Downtown Seattle Condos | Blog & Reviews by Wendy & Marco

Condo Review - The Vine Condominiums in Belltown

The Vine Condominiums - Belltown
2607 Western Ave, Seattle


The Vine Condominiums is a two tower condo community on the northwest end of Belltown. Being one of the first large scale condos in the newly emerging Belltown back in the early 2000’s it sits on a prime piece of land  close the waterfront and is close to the Olympic Sculpture Park, Myrtle Edwards Park and the biking and running trail along the waterfront. It is also close to the amenities of Belltown, Lower Queen Anne and the Pike Place Market putting it just a few blocks from a plethora of restaurants, cafes, and events. The building was built in 2002 so some of the interiors might feel a bit dated but the building has made updates to their common areas to keep the building feeling modern.

The stats:

• 177 units
• 2 towers – one is 12 stories, the other is 6 stories
• Built in 2002
• There are studios, one and two bedroom units
• Range in size from approximately 447 - 1494 square feet
• All have 1 or 2 parking spaces and all have storage
• 10 units have sold in the last 6 months ranging in price from $278,000 to $610,000
• HOA dues include: sewer, garbage, water, gas (for fireplaces and gas ranges), earthquake insurance, amenities, master insurance policy
• Amenities: party room (recently updated), community view terrace with BBQ, gym, hobby room/shop, car wash area, concierge, two guest suites, conference room, 24 hour concierge staff

It's a Seller's Market: Seattle Condo March 2013 Update

I took a look at March 2013 data and pretty much every neighborhood has the same story.  Sales up. Median prices up.  Inventory flat.  

If you were one of those condo investors waiting for the market to pick up to avoid having to have a unit sit on the market too long, your time may have come.  You'll not reap huge windfalls from a pricing point of view but you'll certainly see some action and at a price that's considerably more than you would have gotten a year ago.

In terms of neighborhoods, Belltown/Downtown and Queen Anne/Magnolia both had almost double the units sold in March as they did in Feb but number of listings available was either flat or down versus February.  

 

East Boston Street Condominiums in Eastlake

East Boston Condominiums – Eastlake
201 East Boston St, Seattle

The East Boston Street Condominiums are a small boutique condo building located in the popular Eastlake neighborhood.  Being on the south east side of Lake Union it’s close to downtown, I-5, as well as the University of Washington to the North.  With only 6 units it’s a great option for those seeking the conveniences of condo living but without the big condo building feel.  It doesn’t have all the super high end finishes, but units are well laid out, comfortable and pricing is reasonable.

The stats:

• 6 condo units and one commercial space on the street level
• 4 stories
• Built in 1989
• All units are two bedrooms
• Range in size from approximately 1,112-1,178 square feet
• All have parking, 4 of the units have parking for 2 vehicles in tandem spaces
• All units have storage units
• 1 units has sold in the last year at $415,000
• HOA dues include: sewer, garbage, water, earthquake insurance master insurance policy
• Amenities: The building itself does not have common amenities other than the secure entry, secured parking garages and storage units

Trio Condominiums in Belltown

The Trio Condominiums were built during the new construction boom of 06/07 by Triad Development and was completed in 2008. It is located in Belltown on Western Ave between Denny Way and Bay Street.  The building offers a mid-range level of finishes and building features, which
makes it popular for the mid-price range buyers seeking newer constructed condos with modern touches and amenities.  

Seattle Condo Market Has Bottomed Out?

It wasn't that long ago when many people were absolutely convinced that we were heading into a double dip recession and as such condo prices in Seattle would crash well beneath their 2011 lows.  Well, I suppose anything is possible but we're now in 2013.  And the situation has changed.  Buying clients are now complaining more about not enough listings to see and buy, and selling clients are pleasantly surprised when their property is often sold in weeks and not months.

