This article gets in depth analysis from Director of the Washington Center of Real Estate, Glenn Crellin. Having worked for Glenn in college I can tell you that no one knows more about the real estate market in Washington.

Washington homes reach record affordability
By AUBREY COHEN, seattlepi.com
Updated 03:07 p.m., Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Washington homes are more affordable they have been since the Washington Center for Real Estate Research started tracking the numbers in 1994, and they’re likely to get even cheaper, the center said Wednesday.

The median price of an existing home was $226,900 in Washington and $348,300 in King County, down 7.6 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively, from a year earlier. The price fell 0.6 percent statewide and rose 1 percent in the county from the first quarter, without adjusting for seasonal variations.

Factoring in prices and interest rates, the typical household made a record 154.7 percent of the income needed to buy the median-price home statewide and a near-record 124 percent of the income needed in King County, the center reported. The typical first-time buyer household made a record 85 percent of the income needed for a starter home in Washington and near-record 66.4 percent in King County.

Center Director Glenn Crellin said in February that he thought potential house payments in the Seattle area had hit bottom, because rising mortgage interest rates would more than cancel out further price declines.

Continued low rates and the Federal Reserve Board’s Tuesday announcement that they will keep the federal funds rate near 0 percent into 2013 have changed that, he said Wednesday. “I think it’s probably going to go down a little bit more.”

Sales have been stronger in lower price ranges, skewing the median sales price, Crellin said. “When you look at the median price statistics, you can’t really infer anything about the price of individual homes.”

But prices are falling, and the weak economy and high number of foreclosure homes will continue to contribute to this slide, he said. “I think we’re going to see buyers cont to sit on the sidelines waiting for other economic conditions to stabilize, waiting for house prices to continue to decline.”

What does this mean for people thinking about jumping into home ownership?

“Every purchase has to be evaluated individually,” Crellin said. “Folks that are interested in buyung may look around and say, hey, this is a great deal on a home that’s exactly what I’m looking for. So I would encourage potential buyers to go out and see what’s available in the marketplace.”

Another factor to consider is that, while home prices are falling, rents are headed the other way. The median King County apartment rent was $1,049 this spring, up 1.5 percent from last fall and 3.1 percent from a year earlier, according to Dupre + Scott Apartment Advisors.

One group of buyers that’s doing more than looking is investors, who more-often pay cash for homes, Crellin said. “I’ve never seen the proportion of sales being reported as cash sales.”

But this is not enough to boost sales totals, which fell statewide by a seasonally adjusted 4 percent from the first quarter and 11.3 percent from a year earlier. King County was stronger, with sales down 2.6 percent from the prior quarter and 2.1 percent from the second quarter of 2010.

King County’s totals are “quite astounding considering that a year ago we were still in the final stages of the (home buyer) tax-credit program,” Crellin said.

Also Wednesday, the National Association of Realtors reported that the national median existing house price was $171,900 in the second quarter, down 2.8 percent from a year earlier. Its nationwide affordability index reached 176.6, the third highest level on record (going back to 1970), after the first quarter of 2011 and fourth quarter of 2010.

“Median home prices have been moving up and down in a relatively narrow range in many markets, which shows a stabilization trend,” Realtors Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in the report.

The association noted that homes in or under threat of accounted for 33 percent of second quarter sales, down from 39 percent in the first quarter but up from 32 percent a year earlier, and these homes typically carry a discount of about 20 percent.

Nationwide sales volume for houses and condos fell by a seasonally adjusted 5.4 percent from the first quarter and 12.7 percent from a year earlier.

The housing market should be stronger, Yun said. “With home prices in a broad trough and historically low mortgage interest rates, high housing affordability conditions and rising rents could stimulate a more rapid sales recovery if banks get back into the business of lending to more creditworthy borrowers.”

Association President Ron Phipps hammered on this point, saying: “It’s frustrating for many creditworthy potential home buyers to realize that when they’re ready to make a move, banks remain risk averse. People with good jobs, long-term plans and who are willing to stay well within their means deserve an opportunity to realize their American dream of home ownership. When banks return to normal and safe but sensible lending standards, housing will be able to contribute its traditional share to economic growth.”

While many analysts have pointed to the weak economy as hindering the housing market, Yun flipped the equation, saying: “The direction of the economy will be determined principally by the housing market recovery, and indications now are pointing toward only a modest recovery.”

Read more real estate news. Visit seattlepi.com’s home page for more Seattle news.

Read more: http://www.seattlepi.com/realestate/article/Washington-homes-reach-record-affordability-1831023.php#ixzz1VJORgc3K

It will be interesting to see if rents continue to skyrocket and rates remain low if the third quarter can reflect such conditions. Traditionally we have seen a slow 3rd and 4th quarter so hopefully there are additional factors to get buyers out and buying.

