Bellevue Condo Anecdote

[TheMightyQuinn]

I thought I'd share what's going on in my little neck of the woods. I live in a 50 unit condo complex in Bellevue (between crossroads and downtown.) Condo asking prices have dropped 50% in the past four years.

In my building there are six of us in various situations:

Neighbor 1 put their house on the market recently, after listing then delisting in 2008. They've been wanting to sell for three years but have been stuck. They bought a couple of years before the peak but they spent a fortune renovating the place so I suspect they are terribly underwater. They are asking about 20% more for their place than others.

Neighbor 2 moved out; we have no idea where they went. Their unit is not on the market and the bylaws prohibit them from renting their unit out. They bought near the peak and put a lot of work into their place, so I figure they didn't list their place because it would be a loss to them.

Neighbor 3 is an elderly man who recently moved into assisting living. His family is preparing his place for sale. They bought well before the bubble so they should have a gain when if they sell

Neighbor 4 bought well before the bubble, but HELOC'd around $100k and now is seriously underwater. The small company he works for is trying to restructure to avoid having to shut down.

Neighbor 5 paid the most in the whole complex, around $320k, and now asking prices are $160k. They must be seriously underwater. They did some renovating when they moved in, but I don't know how much they spent or if they financed it.

As for us, we will be moving in the Summer and our place will go on the market. We bought over 30 years ago, so selling won't be a hardship for us.

So out of six of us we have:
3 definitely underwater, 1 probably underwater
1 on the market, 2 more in the spring/summer.

Fun times in Bellevue!