Just so you can see in the actual data, below is years of downtown Seattle real estate pricing in one nice chart (thanks to our good friends from Zillow).  Feel free to check it out and join us in calling the Seattle condo recession gone (choose the 10 year view to see how bad 2011 really was).  Yes, it's not red hot like in 2006 but then again, that's probably a good thing!

 

Downtown Real Estate Statistics

Downtown

 

 

 

By Wendy Leung with Seattle Condo Review: A guide to Seattle Condos and Downtown Seattle Condos exclusively for buyers and sellers.

 

 

A Cool Seattle Map for Income and Rent

Whether you are asprired to move into downtown Seattle from another city or thinking of renting out your own property, this is one cool map you may want to check out. Chris Persaud, a data journalist, has consaolidated the Amercian Community Survey data on his website Rich Blocks, Poor Blocks on rent and income into a map of U.S. census tracts. The color coded map allows you to have a quick easy look on the different neighborhoods' median income and rent. 

How Will the New Seattle Tunnel and Removal of the Viaduct Affect Condo Views and Values?

 The Seattle waterfront is undergoing an epic change that will forever change the face of the city from the water’s edge.  That change is the replacement of the aging Alaskan Way Viaduct.  After nearly a decade of debate, deliberation, public comment and vote, as well as even legislative action, the decision was made last year in 2012 to move ahead with the deep bore tunnel option as the replacement method for the two level elevated viaduct that currently runs along the Seattle waterfront.

I am going to do a blog series talking about the good, the bad, and the ugly from the condominium owner and buyer’s perspective with regards to this project.  I’ll hold my opinions until the end of the series, but I want to take you on a photo and map journey through the neighborhoods around the current viaduct that will be most impacted. Hopefully, this series will help bring some clarity and help folks make decisions about where they might want to live if they are looking into buying. Or if you currently own a Seattle condo in the affected areas, if and when you might want to consider selling and moving up to something different, or even staying put and enjoying what is to come.

We will start with where the tunnel is starting and where the viaduct has already partially been removed, which is Pioneer Square and the Stadium District (also called the south portal). This is the area where you see most of the construction going on currently.  What’s happening here?  They have basically temporarily rerouted highway 99 around an area where they are actively digging and constructing the south portal of the tunnel (aka, the Pit). This is where the big boring machine will be starting its dig to the north deep beneath the city.  You can consider this ground zero, where it all starts.

Building Most Likely Affected In:
PIONEER SQUARE & STADIUM DISTRICT

Demolition Yesterday on Amazon’s New Building Site in Denny Triangle

Yesterday on my morning walk I caught a glimpse of the demolition underway on the old hotel that sits on the site of what will be Amazon’s first new high-rise they will be constructing in the Denny Triangle.  It was quite a sight to see this 6 story hotel being reduced to nothing in no time flat to make way for the new skyscraper.

There are a lot of changes coming to this Seattle neighborhood and some will have an effect on the view outlooks of condos already in the area.  Condo buildings that I feel will be most affected by this new 425 foot tall office tower will be the west building of 2200 Westlake which will lose a bit of the city skyline outlook and Enso Condominiums south facing units which will see some reduction of skyline views to the SW.

Whether you are pro change, or resist the inevitable it’s good to know what’s going on around you.

                                                 

                                                           View of demo with 2200 in the background

                                                 

                                                            View of demo with Enso in the background

By Marco Kronen with Seattle Condo Review: A guide to Seattle Condos and Downtown Seattle Condos exclusively for buyers and sellers. - See more at: http://www.seattlecondoreview.com/2013/02/condo-review-madison-tower-in-downtown.html#more

Condo Review – Madison Tower in Downtown

Madison Tower is a condominium community perched atop Hotel 1000 in Downtown. Built in 2006, this building has modern interiors, great amenities and many of the units boast lovely water and city views.

