Stop Reading the Newspapers…go buy Seattle Real Estate!
Will Rogers once said “you only need to buy one newspaper in your life and just keep reading it over and over again because things don't really change.” People in Seattle...take his advice.
The economy in Seattle has been and continues to be strong. It's projected that Seattle will grow by about 1,000,000 people by 2020 and by a mere 100,000 by 2010. Housing inventories while they have increased since October of 2007 are still by all accounts pretty low. Mortgage rates are still at historic lows.
Marketing times have increase from about 20 days to over 60 days. And, home prices have fallen by about 6 to 10% depending on the price range. Where have all the Buyers Gone? I called Peter Paul and Mary and what they told me is that they sitting at home reading the newspapers and all the websites about how bad the housing markets are in California, Nevada, Florida, Arizona, and Ohio? However, buyers MUST BE KNOWLEDGEABLE about the local market and make sure they are not overpaying for the home. There are a lot of homes that are over priced today.
Buyers in Seattle...Get off the couch, turn off your computers...and go out and look at houses. The summer of 2008 may be perhaps the best buyers market we have had in Seattle since 1990. OK, OK loans are harder to get, now you actually have to be qualified to buy a home in a certain price range, and the rumors are that there are still many many qualified people in Seattle bringing home a very good paychecks. So what's the deal? Waiting for the market to bottom out? You know, you never know when something is going to hit the bottom (unless you drop a brick from the roof or something) and when something (financial) is going to hit the top until you are past it. We believe that we are at or very close to the bottom for home prices for the in-city neighborhoods at his time. We are seeing more activity everyday now. The Title and Escrow companies are actually getting busy again. This is traditionally the busiest time of the year in Seattle for real estate and there are some great values out there. If you have been thinking that you need a bigger home (the move up buyer) this market can be a gold mine. Buyers can actually write contingent offers" today and sellers are accepting them. If you tried doing that over the past 10 years you would be laughed at...not now. Homes that were selling for $900,000 in the spring of 2007 can most likely be purchased for about $810,000 today. So for the move up buyers you may get about $40,000 less for your $650,000 home but save about $90,000 on your $900,000 home...hummm... a net gain of about $50,000. (A $50,000 saving on an $810,000 investment...that's about a 6% return).
Then when all the hysteria ends about the housing market in Seattle (and it will soon) prices will be heading north again at a pretty strong pace. If past history is any indication we could be seeing double digit appreciation again by 2010 or 2011. We need to clarify something here...we are talking about "in-city neighborhoods", not suburban areas. In-city neighborhoods like Magnolia, Queen Anne, Capitol Hill, Montlake, Madison Park; Washington Park, Denny Blaine, Mt Baker, Seward Park, Ballard, Sunset Hill, Wallingford, Greenlake, Ravenna, Bryant, Viewridge etc. etc....in-city areas that are less than 20 minute commute to downtown not using the freeways. These areas are fully developed...no more land to build on. While all these areas have their own personality and architectural identities many of these neighborhoods have huge upside potential for substantial remodels some with impressive views. These properties tend to appreciate at an even higher rate and appeal to people that are less affected by cycles in the economy. Even if a home in a great location isn't improved it will still have more value than it's counterpart on the same street if it doesn't have that potential view because of its up side potential. Little ramblers on Magnolia and Queen Anne where a second floor would open up a city or sound view have much higher values and much higher demand...in other words a great investment on a property that is getting harder and harder to fine. Now we have this little matter of your monthly gasoline bill. High gas prices will eventually translate into people wanting to live closer in to where they work which will put even more pressure on close-in Seattle neighborhood homes. Seattle, a great place to live, a strong and diverse economy, and huge upside housing potential. Go buy something!
The economy in Seattle has been and continues to be strong. It's projected that Seattle will grow by about 1,000,000 people by 2020 and by a mere 100,000 by 2010. Housing inventories while they have increased since October of 2007 are still by all accounts pretty low. Mortgage rates are still at historic lows.
Marketing times have increase from about 20 days to over 60 days. And, home prices have fallen by about 6 to 10% depending on the price range. Where have all the Buyers Gone? I called Peter Paul and Mary and what they told me is that they sitting at home reading the newspapers and all the websites about how bad the housing markets are in California, Nevada, Florida, Arizona, and Ohio? However, buyers MUST BE KNOWLEDGEABLE about the local market and make sure they are not overpaying for the home. There are a lot of homes that are over priced today.
Buyers in Seattle...Get off the couch, turn off your computers...and go out and look at houses. The summer of 2008 may be perhaps the best buyers market we have had in Seattle since 1990. OK, OK loans are harder to get, now you actually have to be qualified to buy a home in a certain price range, and the rumors are that there are still many many qualified people in Seattle bringing home a very good paychecks. So what's the deal? Waiting for the market to bottom out? You know, you never know when something is going to hit the bottom (unless you drop a brick from the roof or something) and when something (financial) is going to hit the top until you are past it. We believe that we are at or very close to the bottom for home prices for the in-city neighborhoods at his time. We are seeing more activity everyday now. The Title and Escrow companies are actually getting busy again. This is traditionally the busiest time of the year in Seattle for real estate and there are some great values out there. If you have been thinking that you need a bigger home (the move up buyer) this market can be a gold mine. Buyers can actually write contingent offers" today and sellers are accepting them. If you tried doing that over the past 10 years you would be laughed at...not now. Homes that were selling for $900,000 in the spring of 2007 can most likely be purchased for about $810,000 today. So for the move up buyers you may get about $40,000 less for your $650,000 home but save about $90,000 on your $900,000 home...hummm... a net gain of about $50,000. (A $50,000 saving on an $810,000 investment...that's about a 6% return).
Then when all the hysteria ends about the housing market in Seattle (and it will soon) prices will be heading north again at a pretty strong pace. If past history is any indication we could be seeing double digit appreciation again by 2010 or 2011. We need to clarify something here...we are talking about "in-city neighborhoods", not suburban areas. In-city neighborhoods like Magnolia, Queen Anne, Capitol Hill, Montlake, Madison Park; Washington Park, Denny Blaine, Mt Baker, Seward Park, Ballard, Sunset Hill, Wallingford, Greenlake, Ravenna, Bryant, Viewridge etc. etc....in-city areas that are less than 20 minute commute to downtown not using the freeways. These areas are fully developed...no more land to build on. While all these areas have their own personality and architectural identities many of these neighborhoods have huge upside potential for substantial remodels some with impressive views. These properties tend to appreciate at an even higher rate and appeal to people that are less affected by cycles in the economy. Even if a home in a great location isn't improved it will still have more value than it's counterpart on the same street if it doesn't have that potential view because of its up side potential. Little ramblers on Magnolia and Queen Anne where a second floor would open up a city or sound view have much higher values and much higher demand...in other words a great investment on a property that is getting harder and harder to fine. Now we have this little matter of your monthly gasoline bill. High gas prices will eventually translate into people wanting to live closer in to where they work which will put even more pressure on close-in Seattle neighborhood homes. Seattle, a great place to live, a strong and diverse economy, and huge upside housing potential. Go buy something!
Labels: Buying Homes in Seattle, Seattle Real Estate Market Conditions
posted by David & Karen Bell at 8:36 AM
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