The old Rainier Brewery in the Georgetown neighborhood was acquired by the Sabey Corp. Sabey plans to convert the landmark designated, 5.5 acre property into new condominium housing.
Urban Visions, the company behind the proposed 30+ story 2nd & Pike condominium high-rise (not to be confused with 1521 or 2nd & Pine), purchased the Liberty Jewelry & Loan pawnshop building on Pike Street between 1st Avenue & 2nd Avenue.
The parcel is on the same block, just south of the 1521 project. Urban Visions plans to redevelop the property as another condo project, making it the 4th new condo building in a 3 block stretch of 2nd Avenue.
98 Union sits above the Pike Place Market (and a Hostel) and is right across the street from the new Four Seasons. Took a client to view a studio unit facing 1st Avenue and he seemed to like it (MLS 26049842).
It was a rather spacious 588 SF, quiet with the windows closed, came with AC, large bath, sleeping alcove, ample storage and parking…for just $274,950. And, it’s in a great location surrounded by the waterfront, Pike Place Market, Westlake Center & SAM.
But, it’s been on the market since April and had a few price decreases. Granted, the interior is a little dated but in good condition. The HOA dues are a bit high at $402…that’s $.68/SF. I won’t try to guess why it’s so high, but I’m thinking that hefty payment maybe distracting potential buyers.
Interesting tidbit in the Seattle PI about marketing condos, which in Seattle range from an 80’s throwback at Onyx to aiming towards spirituality to the enticing the “Hitchcock demographics” at Escala.
It must work since the marketing geniuses are coming up with them. Though, in reading blogs and comments about the Onyx’s cheesy South Beach theme, lots of people are poking fun at them too.
On the other hand, not all people are grasping at the lifestyle the marketers are selling, as some projects appear to be stagnant. Rumor has it a current Belltown project replaced it’s marketing team recently.
Posted condominium market updates for Queen Anne and Capitol Hill at Seattle Condos and Lofts.
The Seattle Times recently reported that condos in King County has surpassed single family homes in appreciation. Part of the reason is due to a new mentality about condo living, that it’s no longer for people who can’t afford single family homes. As new condos are being built in downtown areas, it’s becoming a lifestyle choice.
In the first six months of this year, condos in King County have appreciated 21.9 percent a square foot compared with the same period in 2005. That’s slightly faster than the 19.7 percent that single-family homes appreciated in the first half of this year.
Seattle’s strong housing demand & lack of adequate supply for units under $400,000 has seen a rise in condo conversions. To meet the demand, developers have found it less expensive and more profitable to convert apartments into condos. Some of the conversions this year include:
The Seattle Times wrote about the other side, the tenants who are being displaced and the inconvienence and cost of moving. For every silver lining (another homeowner) there is a dark cloud (someone being forced to move out of their home). Owners only need provide 90 days notice, and for low-income tenants, $500 toward moving.
An article in CNNMoney.com describes what we’re seeing in Seattle, people moving back to the city core after decades of migration to the suburbs.
Young professionals make up a big part of the trend. “It’s carefree living,” says Caparo. “Young professionals just want to put the key in the door and go to bed at night and lock it up again in the morning.” It’s also where the action is, professionally and socially. “For them, there’s lots of DNA to hook up with,” says McIlwain.
Retirees love the museums, restaurants and, most important, access to the best health care. Empty nesters get to live near work.
“For years people traded a commute for affordable housing,” says Jim Gillespie, CEO of Coldwell Banker. The further out in the suburbs, the more affordable the homes. But as suburbs expanded and got more crowded, road construction did not, could not, keep up. Congestion grew worse.
Of course this movement bodes well for Seattle’s exploding condominium renaissance. Fueled partially by the Growth Management Act, rising commute times and fuel costs, and lifesytle choices, urban centers are both practical and necessary to accomodate long-term growth.
And, I may become part of the statistic. Three years ago I left the city core to purchase an affordable home in North Seattle. From my apartment on Capitol Hill I lived a very pedestrian lifestyle - walking to the grocery store, movie theaters, restaurants, bars, Pacific Place and to the Pike Place Market every weekend to buy fresh fruits and vegetables. It was the epitome of urban lifestyle.
Now, I drive everywhere.
So I’ve been thinking about cashing out my nearly 40% appreciation and moving back to the city core and becoming pedestrian, again. Guess I’ll pull out my rabbit’s foot because I’ll need luck to get one of Vulcan’s lottery spots.