The stats:

• 47 units
• 25 stories
• Built in 2006
• Units range from 1-3 bedrooms and have 1.5 or 3.5 bathrooms
• Range in size from 805 to 3,740 square feet
• All have 1, 2 or 3 parking spaces in the Valet  run garage
• 5 units sold in the last year ranging in price from $425,000 to $4,000,000
• 1 condo is available at the time of this article – 1 2bd 2.5ba home listed for $899,000
• Amenities: Rooftop deck with BBQ, fire pit, pet area and water views, gym, business center, priority for meeting room bookings and hotel restaurants reservations, 24 hour concierge (shared with hotel) and access to the hotel amenities (for a discounted fee) including virtual golf simulator, room service, in home catering, housekeeping, laundry and dry cleaning, in home massage, car wash and treatments at Spaahh in the hotel
• HOA dues include: water, sewer, garbage, central hot water, cable TV, earthquake insurance, 24 hour concierge, master insurance policy

Seattle Bank Owned and Short Sales Update

Thanks Marco on the great wrap up for 2012 Seattle Condo Market!

For those of you who are still curious about distressed properties and their impact on the market (bank owned and short sale inventory), this is for you. More than 6 months ago, we pulled some data from NWMLS on bank owned and short sale condos. At that time, bank owned and short sale condos made up about 19% of the total listings. Last month's data shows that it was almost the same. However, if you compare that to almost 2 years ago, distressed assets as a percent of all on the market went down significantly.

In the first half of 2012, we had a total of 315 distressed condos, during the 2nd half, it went down to 259 sales. Interestingly, bank owned properties sales dropped from 186 to 93  in the 2nd half of last year while short sale condos went up by almost 30% from 129 to 166 sales perhaps an indication of banks starting to work with owners when a short sale is proposed.

In summary, we had fewer distressed condos coming on the market in 2012 than in 2011; so far we are not seeing any influx of bank owned properties coming on the market. I agree with Marco's prediction that we are not likely to see an increase in them in 2013; this will be a good news for sellers.  

( Data extracted from NWMLS on 01/29/2013 and are deemed reliable but not guaranteed. 

By Wendy Leung with Seattle Condo Review: A guide to Seattle Condos and Downtown Seattle Condos exclusively for buyers and sellers.

Related posts:

Seattle Bank Owned and Short Sale Properties July 2012

Seattle Bank Owned and Short Sales Properties April 2011

2012 Seattle Condo Market in Review - The Year of Dwindling Inventory

As we start off 2013, every year in January we like to take a quick pause to take a look back and recap the major events, trends, and milestone from the previous year and for the heck of it, make some forecasts and predictions for the upcoming year.

Trends of 2012 and Events Worth Noting

We saw our condo market absorption rates increase and inventory dwindle to the point nearly all segments of our Seattle condo market were leaning toward a seller’s market with less than three months of inventory. 

Multiple offers returned but interestingly enough we did not see a sharp incline in pricing. This is likely due to buyers who were much more conservative and resistant to overpaying in light of the recent market crash. This could also be due to more stringent appraisal review practices by lenders, which many applaud.

2200 Condominiums in South Lake Union reached the largest construction defect settlement in state history with its developer for $26 million dollars.

We saw the return of investor buyers. An increase in all cash purchases seemed to indicate investors gained confidence in spending again.

Many newer condominium buildings entered litigation with their developers in accordance with the Washington State Condominium Act’s construction warranty time frames. This further limited available condo units on the market because units that are for sale in buildings with pending litigation have a very hard time obtaining buyer financing.

Client Question of the Week: I want to sell, but don’t know if I’ll find anything to buy

This email directly from a new client of ours speaks to a very common question and concern we are hearing regarding the Seattle condo market.

“Hey Marco, I'm still on the fence, but am leaning towards staying put until later this year. The lack of inventory is a concern, as I don't want to be 'homeless' for an extended period.”

Great question and valid concern “Mr. If I sell, will I find a new place?”

