A Street on the Brink: Calling All Urban Pioneers
If you’re looking for a centrally located single family home close to Capitol Hill and Downtown, you may want to consider the 900 block of 23rd Avenue. Sure 23rd is a busy street, but if you don’t have young children or darting pets, and can tolerate a certain amount of noise, there are bargains to be had.
Single family homes in this area of Squire Park/Central District average $400 a square foot. Current listings on 23rd, between Union and E. Marion range from $172 – $232/sq. ft. That’s about 50% off for living on a busy street.
This is a block rushing toward a renaissance. With its renovated homes (two of the homes are newly renovated turn-of-the-last-century classics), a new sandwich shop, and a planned development at 23rd and Union (not to mention Garfield High’s renovation and the new project at ye olde Dilettante shop on 23rd and Cherry), the area pushes for a new identity.
To be sure, the street has issues other than noise. Recent nearby shootings illustrate the darker side of this transitional street. (My personal feeling—violence is pervasive in our society. I feel no more vulnerable at the corner of 23rd and E. Cherry than I would at a mall in Lynnwood or a classroom in Issaquah.)
Still though, I imagine these sorta places attract a certain type of urban pioneer—maybe someone cash-poor-ish (relatively speaking) with a tough skin. Actually, a couple of my friends are perfectly suited.
For consideration of those with a pioneering spirit:
915 23rd Ave Seattle, WA 98122 Price: $475,000
4 Bedrooms, 2 Baths, 2,701 sq. ft.
910 23rd Ave Seattle, WA 98122 Price: $449,950
5 Bedrooms 3 Baths 1,940 sq. ft.
924 23rd Ave Seattle, WA 98122 Price: $499,100
4 Bedrooms, 3 Baths, 2,900 sq. ft.
Ken said:
This is very interesting. Though I have to say, as a newcomer to Seattle, that nearly half-a-million dollars for a home on a noisy, transitional street gives me serious sticker shock. Even at 50% of the local cost per square foot, that price tag is pretty hard to swallow!
October 1, 2008 9:09 AM
Gene said:
4 bedrooms, 3 baths, 2900 sq feet… but not a good place for kids/pets. That just screams “deal” to me – I mean, what could go wrong? Resale will be killer (maybe even literally!).
October 1, 2008 2:17 PM
Elizabeth said:
Happily, I have both darting pets and newly mobile children, so I am not tempted by these.
I’m more interested in those duplexes in Eastlake by I-5 that I pass every day on the way to the gym! About the same price, and you get the peace of mind that comes with no recent shootings…
October 1, 2008 4:08 PM
rick.williams said:
Like I said, you got to have a thick skin. Personally, the big draw back for me is the busy street, not the area’s reputation.
Only 20% of Seattle homes have children–so for the majority of us, kid-friendly isn’t such a big issue. (Though I know for parents it’s pretty much the only issue. But that’s their baggage–and I’m not toting it.) And you can always build a fence to keep your pets contained.
As to the crime, I’ve lived just a couple blocks away for years without once being shot, raped, or robbed. Crime in this ‘hood tends to be targeted–not random acts against anonymous folks. (For that, you really need to go to the burbs.)
For those of us who relocated from larger cities like NY, Chicago or LA, the 900 block of 23rd seems a perfectly safe urban street. For those just in from Vashon, maybe not so much.
Afterall, it’s all relative. One man’s bad neighborhood is another’s entry into a high-priced market.
The area also easily supports rentals,even now–and the hood is only going to get better. Being close to Seattle University, the UW and Seattle Central Community College means there’s lots of students looking to rent. Given rental prices for homes in the vicinity, the monthly rent could actually cover the mortgage payment. (Fidning a rental property that pays for itself in a neighborhood I’d actually live in is not so very easy.)
So while these bargains may not be for everyone, they do work for some of us. And those folks get to save lots of money.
October 2, 2008 11:06 AM