Last night at the Benaroya Hall was the inaugural Downtown Seattle Realtor Symposium + New Construction Condo Showcase. Sponsored/organized primarily by Urban Condominiums and Realogics, the event featured presentations & panel discussions by representatives the Seattle Times, Windermere Onsite, HomeStone Mortgage, Weber+Thomson, Downtown Seattle Association, The Justen Company, Gardner-Johnson and a few others. The Seattle-PI wrote an article about the event titled Booming development set to change Seattle’s look.
The reception featuring free wine and appetizers by Wolfgang Puck, provided Realtors, investors, developers and media an opportunity to mingle and view models of the various downtown projects including a 3-D model of downtown showing where the new projects will be located (similar to Vulcan’s South Lake Union model).
The Condo Showcase presentation was a bit bland in that very little information about the new projects were provided. Mainly, they just mentioned the expected construction and occupancy dates, location and number of units. Some of the speakers detailed design and building features. Most were tight-lipped or simply stated…”go to our website”. For such a hyped event, it was a bit anti-climactic.
There were bright spots and I found some of the speakers and topics about the future housing market for the downtown area fascinating. Keep in mind, the presenters are from the real estate, building, financing and marketing industries so naturally the view points may be a tad biased.
Where to Build?
A vast majority of the future projects will be constucted in the Midtown and Denny Triangle areas north of the downtown core. Available land and changes to the city’s zoning make the northend attractive to developers. Realogics and Weber+Thomson presented a nifty 3-D animation of the area and the Seattle-PI posted it on their website (note, it’s a large PDF file).
In the Year 2010
One speaker I found to be the most objective and knowledgeable was Matthew Gardner of Gardner-Johnson. Mr. Gardner whose background is economics, discussed the future housing outlook for the downtown areas and interest rates. By 2010 most development experts are asserting nearly 10,000 new housing units will be built in the downtown, Midtown, Belltown and Denny Triangle areas. Gardner provided a more realistic number of approximately 6,500 to 6,800 units will be added, noting there are forces that may constrict construction. These forces include rising labor and land costs, consumption of building materials (post-Katrina rebuilding and China’s rise) and lack of available labor and cranes. Apparently, there is a finite number of cranes and Seattle is in short supply.
Gardner touched on the “bubble” topic as well. He mentioned that Seattle should be able to absorb about 2,000 to 2,400 new units per year, but with the external factors noted above, housing supply will be constrained with only about 1,500 units available per year for the next 4-5 years. This combined with job growth and decrease of short term interest rates that’ll reduce rates on 3 and 5 year ARMS, Gardner predicts the downtown housing market will remain strong.
(On the job market, there are some shifting already going on, that will increase workers in the downtown core. Washington Mutual is completing it’s new office tower (retaining employees in downtown), Starbucks is building a new facility, and Safeco is relocating over 1,000 employees from the U-District & Eastide to downtown. Also, Amgen is adding 550,000 sq ft to it’s Pier 89 site potentially doubling it’s workforce).
Mortgage Rates - Where art thou going?
Another interesting speaker was Keith Tibbles of HomeStone Mortgage. Tibbles mentioned that on June 28th the Federal Reserve Interest Rate is likely to rise another .25% to 5.25%. Which, theoretically doesn’t bode well for housing sales. He did explain that the past 4 Fed cycles lasted 9 months each and at the end of those cycles, mortgage rates were cut. He suggested we are now overdue for a mortgage rate adjustment.
He also spoke about the yield curve inversion, stating that when long-term interest drops below the short-term rate, the economy tends to slow down, thus sparking the Feds to adjust rates to stimulate the economy. This writer doesn’t know very much about yield curve inversion, but a brief tour of Google suggests this is an oft debated topic.
Vulcan is hosting two preview events on June 17th - a Realtor event from 10 am to 12 noon, and a public event from 4 pm to 8 pm. Here’s the schedule for the public event:
Each hour a South Lake Union project will be highlighted, with signature drinks, hors d’oeuvres, music and performance art. Never fear, information on all projects, and the sales process will be available throughout the event.
4 - 5 pm Enso Hour
5 - 6 pm Rollin Street
6 - 7 pm Veer Lofts
7 - 8 pm SLU Mix
Information about The Martin, Vulcan’s Belltown project, will be available at the event as well. If you’re interested in attending, be sure to register: http://www.discoverslu.com/mailer/