It’s no secret we don’t have a lot of inventory in Seattle condos right now.  This presents an opportunity and a challenge to those condo owners who would like to move up and sell their current condo and purchase something different.  In this client’s situation, he is a young professional that has some equity in his condo and would like to take advantage of lower mortgage rates and buy while prices are still affordable (compared to pre-recession prices). However, the concern is that with hardly any options on the market, can he find something he likes.

In general, my advice is have some confidence in the fact that new inventory will be coming on the market.  Many people are in the same situation, and if we can in affect, break the log jam of on the fence sellers, we will in turn, see more options for buyers to choose from.

We turn to a couple graphics from the stats and data team at Windermere to illustrate the inventory levels here in the area month over month from 2008-2009 and 2011-2012  (click on the images below to make them larger).
                                                                     (Click to see larger image)

Fifteen Twenty-One - Downtown

Fifteen Twenty-One Condominiums released a press release on Friday to announce that they are 97% sold with only 4 developer units left to sell. According to the press release, 139 of the 143 developer owned units in the high rise have sold. They also indicate that 222 condos sold above $1 million in downtown Seattle since November of 2008, and that 122 of those have been in Fifteen Twenty-One. Those sales averaged $1.7 million or approximately $900 per square foot.

On the heels of this press release, we thought it would be a great time to update our Condo Review on this building.

The stats:

• 143 units
• 38 stories
• Built in 2008
• All units have 2 bedrooms and most have den spaces as well with 2 or 2.5 bathrooms
• Range in size from 1644 to 2999 square feet
• All have 1 or 2 parking spaces and some have more
• 27 units sold in the last year ranging in price from $825,000 to $4,250,000
• 4 developer owned units and 1 resale are available at the time of this article
• Designed to LEED Silver standards
• Amenities: Rooftop deck with outdoor kitchens and fireplaces, 24 hour concierge, building manager, business conference space, fitness center, yoga/pilates studio, playroom for children, bike storage, pet area, and optional wine room and work studios
• HOA dues include: water, sewer, garbage, central hot water, earthquake insurance, cable TV, 24 hour concierge, master insurance policy, building manager

The pros:

• Expansive water and/or city views from every unit
• High-quality building amenities
• Ultra luxury finishes
• AC in every unit (important for high floor west facing units especially)
• High speed elevators
• Being on 2^nd Avenue you are close to Pike Place Market, the retail and financial districts as well as Belltown’s amenities
• Private Decks/Outdoor spaces are an innovative open and closable solarium sliding window

The cons:

• 2^nd Avenue is a busy street and can be noisy
• Close by bars and night clubs can be an annoyance
• Nothing available under $800,000 price mark
• As it may be a pro above to some buyers, it’s also a con to others that the private decks/outdoor spaces on the units are not fully open like most traditional decks. They were designed more as solariums which can be opened and closed.   

By Marco Kronen with Seattle Condo Review: A guide to Seattle Condos and Downtown Seattle Condos exclusively for buyers and sellers.

The Braeburn - Capitol Hill

The Braeburn is a two building condominium community in the Pike Pine district of Capitol Hill. The buildings sit on E Pine Street between 14^th and 15^th and are close to a ton of great shops, services and restaurants in the Pike Pine corridor as well as Cal Anderson Park and not too far from the future Light Rail Station.

The stats:

• 153 residential units (there are also 5 commercial units)
• West building is 4 stories, East building is 7 stories
• Built in 2005
• Studios, 1 bedrooms, 2 bedrooms
• Range in size from 373 to 1149 square feet
• All have 1 parking space and 1 storage unit
• 9 units have sold in the last year ranging in price from $145,000 to $305,000 and consisting of studios and 1 bedrooms (no 2 bedrooms were sold last year)
• As of today there are no active units and 5 pending units
• HOA dues include: garbage, building maintenance, on-site manager, master building insurance, earthquake insurance
• Amenities: guest suite, gym, party room, theater room, game room, yoga room, hobby room, 5 roof decks (some with views or BBQ), zen garden, pea patch

The pros:

• Neighborhood location – close to a ton of restaurants, cafes, shops and services
• A lot of building amenities to enjoy
• Newer building with modern finishes
• Every unit has parking and storage – pretty rare on The Hill
• Many units have city views
• Many units have walk-in closets – even the smaller square footage units
• FHA Approved through 7/11/13

The cons:

• No fireplaces
• No gas cook tops or appliances
• Several of the units do not have private decks and those that do are quite small
• The only utility covered by HOA dues is garbage service

By Marco Kronen with Seattle Condo Review: A guide to Seattle Condos and Downtown Seattle Condos exclusively for buyers and sellers.

