Bellevue Condos - Is the timing right?

[belltowers]

Hi Folks, first post here, but I've been following the board for a few months now. Last year I sort of fell in love with the idea of living in one of the three steel/concrete condos in Bellevue. One year later, its clear now that pricing was still inflated as county records have shown units going for a 10-20% less(comparable units) then the few units that sold last year. Because of pricing, I think I've narrowed the list down to bellevue towers. Based on county records, the "toughest" deal negotiated yet(closed last month) was about 33% off of initial pricing(2bd 2bath).

I'm pretty sure the market will slip a little bit further(no tax credit, summer is ending etc), and I'm thinking of submitting a bid for 40% off of initial list.

After making a horrible mistake of buying a home in '06, I would like to think that I won't be thinking of this upcoming purchase in the same light 3 years from now. Does anyone have input on this topic? Does anyone anticipate something that would/should affect my decision making?

I appreciate any/all input(even if its just to call me an idiot).

[ira s]

What happened to the property you bought in '06? Do you still own it?
Things that could affect the values of condos in DT Bellevue, besides general economic conditions include the supply, and it seems to me that they sure built a ton of condos in Bellevue.
You bought a home four years ago, lost a ton of money on it, and now you want to do it again?
You'll probably be okay if you pay 40% below the initial asking prices, especially if units are still selling for more than that, but are the units for sale staying on the market for a long time? Can you rent one of these units? If you can, how do the rents compare to what the mortgage payments would be?
Why do you want to own one? Because you fell in love with one? Couldn't you love something you rented? If you want to own something you love, maybe you should get a dog.
I don't mean to be snarky. If the mortgage payments are similar to the rents, if the units don't stay on the market for very long, if the HOA dues aren't insane and the building has good management and there aren't upcoming assessments, then it might be worth a shot.

[deejayoh]

I'm with Ira on this one. Ever heard "once burned, twice shy"?

Bravern building just took half of their capacity off of the market (turned one tower into rentals) and lowered LIST prices by ~30% on the other. More to come there, I guarantee it.

Problem with those Bellevue condos is that they were an answer looking for a question. I don't think many people who are moving to the east side are looking for the efficiency of a condo. You may be an outlier.

[belltowers]

I guess I asked for it...

Yes, I still have the home I bought in '06 and another I purchased in '03, the latter being cashflow positive for the past 3 years. I will be renting the '06 home and "break even" after depreciation + principal payments(obviously a cash flow loss).

Bellevue Towers is apparently not charging home owners until they are 50% sold and I guess it will close to a year to hit that land mark. Since thats not in the picture, a normal mtg payment is close-ish to what people have been asking for in rent(a little less in aparments) Having said that, if sales/rentals go down 10% its no big deal for renters, huge deal for buyers obviously.

I didn't know that the Bravern brought their list prices down 30%... makes me feel less confident that I was aggressive enough with my thought process.

[RhondaPorter]

Also check out the financing options before you get too far into a transaction with a condo... underwriting guidelines are much tougher on condo's than single family homes.