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

The commercial market has experienced declines to the short extent that the residential market has. I had no idea that vacancy rates in Pioneer Square were close to 25%. This article talks about that market and Starbucks selling their building.

Seattle Times
Business / Technology
Originally published August 8, 2011 at 6:16 PM | Page modified August 9, 2011 at 12:05 PM
Starbucks sells Pioneer Square office buildings for $125 million
With a vacancy rate of 21 percent, Pioneer Square has the biggest chunk of empty office space in downtown Seattle.
By Christine Harvey
Seattle Times business reporter
Starbucks closed a $125 million deal Monday with real-estate investment firm Spear Street Capital for two office buildings in Pioneer Square.

The connected buildings, at 505 First Avenue and 83 South King Street, are about 70 percent leased and had been on the market since May, said Stacey Krum, spokeswoman for Starbucks.
Anchor tenants include data-storage company Isilon Systems, brokerage company Sharebuilder and Nuance Communications, a speech and imaging software firm.

Starbucks purchased the King Street building in 2006 for $28.7 million and began building the seven-story First Avenue building in 2007 — when it was opening seven stores a day. A year later when the recession hit, it decided it wouldn’t need the space and began looking for tenants to lease the offices to.

John Grassi, president of San Francisco-based Spear Street Capital, said the company was attracted to the investment because of the neighborhood’s historic charm and its location — between the viaduct and CenturyLink Field. He said he expects tenants to be a mix of technology, media and traditional companies.

With a vacancy rate of 21 percent, Pioneer Square has the biggest chunk of empty office space in downtown Seattle, according to Officespace.com. Rent averages about $24 per square foot — $3 less than downtown’s average and the second-lowest behind Queen Anne and Magnolia.

John Heimbigner, regional director for the online real-estate database, said the space emptied by Amazon.com and the Walt Disney Internet Group make up about 60 percent of Pioneer Square’s office vacancy. Heimbigner said the area is “turning for the better but has a long way to go” before it recovers.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2015856108_starbucks09.html

Christine Harvey: 206-464-3263 or charvey@seattletimes.com

Lets keep an eye to see what moves Starbucks is making next. They have done an exceptional job creating jobs and building one of the best loyalty brands in the US.

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

9. Seattle, WA
Want to raise a book lover? This hotbed of reading is the place, named one of the most literate cities in America.

Seattle gets a bad rap for its rainfall, but the steady precipitation results in lush vegetation, earning Seattle the nickname “the Emerald City” and serving up plenty of locally grown goodness. And when the sun comes out, the weather is mild and perfect for heading to the nearly 5,500 acres of parks.

Companies like Starbucks and Amazon fuel the job market, and expectant parents are in luck because the state of Washington has expanded the Family Medical Leave Act to include businesses with only eight or more workers.

Read the rest of the article: HERE

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

Lakeland Town Center sells for $39.4M

Puget Sound Business Journal
Date: Wednesday, June 22, 2011, 2:40pm PDT

Lakeland Town Center, in Auburn, has been sold for $39.4 million.
The 125,000-square-foot shopping center is anchored by a 67,000-square-foot Top Food & Drug store and houses 26 other retailers.

The buyer was Loja Real Estate LLC, of Walnut Creek, Calif., and is the company’s first real estate acquisition outside of California. The seller was Lakeland Town Center II LLC.

The property had been managed by Tarragon Property Services, of Sumner, and will be managed by Colliers International of Seattle, according to Loja Real Estate.

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

By Dominic Gates
Seattle Times aerospace reporter

Jim Albaugh predicts rapid growth and says the company will outsource less work in the future. But he says no decision has been made about where to build the successor to the 737 jetliner.

Albaugh confirmed that initial production of the 787-9 horizontal tail will be done at the Developmental Center beside Boeing Field.
Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief Jim Albaugh foresees such rapid growth in the next few years that he says Puget Sound-area workers needn’t fear competition from the company’s burgeoning East Coast manufacturing site.

Many of Boeing’s almost 76,500 local workers are concerned about the area’s diminished role on the company’s latest plane, the 787 Dreamliner, and worry that the next jet will be built somewhere else.
That anxiety will be aired starting Tuesday when an administrative law judge in Seattle begins hearing a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) complaint that Boeing put its second 787 final-assembly line in South Carolina instead of Washington state to retaliate for past strikes. That would violate labor laws.

But Albaugh, in an interview one day before Friday’s ceremonial ribbon cutting at that plant in North Charleston, S.C., insisted that plans for future jets and a big expansion of Boeing’s output on existing jet programs mean plenty of work for everyone.

“Our issue is not going to be where you put work,” Albaugh said. “It’s going to be how can you find workers to support all the production that we have, whether that’s here or Charleston.”