 

Seattle Condo Neighborhood Comparison

I recently looked at some current MLS data to see how different key Seattle condo neighborhoods compared at different price points.  

Below is the chart and some key takeaways from my point of view. Hope it's helpful and interesting to you!

• Except for the >$800K segment, we are definitely in a sellers' market with only a few months of inventory for condos <$800k.

 

• The $300-500K price point in Belltown/Downtown and entry level price points in Capitol Hill, et al. are the hot segments right now from a number of units sold point of view.

 

• The one pro-buyer segment is the top end.  If you are a buyer and are looking for a condo >$800K in Belltown/Downtown, you've got almost 50 units to choose from and sellers bracing themselves to have the units be on the market for almost half a year so take your pick.  Everyone else in the <$800K segments will be more worried about finding a unit and real buyer competition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 (Data from NWMLS and are deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Co-op's are removed from the data. Sold listings refer to listings sold over the last 6 months. )

By Wendy Leung wwith Seattle Condo Review: A guide to Seattle Condos and Downtown Seattle Condos exclusively for buyers and sellers.

Client Question of the Week: Long Market Times for Condos in Newer Buildings?

Client Question of the Week: “I'm considering selling in the new year but I am seeing long market times in some newer buildings and that concerns me, I thought things were picking up and getting better for condo sellers in Seattle?”

Dear Scared To Sell:

This is a common question these days, and it comes down to a condo unit's ability to be purchased and the risks associated with its purchase.  Condo ownership is a wonderful thing, but like any real estate purchase (house, townhome, land, floating home, etc.) there are risks to that investment. The newer buildings you are seeing with long market times likely are those in the middle of their warranty investigations or those in the various phases of litigation with their developers.

Unfortunately, this is common with new construction condominiums.  Due to the Washington Condominium Act, which was intended, I think, to protect the condo buyer in new construction, developers of new condo buildings have to provide a warranty for certain aspects of a building's construction against defects. Sounds like a great thing right? Well, since our condo buildings are built by humans, none of them are built perfectly. So things do come up that need to be repaired, replaced, fixed etc.  There are limits to how long an HOA can hold a builder/developer accountable for certain construction defects.  I'm not an attorney so my specific knowledge is limited to the exact terms of the state statute, but basically what this results in with nearly every new condo building in our city, is that something in a building will result in a dispute on whose role or responsibility it is to fix it.  If the HOA and the developer do not agree, a motion is filed by the HOA to protect their right to sue if they can't come to agreement.

Seattle Condo Market Update: Soft Landing for the Winter

November 2012 data are in.  Here's some key takeaways and of course, the charts.

• After several year-over-year thumpings of monthly 2011 sales, November 2012 was higher than November 2011...but only by ~15% (versus the ~30% advantages we saw in September and October year-over-year comparisons).  Perhaps the we're finally settling in for our winter hibernation.
• Median prices for Seattle overall saw a soft landing, slightly higher than November 2011 but considerably lower than the banner October 2012 numbers ($245K versus $275K).
• At the neighborhood level Belltown/Downtown remains the most solid overall with sales almost as high as October 2012, median prices up 10% month over month, and inventory still tight.   

