Open House: Sunday, May 27th from 1 pm to 4 pm

Sweeping city & water views of Elliott Bay, the Seattle skyline & Mountains await you at this spacious 2-bedroom end-unit home at Alki. Ideally located across from the Don Armeni waterfront park, Seabird is close to Alki Beach, restaurants & the downtown Water Taxi.

The open floor plan offers stunning views from the dining & living rooms, a large den with wet bar, laundry room & lots of windows. It’s perfect pad for entertaining. The large bedrooms face a quiet, tranquil greenbelt. The master suite features a walk-in closet and ensuite bath.

Secured garage parking & extra storage, included. Enjoy Biking, Kayaking & Scuba at your door step!

View additional photos and details.

Questions about this property? Feel free to drop us a note or inquire for a private showing.

Listed by Ben Kakimoto with Keller Williams Greater Seattle and SeattleCondosAndLofts.com.

The citywide median sales price for the first quarter 2012 slid 23.5% to $215,000 compared to the same period last year and 8.5% from the prior quarter.

- South and Northeast Seattle reflected highest increase in closed sales, doubling the number of units sold.

- Queen Anne / Magnolia and the downtown area realized fewer sales in the quarter compared to last year.

- South Seattle was the only area in the city that exhibited improvement in the median sales price, while Queen Anne / Magnolia had the largest decline.

However, the market has changed rather significantly over the past 6-8 weeks and the initial numbers for April are showing a considerable improvement over the first quarter figures shown here.

Source: NWMLS. All figures were independently compiled by SeattleCondosAndLofts.com and were not published by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

Escala, which is now over 65% sold, has raised their prices anywhere from 1% to 5.5% depending on floor plan based on properties currently listed in the NWMLS.

The Sanctuary, which is also 2/3 sold, raised their prices 5% as of today (May 1, 2012). Only four homes remain ranging from $819,950 to $1,049,950.

“While our asking prices respond to supply and demand we’ve also added value to the final four homes,” said Rob Nall, the seller of the 12-unit Sanctuary development. “I’m confident that prospective homebuyers will continue to view this property as a unique opportunity to own one Seattle’s most irreplaceable addresses.”

Disclosure: Sanctuary is an advertiser of Seattle Condos And Lofts

The annual National Open House Event is coming up this weekend on Saturday April 28th and Sunday 29th. The Washington REALTORS association anticipates several hundred properties will be open to the public. So far, are over 650 properties in King County are participating. In Seattle, over 200 properties are on tour including 65 condos that will be open this week, and the number of condos should rise to well over 100.

House hunters – including first-time buyers and investors – will be able to learn more about home ownership from experts who are hosting the open houses. The National Open House Weekend is a stress-free event where prospective home buyers can arrange their own customized tours (with or without an accompanying Realtor) as part of the Open House showcase.

SeattleCondosAndLofts.com provides online tools for identifying listings open this weekend. Simply click on the “Open House” tab in the left hand column on the property search page to locate open house opportunities.

Like the brisk sales at new construction condos so far this year in Seattle, the three remaining new construction condominiums in downtown Bellevue have experienced strong sales activity this year as well. Bellevue Towers realized the most sales in the region to date while One Main Street is nearly sold out. 

The 2012 activity figures are year-to-date at the time of publication.

Downtown Bellevue Condos

Bellevue Towers

One Main Street

Washington Square

View all Bellevue, WA condos for sale

Here’s a look at the 2012 year-to-date sales activity and the current total sales percentage of the remaining major condominiums in Seattle.

North Seattle

Hjarta

Duncan Place

Downtown Core

Marselle

Olive 8

Escala

1521 Second

Four Seasons Seattle

Pontedera

Capitol Hill / First Hill

 Decatur

1111 E Pike

Harvard & Highland

Sanctuary

West Seattle

Dakota

Cobalt Mortgage, a Kirkland,WA-based mortgage bank and a preferred lender of Seattle Condos And Lofts, is now offering 3% down payment conventional loans for condo purchases.

In addition to the low down payment, another feature for borrowers is the ability to pay the mortgage insurance premium in one lump sum upfront. While it would add to a buyer’s closing costs, it would be less expensive over the long run and would reduce the monthly payment by up to a few hundred dollars (depending on loan amount). For a $200,000 loan with a well-qualified buyer, the upfront mortgage insurance fee would be approximately $5,400 with no monthly mortgage insurance payment.

The program also allows a seller’s contribution of up to 3% of the sales price towards the buyer’s closing costs, which may include the upfront mortgage insurance amount.

Unlike FHA, Cobalt’s 3% down program is available to all condo properties, provided the condominium meets Fannie Mae guidelines.

