http://www.queenannehigh.com/newsroom.html

That is the newly converted Queen Anne High School…I think you’ve got the wrong building.

No, it used to be apartments.

So, I saw this pop up on Redfin today… do you think this is a joke, typo, or is someone actualy serious on the price/sqf…

http://www.redfin.com/stingray/do/printable-listing?listing-id=1520427

Whatever building it is, the sq footage has to be a typo. 686 sq ft makes it $500/sq ft, which while still high, isn’t entirely out of the realm of possibility for QA. 284 sq ft is 14′ x 20′, which is about the size of a bathroom and small kitchen.

That is the newly converted Queen Anne High School…I think you’ve got the wrong building.

Talk about a lucky break for folks with deposits on those monsters!!

So, I saw this pop up on Redfin today… do you think this is a joke, typo, or is someone actualy serious on the price/sqf…

Typo. I used to live in that bldg, on the fifth floor, great view. No fancy kitchen like now, but it was “only” $700/mo then. They’ve kept the single-pane windows & frames, which howl in the winter wind (which the top of Queen Anne gets). On the plus side, I had super-cheap electric (heat) bills. The outside walls are about 8″ thick.

haven’t you heard? seattle IS the next new york or tokyo, and we have the prices to prove it. now if only we had the jobs, density, culture and status as those cities…

KC records says that unit at QAHS is 686 sf.

Red Fin who? Better be ready when I call.

http://www.redfin.com/stingray/do/printable-listing?listing-id=1520427

This refi is from one CU to the other and I fear that my idea that all CUs are customer-oriented is being proven wrong. Hopefully my faith will be restored in the end. No matter what, I’m glad that my loan won’t be sold hither and yon and the money will stay in Washington State to fund other Washingtonians, which is another feature of CUs. The mortgages on our houses are now 5.00% and 5.25%, so hopefully we won’t need to refinance them anytime soon!

The thing that gets me is, my husband and I are number geeks, I’m on top of our financial details like white on rice, and I’m very good about being persistent and getting stuff done through crazy bureaucracy. If we had such a crazymaking experience, I worry about the average Joe and Jane on the street who may not be so detail-oriented and tenacious.

I am also tracking prices and inventory in Belltown. Inventory as of 2 weeks ago in my zip code (98121 – according to redfin) was 195 units. Last week it was up to 203. Yesterday it was 210. As of right now it appears to be at 208. I’m also noticing units that have been lingering on the market for 100+ days. Doesn’t appear like much is selling, and people that can’t sell appear to be just pulling their units off the MLS.

Going to be interesting to see what happens this spring/summer.

****500 Realty News ALERT!!****

We are in negotiations for a building in Tukwila……..

Everyone lets get together now and clap….”500 Realty is coming to town…Sing with me…. Hi Ho the Merry OH…………..

Best part….. The NEW 500 Realty T SHIRT will be passed out at our Grand Opening in August……Set time aside………Mark your calendars… Hot Dogs for everyone!…….

Follow the search Lights!

Ray Pepper
Broker
http://www.500Realty.net

And a house in Queen Anne has gone from $919k to $795k over eight months.

Finally.

Keep rambling.

So, we’re in the home stretch of refinancing our house (sign papers next week). It’s been an interesting experience to say the least, and since the mortgage industry and lending practices are of interest to the assembled, I thought I’d throw out some observations and anecdata.

By way of background, my husband and I have bought a couple of houses and been through a couple of refinances, so we have a little bit of experience in this sort of thing and have had business dealings with several different lenders. This experience was completely unlike anything we’ve done before.

We chose this lender because of their low rate (obviously), and they proudly advertise their low fees as well. What we didn’t realize at the outset, but which seems clear now, is that they’re saving money on customer service. We never met a bank employee face to face; we applied online, spoke to customer service agents by phone, and had a few email transactions. Phone calls to the general customer service line had hold times of 15 minutes and more; messages to the processor’s direct line were never returned (well, once, out of several attempts to make phone contact.)

In fairness, we acted when the rates were super-low in late January, and I understand that brought in a flood of business. Part of that lack of responsiveness may be due to an unusually high workload. But even so, it was incredibly nerve-wracking for this huge, time-sensitive process to be so opaque, and for it to be so hard to get information.

