Sunset Hill Real Estate and more:  Find out why I love this Ballard waterfront Seattle neighborhood!

Sunset Hill in Ballard has long been one of my favorite spots in Seattle - you can read why in this Sunday's Seattle Times article by Ray Martinez:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2010218456_realneighborhood08.html

Mr. Martinez asked me for a lot of NWMLS numbers for the Sunset Hill article, but also was kind enough to post some of my personal thoughts o the neighborhood.  Here is an excerpt:

For Cooper, the walking factor in the neighborhood has sentimental value.

"I met my husband in Sunset Hill - he was my next-door neighbor," the real-estate agent said. "Almost our entire courtship involved walking around the neighborhood for hours daily.

"He actually proposed to me at Sunset Hill Park one evening many years ago, and our anniversary ritual, as boring as it sounds, is to go buy some crab cakes from Ray's [Boathouse Cafe & Bar] and sit at the park every year and watch sailboats."

"It is truly one of my favorite neighborhoods in Seattle. I love the fresh salty breezes and the care and attention that goes into the gardening and landscapes here."

Sunset Hill Seattle Sunsets? The article has a lot of great info and quotes and it is funny to note that none of us actually mentioned the phenomenal sunsets that are experienced on Sunset Hill! Are you interested in Sunset Hill Homes? I would love to show you around this very special neighborhood!

Home Buyer Tax Credit 2009:  It passed the house and the senate and Obama has signed it into law.  The IRS site is updated except for the latest version of tax form to accommodate the newest change to the housing credit. 

The basics of the home buyer credit in this version?  In a nutshell, you can make more money to qualify, you have longer to find the qualifying home and even longer to close after that, and you don't have to be a first time home buyer to qualify for the reduced credit of $6500. 

The ceilings and deadlines have SERIOUSLY been moved with this version so please do read the details here:

http://cooperjacobs.com/blog/2009/11/07/the-new-new-tax-credit/

Seattle Backyard Cottages Approved:  You may remember that I wrote about Seattle backyard cottages coming to a vote yesterday. The proposal was approved and city wide Seattle (unless you are in the Shoreline District) is allowed one ADU - either as a backyard cottage on lots that qualify in size (have to be more than 4000 square feet, etc.) or an ADU inside the house walls.  You can only have one, but now there are more options than just your basement for an ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) in Seattle! 

Seattle Backyard Cottages and Real Estate:  Are you interested in finding Seattle real estate that qualifies for a backyard cottage?  There are already many firms stepping up to advertise their backyard cottage services.  I look forward to seeing how this plays out!  Density does belong in the city and this is a great way to make affordable housing as long as quality construction and design is respected!  I know a perfect Greenwood home offhand that would be a great candidate and it is on almost a third of an acre!

Queen Anne West slope real estate is hopping -there are some wonderful homes out there right now and Queen Anne has been selling pretty quickly given that this is the 2009 Seattle real estate market!  West of Queen Anne Ave N all the way over to 10th Ave W and from about Prospect up North to McGraw was where we were focusing today and there are some wonderful choices in the $600,000 to $1,000,000 range.  Amazing sweeping Puget Sound views can be had for under a million in this neighborhood, especially if you are willing to put in a little elbow grease fixing the house up to make it perfect. 

Queen Anne character:  There are a lot of extremely gorgeous tree lined streets with thick sidewalks and walking paths that even Green Lake could envy on a day such as today. The Queen Anne home pictured above is appointed towards the Sound and mountains and perched above the lovely Wilcox Wall high up on on the West slope of Queen Anne.

Queen Anne Real Estate:  Listed Queen Anne homes on the West slope are moving fairly quickly.   If you have a nice home that is at least three bedrooms in this ten by ten block area of the West slope of Queen Anne, please let me know!  I have a buyer who really wants to move here and we are seeing everything.  This particular area has a nice mix of easy bus route right Downtown  (bus 1) as well as easy walk to Queen Anne Ave for all the great Upper Queen Anne merchants, plus Trader Joe's and the library are right here, too!

If you are interested in Queen Anne real estate, please let us know - we are happy to show you some of our favorite spots and homes available for sale in this wonderful Seattle neighborhood.

The Upper Queen Anne Merchant Association is once again presenting its anual Trick or Treat Event. 

October 31st from 3PM to 5PM all along Queen Anne Ave from Galer to McGraws Streets!

Queen Anne Ave Trick-Or-Treating:  All your local Upper Queen Anne merchants will be handing out treats to all the costumed kiddies!  Safety for the little ones:  Not only that , but the merchants in this neighborhood are hiring an officer to assist with pedestrian traffic and safety at Queen Anne Ave and Boston and Queen Anne Ave and Crockett.

Want more Queen Anne Halloween fun?  Farm Food Fair at Queen Anne Ave and Crockett from 2-7 PM hosted by the Queen Anne Farmer's Market.

Are you interested in living in this wonderful neighbohrood?  Queen Anne Real estate offers a wonderful opportunity to live in one of Seattle's great neighborhoods!

Happy Halloween Seattle!  Looking for something fun to do? How about a nearby pumpkin farm? 

