Apparently Puyallup is not alone outside of Seattle in its ability to attract ridiculously lavish condominiums. "Luxury condos" are popping up in all kinds of outlying Seattle neighborhoods:
Luxury condominiums, some priced up to $2 million, are springing up in such unlikely locations as Edmonds and Ruston as developers look to attract empty nesters in search of low-maintenance living.These are no Belltown boxes, either. The spate of new luxury condo developments boasts spacious units averaging about 2,600 square feet and amenities such as pools, theaters, guest suites, conference centers and multiple parking spaces.
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Developers of such projects have their sights set on aging baby boomers who are more active than their parents’ generation, who appreciate the amenities and ease of condo living but aren’t willing to downsize to a traditionally sized unit.Most important, many have amassed large amounts of equity in homes bought decades earlier.
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"The more sophisticated the urban environment, the more likely you’re going to see that kind of price point [$1 million]," he said. "We’re getting there in Seattle, no doubt about it."Would I expect to see more units priced around a million dollars? Yes. In the last 20 years, with the equity we’ve built up in our single-family houses, a million dollars is really not a lot anymore."
Plus, thanks to the power of appreciation, the $1,000,000 condo is guaranteed to make these smart investors even wealthier as the years go on. But seriously, I guess if you’ve got the money and that’s the way you want to spend it—hey, more power to you. I do wonder what is going to come of these developments if the air comes out of Seattle’s bubble before they’re completed…
(Deborah Bach, Seattle P-I, 03.22.2006)
What’s gonna happen to these million dollar condos when the air comes out of the bubble before they’re completed?
Easy- they will turn into 500K condos.
Either that or they’ll sit and rot-which is REALLY BAD for the community they’re in.
That project out in Ruston is surprising in that you don’t usually find luxury homes being built on superfund sites.
In 1983, the EPA added the Ruston smelter site to its Superfund national priorities list
Think if it as an upscale and scenic version of Love Canal.
maybe if you’re lucky, you’ll get some PCBs in your salad….Ruston? GRIM in the winter, people….why live in those outlying areas when you can drive to the wilderness in 1-2 hours out of Seattle and not commute like a wretch and pay through he nose for your gas and electricity. This market needs to go
back to 2001 prices just to get reasonable again.
Whether it drops below that is anybody’s guess, but it is intriguing that the long-term drop in Japan is what people preodict for real estate decreases in general. Since RE is illiquid, it can go down over the course of a decade. When all those boomers counting on all their retirement in their houses get wind of a decline, that’s when the real fun begins.
I would’ve bought the last year, not with an ARM but with a fixed mortgage and 20% down, but I got so poed at what’s going on and the prospect of living in a dump (still not the greatest place, and likely to stay that way in a recession) that I’m waiting til next winter. Of course, the new light rail will make the south end more attractive. More sunlight down there down, too, and better traffic than the stinky dumbdude Dori Monson Shoreline/north end. Plus, the airport. FAR better…but not a place you want your gf to walk around much. Too many homies.
I say Lynnwood turns into S Central LA in 2007.