Doing it all “online and hands off” has other consequences, too. Mortgage fraud is clearly a hot topic as the subprime mess has come undone. I’m amazed that lenders are choosing to be so incredibly hands off in the aftermath. We are honest as the day is long (of course!) and have full documentation, but I imagine it’s a million times easier to give fake data when the process is all on line.

The flip side of that is that it’s INCREDIBLY unnerving to be sending off our most sensitive financial information to web sites, email accounts, and random fax numbers, without knowing who the hell is on the other end. The lender we chose to work with is a well-established institution in the area, but that’s no guarantee that someone isnt’ spoofing their site or something. I worry that if this is becoming the new “industry standard”, it’s going to open the door to a ton of consumer fraud, if it hasn’t already.

Another consequence: missing a few things in the application process. Again, we applied online, on our own, from our own living room. We’ve been through this a few times, but there were a few questions that we misjudged in the application process, and those had some consequences. For instance, when supplying info about our finances, there were questions about our retirement savings. We dutifully supplied it, and lo and behold, this was interpreted as meaning that we’d be taking money *out* of those accounts for a down payment–which we had no intention of doing. Also, there was no entry to indicate that we wanted to pay our insurance and taxes out of pocket, rather than through escrow. We had to press that point ourselves and with the communication problems described above I was never totally certain that message would get through (though thankfully, it seems to have worked.)

Another example: we somewhat misjudged the payoff amount for our old mortgage. We entered a ballpark figure that we thought was “about right”, and expected that this would be adjusted to the exact amount when the details came into focus. (This amount changes depending on the day of payoff and how much interest accrues since the last payment.) That’s been standard operating procedure in our past refinances. This time? Nope. Our guess was off by ~$1000, which we need to provide in cash at closing. That’s not going to sink us, but I can easily imagine a situation where a naive borrower’s lack of information, or a simple slip of the finger, could really screw someone over, without detailed, critical oversight.

When the dust clears, I’m hoping we’ll slip into a comfortable routine of automatic payments and everyone will live happily ever after. But the process of getting there…not so fun.

It’s called the King County Ferry District. Unfortunately the Eastside is at the bottom of their list as follows:

* Passenger-only ferry service linking downtown Seattle with Vashon Island. Washington State Ferries currently operates the Vashon passenger-only ferry, but the Legislature in 2006 voted to end state funding for passenger-only ferries on June 30, 2007. The Legislature agreed to extend the Vashon service if King County would assume financial responsibility for the Vashon ferry by July 1, 2008, and assume full operation of the route in July 2009.
* Year-round operation of the Elliott Bay Water Taxi linking downtown and West Seattle, starting by 2010.
* Five future demonstration routes linking Seattle with the local shoreline communities of Kirkland/Eastside, Kenmore/North Lake Washington, Shilshole/North Puget Sound, Renton/South Lake Washington, and Des Moines/South Puget Sound, with funding sufficient to turn successful demonstrations into permanent routes.
We won’t see this happen for many years to come if at all. I would predict a toll on I 90 as WSB said before the water taxi get’s underway.

ya know, I really don’t know the answer to that. I currently have a relatively affordable rent in the same neighborhood, and I’m able to save towards a pretty decent down payment. I don’t want to pay 3x my current rent for the same lousy 600 sq ft. I’m committed to looking at the end of the year…If I can get to the point where I feel like I’m trading up, and not completely getting ripped off, then I’ll pull the trigger.

I look around and think, why would anyone buy at these prices. I’d like someone to answer that one.

On another note, I too have noticed that at least one thing I posted never appeared. I figured that it was karma for thinking I was being cool and clever.

WSB -
I just happen to be old enough to remember having to pay a toll on the 520 that ended in 1979. Traffic was a problem then and will become a nightmare now. I commuted from Redmond to Seattle and called it quits last year. Riding Metro the commute time varied from 35 minutes to 90 minutes. With the estimated $4.38 billion required to replace this aging 1963 bridge we will have 1) a toll for many years, 2) a tax hike. For many, the quality of life sitting in traffic and having to pay $5+ may be the turning point for increased housing inventory on the Eastside. Traffic is already at a stand still on Lake City Way and the great gridlock of I 90 and 405 is no better. I now peacefully work from home and my blood pressure has lowered dramatically! I am in vote for a water taxi but there isn’t any budget left because “funds” have been earmarked for this bridge courtesy of our governor.