He said the Puget Sound region is “top of the list” of locations to be considered for the next new airplane Boeing builds.
Yet, he foresees Boeing Charleston developing into a “center of excellence” for manufacturing aircraft sections that, like the 787, are made out of carbon-fiber-reinforced composite plastic.

Albaugh said Boeing will do less outsourcing of work in the future. And he confirmed that production work on the tail of the next model of the 787 Dreamliner will be brought back in-house to Seattle. In addition, Boeing plans to boost production of current jets by 40 percent at its Renton and Everett factories and stretch local resources to the limit.

“We’ve hired 3,000 people here since the fall of 2009, and we’re going to hire several thousand more,” Albaugh said. “I feel very positive about where Boeing is going and where Puget Sound is going.”

In fact, his figure understates the boom in aircraft manufacturing work. At a time when many businesses are still facing recession, Boeing’s total work force in Washington, including defense-side employees, is up almost 4,700 in the past year.
READ THE REST OF THE ARTICLE:

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

Posted by Tony at MSN Real Estate on Tuesday, June 14, 2011 12:17 PM

Listed for $150 million, Candy Spelling’s mansion reportedly is under contract to be sold to a 22-year-old Formula One racing heiress.

Father’s Day is Sunday. What do you get the dad who has seemingly given you everything — life, love and, in the case of Petra Ecclestone, a wee bit of a push toward affording the most expensive house for sale in the United States?

Hopefully, a heckuva house tour: The Wall Street Journal reports that Ecclestone, 22, is under contract to buy The Manor — the 57,000-square-foot home of Candy Spelling, widow of television producer Aaron Spelling and mom to actress Tori Spelling. The property has been listed for $150 million since March 2009. And it hasn’t budged from that extreme asking price.

The holdouts: Wealthy sellers who refuse to lower asking prices
Ecclestone has a a bit of heritage herself: Her father, Bernie Ecclestone, is the CEO of Formula One racing. According to Forbes, his net worth of $2.4 billion places him fourth among the richest people in Great Britain and ranks him 254th among the world’s richest people.

Petra Ecclestone, a clothing designer, is reportedly engaged to entrepreneur James Stunt and will split time between the Holmby Hills, Calif., estate and her six-story London flat — presumably, because her old place doesn’t have a sufficient gift-wrapping room. This one has multiple.

At 123 rooms, the Spelling mansion was considered Los Angeles’ largest home when it was built in 1991. Spelling and her husband had constructed it on the five-acre site of Bing Crosby’s former estate.

Among its notable features:
A double staircase, inspired by “Gone With the Wind.”
A beauty salon.
A bowling alley.
Parking for 100 vehicles.
In December, Spelling closed on a 15,555-square-foot condo for $35 million.

Although the Spelling mansion was considered the priciest property on the U.S. housing market, it’s unclear if the younger Ecclestone paid full price for it. TMZ cites sources stating that she started negotiations at $75 million — a cool $75 million less than the asking price. Blog “Insider Monkey” estimates the sale price at around $90 million.

That would put its sale price below the $100 million that Russian billionaire Yuri Milner paid for a French chateau-style mansion in Los Altos Hills, Calif., a few months back.

Alas, “The Manor” may not have even been Ecclestone’s first choice. TMZ says that Ecclestone also had her eye on a smaller (47,000 square feet), cheaper ($125 million list price) and more extravagantly named (“Fleur de Lys”) mansion down the street. Its list price hasn’t changed since 2007.

— Tony Stasiek is a producer/editor at MSN Real Estate.

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

Puget Sound Business Journal
Date: Monday, June 6, 2011, 1:27pm PDT

The number of pending home sales in King County rose to 3,113 last month from 2,169 a year earlier and from 2,987 a month earlier.

The average sale price of a King County home last month fell to $387,566 from $422,978 a year earlier and from $410,289 a month earlier, according to the latest figures compiled by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS), which surveys housing sales activity in more than 20 Western Washington counties.

The median sale price (half sold for more and half for less) also fell in King County last month, dropping to $316,750 from $346,000 a year ago and from $324,500 a month ago.

NWMLS brokers said the drop in home prices was caused by a “fairly high ratio of foreclosed homes and short sales that are being sold at deep discounts.”

Read more: King County home sales up, prices down in May | Puget Sound Business Journal

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

By Caitlin Dewey
May 20, 2011

Cramming for final exams is over and you’ve got your degree. Now the real test begins. As graduates prepare to enter the workforce, they’ll find the best job market in the last five years, according to career experts. The bad news: average starting salaries for new grads have dropped below $30,000 during the same time frame.

