West Seattle Open Houses

Never mind the weather. Sure, it’s been sunny and beautiful for the past few weeks (with some cloudy periods), but it’s fall now and there’s nothing you can do about it. Head out to West Seattle anyway and check out some of the open houses this weekend. Here are a couple of them.

This first one is a townhouse that’s been for sale for a little more than a month. It has 3 bed, 2.5 bath, 1,920 sf, and the asking price is $615K. The location is in an upscale neighborhood that’s close to everything at California and Admiral, and you’d be surrounded by other nice craftsman-era houses. Not to mention a short walk to Hamilton Viewpoint park, the Elliot Bay Water Taxi, and Alki Beach. This house is open from 1-4 Sunday.

The arrangement of this group of townhouses stands out from most others in the area because of the small courtyard in the middle, instead of a large block of townhouses stuck together with an alley behind them. The grounds, from what I’ve seen in the past, are kept up pretty well. This is the next best thing to owning a single family home.

This other house stands out primarily because of its price: it has come down almost 20% (from $765K to $620K) since May.

It has 4 beds, 3.5 baths, 3,100 sf, and it’s in a good location. You would be within walking distance of Hiawatha Playfield without being so close that you would have to deal with all the foot and vehicle traffic.

It also has some nice views and a good-sized backyard. If you’re in the area, check it out Sunday from 12-2.

Open Condos this Weekend in West Seattle

As in, “Open Houses”, but they’re condos. Anyway, for some reason there are a lot of open condos in West Seattle this weekend. If that’s what you’re after (or if not, and you just like to pretend), check these out. We don’t have much of this amazing weekend weather left, so get out while you can.

North Admiral (on top of the hill):

1603 California Ave SW (3 bed, 2.5 bath, 1,920 sf, $659,950) Open Sun, 1-4

2115 California Ave SW #403 (2 bed, 2 bath, 1,153 sf, $375,000) Open Sun, 1-4

Alki (west side of West Seattle, down by the water)

3633 Beach Dr SW #101 (2 bed, 1.75 bath, 1,120 sf, $829,000) Open Sat/Sun 10-5 – This is right on the water. The only pictures in the listing are a single artists rendering and an overhead blueprint-type layout, but as far as I can tell the building already exists (they are having an open house, after all). Maybe they didn’t have time to take pictures.

East Side (east side of West Seattle, that is)

3221 SW Avalon Way #408 (1 bed, 1 bath, 720 sf, $228,000) Open Sun, 1-4 – Next to the golf course and reduced $10K since early July.

3022 SW Bradford St #303 (1 bed, 1 bath, 742 sf, $239,950) Open Sun, 1-4

More Amazing Views in West Seattle

A couple of luxurious houses, one with amazing views, the other with “Stunning Mediterranean luxury” (and a good view) recently came on the market in West Seattle. If you don’t mind paying a price per square foot that is two or two and a half times the average for the area, then check them out:

This is the one with the killer views. It’s 3,160 square feet, with 4 bedrooms and three baths. It’s on the side of the (steep) hill facing east toward downtown Seattle, so if it’s views you’re after, you’ll get them here. Oh, the price is $1.875M.The location is good, particularly if you like to walk up and down steep hills for exercise. It’s just north and downhill about 150 feet (vertically) from groceries, food, a theatre, and its just uphill from Seacrest pier, which is where the Elliot Bay Water Taxi takes off and leaves. Once you’re down at sea level, you’re also close to Alki Beach, up and over Duwamish Head. All in all, not a bad place to be.

This is also a good one if you are a fan of the Craftsman style. You can obviously tell this from the outside, but the inside has kept the look and feel of the era with wood floors, trim, and patio fences (check out the beadboard ceiling on the patio).

This next one is over the top. It’s 2,380 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 2 baths for $2.1M. The view is good (not as good as the other house, but I wouldn’t complain), and even if you don’t like the view you can take comfort in your big yard (a 6,400 square foot lot) and beautiful interior.

The location, overall, is good: you’re in West Seattle and you’re a few minutes from just about everything, including downtown. It’s not walking distance from most things, but a short drive or bus trip will get you just about anywhere.

New Playground Spurs Controversy

The idea of turning a patch of green into a small playground has generated a lot of opinions in the North Admiral area of West Seattle. When I first heard of the idea I thought it would be a slam dunk. Everyone likes a playground, right?

Uh, no. Lots of people like playgrounds, usually those who have kids (go figure). But there are plenty of people–more than I would have expected–who don’t like the idea at all. Most of the progress has been reported on the West Seattle Blog over the past few months, and much of the drama has been reported or played out since last Wednesday night when there was a meeting at the local library to let members of the community air their opinions. Opinions ranged from total support to firm opposition, with some bordering on bizarre:

“I’m in full support of this, and anything that can be done to beautify the area, whether it ends up as beautification or a play element.”

