood website created a resource for the community.
An ordinance that will be voted on in City Council on Monday has upset many residents–the new ordinance would prevent residential and commerical (as opposed to industrial) buildings of more than 25,000 square feet. So no grocery store, no new artists’ co-ops, no funky industrial loft condos.
Surf down to Georgetown:
Here are some homes that sold in Georgetown last month:
6637 Flora Ave S
Sold for $320,000 on 11/27/07
1 br/2 ba; 1,460 sq ft
6442 Carleton Ave S
Sold for $325,000 on 11/13/07
1 br/1 ba; 480 sq ft
812 S Orcas St
Sold for $370,000 on 11/15/07
2 br/1 ba; 1,090 sq ft
December 14, 2007
Anecdotally, I’ve started hearing stories about real estate agents leaving the business. For example, a friend described her new co-worker to me, saying with an sympathetic nod, “She used to be a real estate agent.” Enough said, apparently.
At agentgenius.com is a post on the enrollment numbers at the National Association of Realtors (NAR). While there’s been no actual drop in membership… yet, the slowdown in membership increase is dramatic. In 2006, NAR membership increased by 92,365. In 2007? Just 261 members more than 2006. Check out the graphs in the post for a visual representation of the membership numbers.
In the meantime, you don’t need your agent to see these South Seattle homes. Open houses are Sunday December 16 from 1-4.
Price: $259,000
735 S Homer St
2 br/1 ba; 800 sq ft
MLS#: 27211568
Price: $349,950
2921 23rd Ave S
2 br/1 ba; 910 sq ft
MLS#: 27188060
Price: $435,000
4403 Powell Pl S
3 br/2.5 ba; 1,930 sq ft
MLS#: 27143562
Price: $575,000
4111 43rd Ave S
4 br/2 ba;2,710 sq ft
MLS#: 27208799
Price: $824,900
5900 Wilson Ave S
4 br/2.5 ba; 3,300 sq ft
MLS#: 27177162
All information is from sources deemed reliable, but is not guaranteed.
December 14, 2007
In the Wall Street Journal’s editorial page on December 12, Alan Greenspan sounds off about the current mortgage crisis [via]:
After more than a half-century observing numerous price bubbles evolve and deflate, I have reluctantly concluded that bubbles cannot be safely defused by monetary policy or other policy initiatives before the speculative fever breaks on its own.
Greenspan’s explanation for how it happened begins in the Cold War and spans the globe. While it’s not easily summarized, the upshot is that our national economic outlook is no longer as easily controlled in the world market. Cash in China means risk-taking in the U.S., as the overall global economy swells.
…global economic forces, which have been building for decades, appear to have gained effective control of the pricing of longer debt maturities. Simple correlations between short- and long-term interest rates in the U.S. remain significant, but have been declining for over a half-century. Asset prices more generally are gradually being decoupled from short-term interest rates.
Speaking more broadly about the credit crisis, Greenspan says it will end “when the overhang of inventories of newly built homes is largely liquidated, and home price deflation comes to an end.” Other than noting that our economy seems hinged on our current housing market, there is no news here. As far as real estate investors are concerned, this reads: it will end when it ends.
Speaking of price deflation closer to home, here are some South Seattle homes that had price reductions this week:
Price: $425,000 $399,950
11248 14th Ave S
3 br/2 ba; sq footage not listed
MLS#: 27207720
Price: $449,900 $429,900 $399,999
5910 47th Ave S
4 br/2.5 ba; 1,950 sq ft
MLS#: 27198217
Price: $495,000 $539,000 $499,500
5016 30th Ave S
5 br/3 ba; 2,660 sq ft
MLS#: 27186449
Price: $458,000 $443,000 $425,000
3935 S Cloverdale St
4 br/3 ba;2,030 sq ft
MLS#: 27139735
November 30, 2007
Cruising the Craigslist events section, I came across this great community event:
2007 Seward Park Luminaria
We will set out almost 1800 candles in the little white bags all along Lk Wash Blvd. This is Sunday Dec 2. Stop by at 2 or 3 pm. Will light the candles at 4:30.