So what’s the catch? The tradeoffs for the lower down payment are added fees and a higher interest rate given the higher loan-to-value amount, but it’s still competitive. It’s best suited for well-qualified borrowers, those with high credit scores (740 and higher), who do not have available funds for a sizeable down payment.

Want to learn more? Contact us today and we’ll have our preferred partners at Cobalt Mortgage provide you with the details!

We’re sorry, this property is under contract and no longer available.

Live urban at Union Arts in this 1,780 square foot loft that has an additional, separate 757 square foot work studio. Union Arts is an artist co-op lofts building.

Impeccably designed and beautifully appointed, this home includes large exposed timber beams throughout, open kitchen with sub-zero refrigerator, Miele dishwasher, Richlite counters, custom fir cabinets & newer radiant gas heat.

The bathrooms are similarly decked out with Todo toilets and concrete counters and wainscot with the upper bathroom a perfect retreat with its soaking tub. There’s even a separate shower room. Upstairs also allows versatile space with enough room for a bed, generous walk-in closet, sitting room all atop rustic wood floors.

The building includes exercise and game rooms, a rooftop deck and double wall construction. With two coveted off-street parking spaces, this home is a quiet retreat located within Capitol Hill’s hip Pike Pine Triangle district.

This unit is presently offered at $550,000, MLS #340995

View more photos and details of Union Arts #1B or inquire to arrange a private showing or for additional information.

Listing information and photos courtesy of Wendy Higgins and Meredith Hansen of Keller Williams Greater Seattle.

View other Capitol Hill condos for sale

Overall, the citywide median condo sales price increased 17.1% over February to $236,500. Compared to last March, however, the median sales price reflected a 11.75% decline. Though, the gap narrowed last month.

Condo sales took off in March. Whether due to better values, low mortgage interest rates, greater confidence in the local economy or a more conclusive buy vs. rent decision, people are buying condos in Seattle. Pending transactions (offers accepted and under contract) spiked 23.4% over February and 33.5% over last March.

Excluding the tax credit bump in April 2010, the 311 pending transactions in March reflected the highest number of Seattle condo unit sales since August 2007, just before the market collapse.

The number of closed condo sales also improved last month, rising 22.7% over February and 6.8% over the same period last year. The trend should continue as we move forward through the summer season.

Seattle’s condo inventory shrank 7.7% from February to 620 units last month, and compared to a year ago, there were 42.8% fewer condos for sale in Seattle. Interestingly, I still hear from people who believe there is an excess of condo inventory. To put it in perspective, we are now at pre-construction boom levels and down 60% from the peak in 2008.

With constricting inventory and rising sales volume, the Seattle condo inventory supply rate dropped to 2-months of supply based on pending transactions, reflecting a seller’s market. Presently, active condo buyers are finding a dearth of supply in the sub-$300,000 price level, while multiple offers that result in sales over asking price are starting to increase in frequency.

Does that mean we’ll see prices start to rise? There will be condos that’ll sell over their asking prices and in my opinion we may see positive year-over-year median price figures by mid-year. Though, they will be tempered by the number of distressed properties, which account for one of every four condos for sale, keeping pressure on condo prices. An improving market may encourage some sidelined sellers to test out the market, thereby increasing supply.

Neighborhood Highlights:

• Northwest Seattle (north of the ship canal and west of I-5) was one of the only areas in Seattle that exhibited an increase in median sales price, rising 3.7% over the same period last year. It also reflected the largest increase in pending and closed condo sales, jumping 67.7% and 60% year-over-year, respectively.

• West Seattle had the tightest inventory supply in March with less than half of the number of units for sale compared to a year ago.

• The Queen Anne / Magnolia area reflected the worst overall results with a 17.7% drop in median sales price and a 26.7% decline in closed sales.

Source: NWMLS. Some figures were independently compiled by SeattleCondosAndLofts.com and were not published by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
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Comprised of two historic buildings constructed at the turn of the 20th century – the Colonial Hotel and the red brick Grand Pacific Hotel – the Colonial Grand Pacific today is a distinctive gem located in the West Edge district of downtown Seattle.

Unit #309 is now available. Completely remodeled and updated to provide an upscale urban experience, this two-level, two-bedroom townhome style unit radiates timeless elegance & metropolitan chic. This home features:

• A secured entry
• Spacious 1,107 square feet of living space
• 12’ ceilings on both levels
• A private roof terrace
• Solid surface kitchen
• Carrara marble vanity tops
• Tons of storage

The classic Colonial Grand Pacific is set in Seattle’s most vibrant, walkable & cultural location near Pike Place Market, Seattle Art Museum, Pioneer Square, Benaroya Hall and the new downtown Target store.

View more photos and details of Colonial Grand Pacific Unit #309 or inquire to arrange a private showing or for additional information.

Listing information and photos courtesy of Troy Anderson, Keller Williams Greater Seattle.