I spent a lot of time in Chicago the last 6 years, which has more toll ways than any other city as far as I know. They suck. Chicago has gone to “open road tolling” so if you have one of their transponders you don’t have to stop, similar to what WA-DOT is using on the Tacoma Narrows bridge. I hate traditional tolls mainly because they create congestion, but they do pay for a lot of roadwork without a general tax hike. If 520 adds open road tolling, I don’t see it making congestion any worse than it already is, which admittedly is pretty "golly" bad.

I love Seattle but my #1 pet peeve about this whole area is everyone refuses to acknowledge that the entire transportation infrastructure here is trashed and pony up for it. We’re going to have to have tolls because for some reason you can’t have a tax here without a general vote. And who’s going to vote for increasing their own taxes? I envision that eventually both the 520 and I-90 bridge will be toll, I-5 will have tolls, I-405 will have tolls, 99 will have tolls (to pay for a new Viaduct), etc.

IMO, ferries across the lake are not a great solution. How many cars do they really take out of the loop and at what cost?

I’ve been tracking listings at Mosler Lofts (condos) in Belltown and I’ve been amazed at the number or units for sale (+-24) but absolutely no change in prices. Well, two units were re-listed as new, but are actually price reductions! Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t buy at these prices, but I’ve been waiting for signs of change and I’m hoping this will be a trend.

Unit 407 – originally mls27200718 listed at $349,950…now new and improved MLS 28034138 for $329,950

Unit 611 originally listed at 398,000 now 375,000

http://seattlebubble.com/blog/2008/02/06/time-for-an-announcement-or-whats-with-the-ads/

From time to time when I load the comments page, my name and e-mail are no longer remembered. I’m starting to think this may be a cookie issue, but not sure if it’s on my end or what’s going on. This never happened with the old software and I rarely experience cookie issues with the other sites I visit.

Come on, Tim. Tell the truth. Hasn’t your rent increased in the triple digit percentage range over the past year?

I posted a comment and it didn’t even show up. it would probably have been #19.

That one has a simple explanation: it got mistakenly caught by the spam filter. I have de-spammed it, and it now appears in its rightful place at #19. Sometimes that happens to legitimate comments. I usually scan the spam filter a couple times a day to fish out any mistakenly flagged comments like that.

“A year ago it was no borrower left behind. Now it’s no borrower is getting on the train.”
– Adam Levin, president of Credit.com.

Has anyone else noticed similar problems?

Tim, since you upgraded the software a few weeks ago, I’ve noticed the site does not refresh as smoothly. I’ll reload the front page and it’ll show new posts, but an inaccurate comment count. F5 will get the comment count correct, but when I view the comments it’ll display the cached comments from my last viewing. The ‘recent blog comments’ has the same issue.

I haven’t changed anything on my end, though it’s possible my employer changed their cache setting. Anything on your side that may be different?

Northrop-Grumman/Airbus just beat Boeing for the Pentagon’s giant contract for the refueling tankers. That effectively ends the manufacture of 767s in Everett… and will ultimately depress even further the number of Boeing employees in this region.

Unbelievable. I love the Air Farce. Make a very specific request, and choose the entry that least matches the specifications you requested. B-2 bomber, take 2! N-G must have some great insiders at the AF.

…but I don’t think $250-300/year in tolls is enough to justify the costs of buying a new house.

Ah yes, that’s true. But of course we all know that people don’t think rationally when it comes to decisions involving housing. The psychological effect of paying $5 every time you cross is probably much larger than the actual financial effect.

My impression was that the tolls would only be installed westbound. Shouldn’t affect business. It *will* affect traffic on I90 though. I’ll drive a couple miles out of my way to avoid a $5 toll for the privilege of driving on a congested highway.

I’m not sure it would affect Eastside housing prices because the effect is essentially equal. If you live on one side and work on the other, you have to pay it once a day. So anyone crossing the lake in the commute is affected. Some people might relocate, effectively reducing the traffic on the bridge, but I don’t think $250-300/year in tolls is enough to justify the costs of buying a new house.