Seattle Housing Buzz

Justin Wilcox wants to sell his home. But, he’s not so sure the traditional methods will work in this market so he’s attempting to try something different. He calls it a “reverse auction” - rather than having buyers bid up a price, the price will be set, then reduced on a weekly basis until someone pulls the trigger. But, he’s not giving the house away…there is a “reserve price”.

The starting price is $499,000 for this 1 story + basement, 2,995 sq ft, 4 bedroom home in Bothell. For more information visit Wilcox’s site: www.BothellCountdown.com.

See also: King5’s report

Tags: Bothell Countdown

Vulcan announced the opening of its third apartment complex, The Borealis, in the South Lake Union district. The development is the result of a land purchase deal with the city back in 2001 that’ll provide 53 workforce units available to individuals and families earning less than 80% of the King County median household income.

As defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2008 median incomes for 80 percent are $43,050 or less for a one-person household and $61,500 or less for a four-person household. Rents at Borealis Apartments will start at $875 for a studio, $1,052 for a one-bedroom and $1,244 for a two-bedroom unit.

Borealis features studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartment homes ranging in size from 400 to 850 square feet. The project incorporated green built features such low flow fixtures, Energy Star appliances, low VOC finishes, green screens and bike lockers.

Click here for more info

Tags: Borealis Apartments, Seattle Apartments, South Lake Union, Vulcan

More John L. Scott news…

John L. Scott Real Estate Chairman and CEO, J. Lennox Scott, announced the company’s purchase of Real Tech LLC, a web-based technology solutions company. With this change in ownership, Real Tech will evolve into John L. Scott’s exclusive in-house technology provider. Scott says that the decision to purchase Real Tech was made in order to support John L. Scott’s aggressive technology needs.

“We have a voracious appetite for technology,” said Scott. “The purchase of Real Tech provides John L. Scott with the ongoing, real time resources that we need to meet our ambitious technology goals.”

Real Tech has been John L. Scott’s technology partner collectively for five years and has been responsible for providing the development behind some of John L. Scott’s most notable web-related achievements, including the launch of Microsoft Virtual Earth, Neighborhood Wizard with Microsoft’s polygon drawing tool, and the integration of comparable sold home information with Microsoft’s interactive mapping system. Scott says that the successful partnership between John L. Scott, Real Tech, and Microsoft will continue to produce new innovations for the real estate industry in the coming months.

Real Tech General Manager, Adam Jundt, says, “John L Scott has a serious commitment to delivering cutting-edge technology solutions to their agents and the real estate consumer. Combined with Real Tech’s expertise, this enhanced partnership will fuel the next generation of products and services, continuing our role as technology leaders in the real estate industry.”

Real Tech’s nine team members will now operate within John L. Scott’s marketing and eStrategies department which is headed by Pat Giles, Vice President of Marketing and eStrategies. Giles recently joined John L. Scott, bringing a diverse technical and management background that blends together more than twenty years of experience in marketing, IT, and internet strategies.

Tags: John L. Scott Real Estate, RealTech