We began our search using the same criteria we applied to select our list of Best Cities for the Next Decade: healthy economies fueling new job growth. We then refined our search by looking at factors of interest to the post-grad set, such as rent affordability, access to public transportation, overall cost of living, culture, nightlife and the percentage of people ages 20 to 24.

Here are 10 U.S. cities that may offer exceptional opportunities for recent grads in a rebounding economy:

No. 10 – Washington, D.C.
Median monthly rent: $1,226 (nat. average, $817)
Median income (2009): $40,952 (nat. average, $30,402)
Income growth (2005 to 2009): 4.9%
Unemployment rate: 9.5% (nat. average, 9.2%)
Percentage of residents ages 20-24: 6.5% (nat. average, 7.0%)

The District is a clear choice for new grads looking to start their careers in public service. The nation’s capital led U.S. job growth in 2010, hiring thousands for stable, well-paying jobs in government and government-related sectors, such as like public health, homeland security and legal services.

By 2012, Uncle Sam will make another 25,000 hires in the region — paying more, on average, than the private sector. As in other large cities, well-paying jobs come with higher rents and living costs. But recent grads can look to eclectic neighborhoods like Adams-Morgan and Columbia Heights for cheaper rent. An abundance of free museums, concerts and other entertainment also lessens the cost-of-living sting.

Pros: An economy insulated from economic volatility because of so many government and government-related jobs, extensive public transportation system, plenty of excitement, history, and nightlife.

Cons: It’s pricey. And commutes can be long.

No. 9 – Charlotte, N.C.
Median monthly rent: $774 (nat. average, $817)
Median income (2009): $28,386 (nat. average, $30,402)
Income growth (2005 to 2009): 4.39%
Unemployment rate: 10.4% (nat. average, 9.2%)
Percentage of residents ages 20-24: 6.1% (nat. average, 7.0%)

With a metro population of 1,745,524, Charlotte is the second-largest banking center in the country, and it has the jobs to prove it: Wells Fargo (WFC) and Bank of America (BAC) rank among the city’s top employers. Charlotte’s diversified economy has also seen gains in fields such as aviation, defense, bioscience and energy production, and the city added 4,900 private-sector jobs last year alone. US Airways Group (LCC) has its headquarters here. Low rents and living costs combined with a glitzy, developing uptown district make it worth a look.

Pros: A cost-of-living bargain compared to other major cities, rebounding economy.

Cons: High, but falling, crime rates, limited public transportation.

No. 8 – Seattle, WA
Median monthly rent: $942 (nat. average, $817)
Median income (2009): $33,372 (nat. average, $30,402)
Income growth (2005 to 2009): 5.0%
Unemployment rate: 9.2% (nat. average, 9.2%)
Percentage of residents ages 20-24: 6.7% (nat. average, 7.0%)

Seattle is a global hub not just for freight, but also for information technology, clean technology and life sciences. Forty-one percent of Seattle’s businesses — most of them mid-sized — say they plan to add jobs this year, and Amazon recently posted want ads for 1,900 new jobs in its South Lake Union office. A studio in the hip Capitol Hill neighborhood runs well under $1,000. Take your savings to a theater, club or cafe — the Emerald City is renowned for its music, theater and coffee culture.

Pros: Stable job scene, relatively low crime rate

Cons: Limited public transit, sluggish post-recession recovery. And hope you like cloudy days.

See the other top cities

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

… Last Tuesday another housing market obstacle appeared in the form of Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller Home Price Index for March. Prices for 20 major metro areas dropped 0.8% for the month and were down 3.6% from a year ago. These numbers had some folks claiming the double dip in housing prices had arrived.

But Case-Shiller’s longer term data reveals that in their 20 measured metros, home prices are still UP 38.2% since January 2000. This shows that in real estate, you have to look at the long term picture, just like you do with your 401K. You can see a chart of the info here:

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed

A few more people than usual will be out on the streets of Finn Hill, North Juanita and Kingsgate early Wednesday morning.

By Keith Ervin
Seattle Times staff reporter

A few more people than usual will be out on the streets of Finn Hill, North Juanita and Kingsgate early Wednesday morning.

Some will unveil banners welcoming the communities to Kirkland.

Others, wearing the uniform of the Kirkland Police Department, will bring a larger law-enforcement presence to an area King County sheriff’s deputies now patrol.

One of the biggest municipal annexations in King County in years will take place just after midnight Tuesday, adding 31,000 people to the Eastside city of 48,000.

“I’m just very happy that it’s finally happening,” said Kingsgate resident Toby Nixon, a former state legislator who co-authored the 2009 Voters’ Pamphlet statement in favor of annexation, and who is running for City Council.

“It’s huge. I’m very excited,” said Jane Hague, who represents Kirkland and most of its new territory on the Metropolitan King County Council.

FULL STORY

Seattle Real Estate Tyler Freed