 

2200 Condominiums in South Lake Union Settles with its Developer

After approximately two years of warranty investigation work and negotiation, the 2200 Residential Homeowner Association and the 2200 Master Association (that represents the hotel, retail and the Whole Foods) received an early holiday gift of sorts. A settlement was reached for the 2200 Association's claim for repair of construction defects. The settlement summary was discussed with owners at the annual meeting of the HOA held earlier this week. The $26 million dollar settlement represents what is rumored to be the largest construction defect settlement of its kind in the state for a residential condo building.

This settlement comes at a good time for the owners in the 2200 complex who have been somewhat limited from being able to refinance or sell condo units for some time due to the fact the resale certificates and condo questionnaires needed by lenders disclosed issues related to the construction defects and its mediation.  These can now be changed, which should open up some possibilities for sales and refinances to happen since buyers and their lender might be more confident about the long term financial health of the building and the HOA.

Early indications are that the 2200 community will start to see the work start some time in 2013 but it’s not known exactly when, nor exactly how long the work will take.  It also remains to be seen which of three condo towers will be first and if a full wrap of each building will be needed. The board indicated at the meeting they will be working hard with the project contractor to try to make the repairs as efficient as possible and with the least amount of impact on the residents and businesses within 2200 as possible. It is not yet officially known who that contractor will be.

Although none of us owners at 2200 are looking forward to the inconvenience of the repair work that follows, it is likely that the settlement amount will cover the expenses of the needed repairs and there will not be a need for additional funds from the owners through an increase in dues nor a special assessment, which is the silver lining to the whole thing and a relief for many. In fact, the new budget for 2013 reflects a decrease in dues now that the settlement has been finalized.

By Marco Kronen with Seattle Condo Review: A guide to Seattle Condos exclusively for buyers and sellers

Olive 8 Update - Including its Debut on Top Chef Seattle

You may or may not already know but the Bravo show, Top Chef, was recently filmed in Seattle for season 10, which is now airing.  The chefs compete in a number of challenges that feature local cuisine, restaurants, and events in the host city. The show also puts the chefs up in a posh residence for their stay during the competition.

Guess where the chefs stayed? Downtown Seattle’s Olive 8 Condominiums! The “cheftestants” all lived in a unit on the 38^th floor of the Olive 8 tower giving this condo a great national stage to be seen on. The program showcases Olive 8 with scenes of the chefs lounging around, using the gourmet kitchen and shows off the beautiful view as the chefs sit out on their private deck. Olive 8 was a good choice, I would say.

So what’s going on at Olive 8 in terms of condo sales you might ask? Here is the latest update on Olive 8’s Developer owned condo units:

• 90% sold
• 196 closed sales
• 9 pending sales in November
• 19 developer owned units left: 10 one bedrooms and 9 two bedrooms (all on floor 30 or above)

There are also a couple of units being sold by individual owners (resales) in the building:

• 1 active resale unit
• 2 pending resale units

Client Question of the Week: Is the VA Loan Program Available for Condos?

This week, new clients of mine wondered what their options were for a downtown condo that would qualify for the VA loan program. The Department of Veteran Affairs loan program is available to those military veterans and active duty personnel that have accumulated enough service time to be eligible for the favorable terms afforded by this loan program.  Benefits over conventional loan programs include market interest rates, reduced down payment requirements, no monthly mortgage insurance, as well as more flexibility with debt to income ratios and closing costs.

What’s the catch? Condominium buildings must go through the VA's condo project approval process.  Similar to the FHA approval process, an HOA would need to provide supporting documents verifying the eligibility of the condominium community as a whole.  No longer can an individual condo owner seek VA approval if they are either refinancing or selling their condo.  It's all or nothing.  VA looks at things such as overall financial health of the HOA, percentage of rental units, percentage of units that are delinquent on dues, and level of insurance protection, to name a few.  Currently, very few VA approved condominium buildings exist in the downtown core of Seattle.  Newer condo projects in the Downtown, Belltown, Midtown and South Lake Union area especially, lack this VA approval.  So it can be challenging for those wanting to use the VA loan program to find options in our already low inventory market.