“If this goes in I will move.”

“…there are gangs up and down that street…”

The planning is still in the early stages. Right now, as far as I can tell, the planning involves a “play area”, not, as some nearby residents fear, a full scale playground replete with towering slides, swings, and monkey bars. As the project progresses, it may even include improving nearby areas (see WSB for details).

The latest news is that the project, along with another playground-type plan, has been granted $15K in matching funds from Seattle’s Department of Neighborhoods. It helps that Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels and Seattle City Council’s Parks Committee chair Tom Rasmussen are open to the idea, it also probably figures in that they are both West Seattle residents.

I like the idea of a playground, but I sympathize with some nearby residents’ sentiment that there is nothing inherently wrong with a patch of grass, or, to paraphrase, that making a play area is fixing something that isn’t broken.

Million Dollar Open Houses in West Seattle

There are lots of open houses this weekend in West Seattle, and a few that are priced right around a million dollars. If that’s your price range, swing by and check these out:

4748 47th Ave SW (4 bed, 2.75 bath, 3,400 sf, $949K) Sun, 12-4. This is a big house on a big lot that has been restored, quite nicely, judging from the pictures, to its craftsman-era look. The thing that isn’t mentioned in the listing is its great location: it’s three blocks from the intersection of California and Alaska, “The Junction”, where there’s a lot to do (shopping, restaurants, events).

3433 61st Ave SW (5 bed, 3.5 bath, 4,207 sf, $1.295M) Sun, 1-4. Another big house (much bigger, actually) in a good location. It’s a short walk to Alki beach, and it even has a theater! And check out the picture of the kitchen range (right); you’ll finally have a place to prepare your gourmet meals, or at least look like you do.

3419 30th Ave SW (3 bed, 3 bath, 3,320 sf, $1M) Sun, 1-4. This house is cool. Very modern, with all the new stuff, including radiant heat (my personal favorite feature). It’s close to Alki beach, too. Just head up Harbor Ave a few blocks and you’re on the water.

Sweet New Stuff in West Seattle

Despite this being the slowest real estate market in years there are still new homes for sale popping up every day. Why are they selling now? Who knows, but in the meantime we get some eye candy to enjoy and you get something to read about. Here are a couple that caught my eye.

Beach party pad – This 3 bedroom, 2.75 bath, 2,720 square foot house is right across the street from Alki beach with an awesome northwest view of Puget Sound (Magnolia to Bainbridge). It’s on a 4,071 square foot lot, too, so you have a nice backyard and front deck for hosting your beach parties–it even has a basketball court! The asking price is just over $1.3M ($495/sf!) but it’s hard to say if the selling price will be anywhere near that since it just came on the market.

It has recently been remodeled. The large windows and clean color scheme are modern and pleasing to the eye (if you like pine, lots of pine, and light blue). The location is fantastic, with the only downside being that you wouldn’t be within walking distance of a grocery store, that is, unless you want to walk about a half mile, and up about 300ft in elevation.

Modern living close to the freeway – This is a new build with modern design and lots of space: 4 bedroom, 3.5 bath, 3,250 square feet. The floor plan is very open and the interior looks very nicely done (in the pictures, anyway, I haven’t seen it in person). It’s in a good location for access to the West Seattle bridge or bus stops, too. The only drawback is that it’s really close to the West Seattle bridge, so you will have to endure the traffic noise. This appears to have been factored into the price, though, which is $699,950 ($215/sf). And it’s about halfway up the West Seattle plateau, so if you want to walk to any of the fun up at California & Admiral you will have to walk up about 200ft.

Most of West Seattle is For Sale

I like living in West Seattle. I really do. But the number of homes for sale worries me–where’s everybody going?

The last numbers I ran a few days ago show that there are 726 homes for sale in West Seattle, which has four zip codes. The average number of homes per zip code, then, is about 181. Maybe I missed the news story about plans for a new nuclear plant or maximum security prison. That’s a lot of for sale signs to be in a single zip code. So many, in fact, that if I could see ten homes every weekend it would take me almost a year and a half to see all of them. And I didn’t even include condos.

Now for the good news. Well, good if you want to buy a house in West Seattle. Not so good if you’re selling. I tallied up the homes for sale per zip code, and their corresponding age (days on market, column headings), and here’s what I came up with:

Approximately one third of homes in West Seattle have been on the market more than three months. What does this tell me? According to Glenn’s post about “real estate science”, this third of homes is probably discounted 8-12% from its original asking price. Homes between 30 and 60 days on the market–the middle third–are discounted anywhere from 2-8%. Anecdotal evidence supports this broad, multi-city statistic: search for homes that have been on the market more than 90 days and look at the price history (you have to scroll down a bit), you’re likely to see one reduction after another.