Take the path the candles light the full three miles, and you’ll end up in Mount Baker — just the right spot to watch the Christmas Ship and its entourage sail the south seas of Lake Washington at 5:30.
These South Seattle open houses are a great excuse to be in the area! Homes are open Sunday from 1 - 4 p.m., unless otherwise noted. All information is from sources deemed reliable, but is not guaranteed.
Price: $349,900
4703 S Morgan St
4 br/2 ba; 1,550 sq ft
MLS#: 27161216
Open Saturday, 12-3
Price: $375,000
4639 S Garden St
5 br/3 ba; 2,100 sq ft
MLS#: 27205792
Price: $445,000
2813 24th Ave S
2 br/1.5 ba; 1,340 sq ft
MLS#: 27181426
Price: $449,950
5111 S Myrtle St
3 br/1.75 ba; 1,630 sq ft
MLS#: 27185279
Open Saturday 1-3
Price: $468,000
3805 Holly Park Dr SE
3 br/2.5 ba; 1,900 sq ft
MLS#: 27206371
Open Sunday 2-4
Price: $485,000
7203 54 Ave S
3 br/1 ba; 1,810 sq ft
MLS#: 27191943
Price: $679,000
5217 S Mayflower St
3 br/2.25 ba; 2,080 sq ft
MLS#: 27197297
Open Sunday 2-4
Price: $1,660,000
3220 Sierra Dr S
4 br/3.5 ba; 4,000 sq ft
MLS#: 27090813
November 28, 2007
Built in 1910, the Columbia City Theater was then a vaudeville house. Now a dinner theater (food is available at the attached bar or next door at Tutta Bella, and can be brought into the theater), the venue hosts cabarets, benefits, karaoke, live music, and puppet operas.
The glove factory down the street, built in 1921, is now the Ark Masonic Lodge fabulous Columbia City Theater.* The 1891 Town Hall is now a social service organization for kids. Columbia Branch of the Seattle Public Library.* The Columbia Hotel is now the home of Lottie’s Lounge. The butcher shop is, well, still a butcher shop. Check out the slideshow at History Link, but be warned, things have changed since it was made.*
Neighborhood information is chronicled in Captain Columbia City’s blog.
[*Update: See comments for corrections from Scott, who points us to the wiki, ColumbiaCitizens.net.]
One important transformation has occurred in these Columbia City area homes for sale: the price. Here are a couple of price reductions:
Price: $329,900 $319,900
3951 S Graham St
4 br/2 ba; 2,260 sq ft
MLS#: 27147574
Price: $474,500 $449,950 $424,950
4139 38th Ave S
5 br/2.5 ba; 2,720 sq ft
MLS#: 27158860
November 23, 2007
It’s 4 a.m. Do you know where your first sale is?
In celebration of the United States’ most popular secular holiday, Black Friday, here are some homes on sale today. The good news is this isn’t a one-day sale. Bad news? First come, first served, and only one model is in stock.
Doorbusters, on your marks… get set… go!
These South Seattle homes dropped in price this week, for your bargain shopping enjoyment. To get you in the mood for the sales, retail lingo and punctuation will be used.
13% Off!
Price: $189,950 $165,000
8611 44th Ave S
2 br/1 ba; 420 sq ft
MLS#: 27183210
Slashed $10,000!
Price: $359,950 $349,950
10466 17th Ave S
4 br/2.5 ba; 2,210 sq ft
MLS#: 27169746
Reduced $14k more!
Price: $525,000 $499,950 $489,000 $475,000
1743 S Dawson St
5 br/3 ba; 2,250 sq ft
MLS#: 27158854
Save over $15,000!
Price: $559,900 $544,950 $529,000
2912 Bennett
5 br/2.75 ba; 2,340 sq ft
MLS#: 27181260
Now under $500,000!
Price: $515000 $499,000
8418 S Martin Luther King JR Way
6 br/3 ba; 2,430 sq ft
MLS#: 27149794
More than $20k off!
Price: $450,000 $429,990
4619 S Garden St
5 br/3 ba; 2,360 sq ft
MLS#: 27201061
To receive daily notifications via email about new listings and price reductions in your price range and search criteria, click on “save” above the map. Name your search and check “daily” under notifications.
