Friday Odds and Ends – 4/27
On the Horizon
Eastlake area – Ruby Condominiums (website) at northern tip of Eastlake Ave E at E. Allison.
Lower Queen Anne – Luxe Condominiums (website) at 500 5th Ave W. Thirty-nine flats starting from the low $300,000s.
Escala Unveils Revamped Website
Escala unveiled a new website with additional features including home floor plans, an impressive virtual tour and a webcam.
Fini Preview Event Update
Fini’s VIP Preview Event will be held next weekend, May 5th & 6th from 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM at their presentation center at 6802 Greenwood Ave N. (map). Homes will be available for purchase at the preview event with a 5% deposit.
Seattle Condo Expo 2007
Click here for updated event info.
The Seattle Condo Expo and Realtor Symposium is set for May 19th & 20th at the Westin Hotel. Tickets will go on sale on May 1st and those interested in attending can register on their website. The cost of the event is $10 and can be purchased at www.SeattleTixx.com.
Kiro Radio has several short podcasts of interviews with several leading individuals in the Seattle condo craze including the developers of AVA & 1 Hotel, Blaine Weber of Weber + Thompson, Dean Jones of Realogics and economist Matthew Gardner of Gardner-Johnson…to name a few.
The event has blossomed into a two-day expo with a consumer focus. Last year, it was a single evening event aimed towards Realtors. The change this year sounds like a great opportunity for the buyers to immerse themselves with various projects at a single location as well as provide an opportunity to meet with architects and developers.
Condo 2007 Expo is simply another sales event for a select few high end condo projects pocket listed by Windermere. What an opportunity, I get to pay money to hear a slanted economic view by the condo pet economist Mathew Gardner. I’m sure his views are spot on because after all, he is paid by local developers and has an
English accent.
Why don’t they be honest and call it what it is; “2007 Downtown Condominium Sales Event” complete with a paid endorsement by a leading area economist, in case your concerned about your investment.
Better yet, why don’t they simply list the homes they have for sale so I can see them all on the web and open a presentation center 7 days a week rather than by appointment so we can see behind the curtain of secrecy they like to operate behind.
I say; boycott this event and draw them into the public light. What are they affraid of? Why won’t they come out from behind the curtain? Are they afraid we may all see their prices and compare them with other condominiums? Or are they just being cute? 😉
But, isn’t this event bringing the projects into the public light in one location where potential buyers can more easily compare them? While I agree it will have a Urban Condominium/WindermereOnsite emphasis, I anticipate other projects will be exhibiting as well. As this is the first of its kind, let’s reserve judgment till it actually takes place.
As far as being a sales event, I think they’re fairly transparent in that respect.
I do agree with you, from a consumer standpoint, sales organizations should be more upfront & transparent with project information. It is frustrating when buyers must make a quick decision on a major investment with very little information.
Thanks for your comment. Hopefully it will elicit more discussion regarding the pre-sale process.
Hey Ben,
1. It brings them into the light but they won’t be giving out prices for individual units or let you know what has sold, they may mask it in telling you what is available. Big difference in that they hold units off the market for a number of reasons.
2. Their web; “Join your hosts The Seattle Times and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer for this unprecedented real estate event. Find the newest condominiums, explore your favorite in-city neighborhoods, meet real estate experts and learn more about the future of our urban housing market “all in one place.” To say the least, they downplay the fact they are presenting a few condominium projects by one marketing group for sale. Transparency would be; get a sales pitch on Hotel 1, Escalla, 1521 Second, 8th & Pine, the Gallery. (all windermere projects) As a John L Scott agent yourself, why don’t you see if they will be presenting South Lake Union (a JLS listing) at their symposium? I beg my favorite pug they aren’t.
I should have more info tomorrow, hopefully I’ll be able get info on exhibitors.
Vulcan/JLS will be exhibiting but I don’t have info on Williams Marketing or Miller Condo Marketing. As you said, the WindermereOnsite properties will be most the prominent.
In addressing “Master Popular’s” statement about my participation in this weekend’s event I wish to make the statement that I am certainly not a “pet” economist to the development industry but am , indeed, proud to be an Englishman!
My Firms’ work is undertaken for developers as well as the debt and equity markets. It is not in our interests, either financally or philosophically, to overinflate the market in any way. To do such would be an extremely short sighted approach as it would surely lead to a negative reputation with our lending clients who invest in these projects. (Why garner a negative reputation after having spent 20 years building up a positive one?)
My statements are personal reflections on the market in Seattle, and reflect quantifiable realities as I see them.
By the way, sorry about your pug!