If individual owners aren’t buying these homes, I’m sure there are plenty of flippers who will. Will the cycle repeat?

Cycle At Your Own Risk

Among the many problems brought on by America’s current economic woes, the rift between cyclists and motorists has been catapulted to the headlines. Gas prices are up, unemployment is up, prices of consumer goods are up, and consequently people are cutting spending however they can. And this includes riding a bike to work.

Who knew there was so much built up rage on the road? A few weeks ago a group of Capitol Hill cyclists attacked a driver after he allegedly drove into them on purpose. Accounts of the event differ, but from everything I’ve heard and read both parties share some of the blame. Much debate has ensued since, most of it attempting to understand the source of the problem and the correct place for blame. Is it the n00b cyclists who just started riding to work three months ago and don’t know cyclists’ rules of the road? Or is it thoughtless drivers who don’t pay attention to where they’re driving, or, as I’ve read more than once, is their resent toward “arrogant” cyclists, with their fit physiques and fancy riding gear?

Who knows. But the problem isn’t just in Seattle. The New York Times ran a story Sunday about the growing battle on the asphalt, as increasing numbers of gas money saving cyclists hit the road. There are recent examples from Kentucky, Utah, Oregon, New York, and more. Hard evidence is difficult to come by, but by most accounts the number of cyclists is has jumped recently:

This summer, the number of new cyclists has increased strongly across the country. In June, nearly 11,000 first-time riders participated in Denver’s Bike to Work Day. Dahon, makers of folding bikes popular with commuters, reports a 30-percent sales increase from a year ago, with many models having been sold out since the spring. Transportation Alternatives, a bicycling advocacy group, estimates that 131,000 people cycle daily in New York, up 77 percent since 2000.

Even SDOT is jumping in the mix by adding signs (inset image above) to cut down on cyclists getting “doored” inadvertently.

West Seattle Open Houses

It’s supposed to rain tomorrow, but that’s okay because the sweet open houses in West Seattle are all on Sunday! Here are the good ones:

3815 41 Ave SW (4 bed, 2.5 bath, square feet unknown, $849,950)  Sunday, 1-4

Nice looking house in a good location. It’s almost exactly between the two junctions (California & Admiral, California & Alaska), which is where all the good stuff is. It’s also on a big lot with a decent back yard.

3252 35th Ave. SW (5 bed, 3.5 bath, 4,000 sf, $1,250,000) Sunday, 1-4

This one was open last weekend too; maybe this weekend I’ll actually get out to see it. A chic house with lots of cool amenities (heated floors) and plenty of space, it even has some killer views of the city.

4152 54th Ave SW (4 bed, 3.5 bath, 3,390 sf, $899,000) Sunday, 2-5

The first two have only been on MLS for a short time (less than two weeks), but this one has been on Redfin for 123 days. The location is a bit out of the way, which is not necessarily a bad thing, and it has come down in price about 10% from $1M when it was initially listed in April.

Sweet Open Houses in West Seattle

Maybe you’re going to Seafair–good for you. But after you’re done with hydroplanes, Blue Angels, and traffic, swing by West Seattle. There are some sweet open houses (and if Seafair’s not your thing, you can still see plenty of the Blue Angels from Hamilton Viewpoint Park at the northern tip of West Seattle).

Here’s the first one, at 1526 Palm Ave SW. It’s four bedroom, four bath, 4,010 square feet, and it has a ridiculously good view of downtown Seattle:

I’ll take it. The location is actually quite good, too. It is only about two or three blocks from Hamilton Viewpoint Park, which, apart from viewing the Blue Angels, is an awesome spot for looking out over Elliot Bay, playing football, or just picnicking in the Seattle summer weather. We watched the Ivar’s fireworks from there this past 4th of July.

Anyway, here’s the kicker: it’s priced at $2.5M, which translates to $623/sf. Yes, it has a good view, but the kitchen could use some updating, and, if anyone hasn’t noticed, there are quite a lot of houses for sale sitting idle. I wouldn’t bet that it will fetch the asking price, but check it out anyway: it’s open Sunday from 1-4pm.

This is the other one that caught my eye, at 3252 35th Ave. SW. It has 5 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 4,000 square feet, and it’s priced at almost exactly half of the other house at $1,250,000, which is $312/sf. I’m actually going to have to go check this one out myself, because it’s stunning. It even has radiant heat in the floors (I love that).

The location is not quite as good as the first house, but still pretty good (it’s in West Seattle, after all). This one is about the same distance from all the good stuff up at California and Admiral, and though it’s close to a park (Hiawatha Park) it’s about 80 feet below it in elevation, which means a steep hike to hit the playground or do some grocery shopping. No problem if you like the fitness challenge though.

This one is open this weekend on Saturday from 2-5 and Sunday from 1-4. See you there!