Hope everyone has had a great week and that you have a wonderful Halloween tomorrow!  There are a ton of great in city events tonight and tomorrow, but heading out to a pumpkin farm is always fun and there are surprisingly many of them just outside of Seattle neighborhoods!  Here are some recent shots from our little trip out to the country to go to the pumpkin farm:)

Happy Halloween!  Have fun and be safe!

Backyard cottages are a nice solution that many Seattle homeowners have been interested in for a variety of reasons.  A Seattle backyard cottage, officially known as a detached ADU or accessory dwelling unit, can be a nice solution for a college aged child or aging parent among other things and a great way to financially make ends meet.  Southeast Seattle has allowed them since 2006 and the Mayor introduced legislation to allow them across the city back in March of this year under a certain set of rules and regulations. 

Upcoming meeting to discuss Seattle Backyard Cottages: Nov 2nd at 2 PM for council vote on Backyard cottage legislation.  This is still tentatively scheduled, but you can get more info here: http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/Planning/Backyardcottages/Overview/

Seattle Backyard Cottages Guidelines:

Since introducing the idea in March, 18 homeowners have applied to add one in their back yard. Certain rules and guidelines must be followed to qualify.  Here are some, but you can find more details on the city site.

1. Lot must be at least 4000 square feet in area with additional minimum width and depth requirements.

2. The house and the backyard cottage together can not exceed the current 35% limit for lot coverage.

3. Cottage square footage limit is 800 sq feet.

4. Height limit of cottage is 15-23 feet high depending on the lot width.

5. Parking is required.

6. The owner must live in either the primary residence or the backyard cottage (like a Seattle ADU).

Are you interested in finding a Seattle home where you can add an ADU such as an interior one in the basement or a backyard cottage?  Seattle real estate offers many opportunities like this and knowing the rules and guidelines is key to making it work for you financially.  Let me know if you have questions!

Thinking about converting your basement or attic into rental income?  Seattle has a great policy for allowing accessory dwelling units (ADU) on residential properties.  This is a great way to be able to rent out part of your home and allow someone to legally live in a separate part of your home while you live there. Additionally, you can live in the ADU yourself if you choose and the renter can live in the main home.  It doesn't matter as long as you stay within the city's guidelines for establishing an attached accessory dwelling unit.

Seattle ADU rules, rquirements & guidelines (you have to meet all of them although there are some variances allowed if applied for properly): 

1. the home has to be occupied by one or more owners and the owner has to have at least a 50% interest in the property.  Additionally, the owner occupant has to live there for at least 6 months a year.

2. Unless all residents in both units are related to each other, the limit is eight people in the entire structure.

3. One off street parking space must be provided for ADU( you can apply for a waiver on this one).

4. Only one ADU for each home (this includes backyard cottage or ADU).

5. ADU can only be 1000 square feet although there are some more details for getting around this if the ADU is all on one floor and structure was in existence prior to 6/1/1999.

6. Usually only one entrance can be located on front or side street locations. Ther eare some exceptions.

7.  Window for sleeping room has to be a certain size - according to city literature:

"In sleeping rooms located in buildings constructed after Aug. 10, 1972, or in rooms converted or established for sleeping purposes after August 10, 1972, there shall be at least one operable window or exterior door approved for emergency escape or rescue. The window or door must be operable from the inside. All emergency escape windows shall have a minimum net clear opening of 5.7 square feet (grade floor openings allowed to be 5 square feet), a minimum net clear openable height dimension of 24 inches, and a minimum net clear openable width dimension of 20 inches. The window must have a finished sill height not more than 44 inches above the floor. The sill height may be measured from the top of a constructed step with a riser of not more than 7 inches."

 8. The ADU has to meet all current Seattle residential standards for building, mechanical, electrical, and energy codes.  (Look for good ceiling height and egress. )

9. Electrical boxes either have to be located in common areas or in the areas for the units they serve.

(Make sure and check out the city's application here: http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/publications/cam/cam116a.pdf)

 Seattle Mother In Law, Backyard Cottage, ADU... 

 These are all different!  An ADU is different than a mother in law (MIL) apartment which is a separate residence within a home and allows you to rent out the MIL apartment without having to live in the other part of your home. Backyard Cottages are also different.  An ADU us the best way to live in your home and have either legal separate living quarters fro your nanny or housekeeper or make extra income to offset your mortgage. 

Are you interested in finding a   Seattle home that you can convert part of the space into an ADU?  Seattle is ADU friendly and Seattle real estate has opportunities for just this type of set up!

Upper Queen Anne is beautiful - I especially love the retail all along Queen Anne Ave N and the walkability that most of the homes in this area offer.  I wanted to look at homes in the Upper Queen Anne neighborhood of Seattle that score extremely high on Walk Score so I looked at the market just from 4th Ave W all the way East to 4th Ave N and from W Smith Street and Queen Anne Dr to the North down to W Lee St and Lee St where the hill starts really impeding walkability.  I would expect that all of these houses score in the high 80s to well over 90 on Walk Score's site.

Queen Anne's real estate market has been very active this year and Upper Queen Anne especially.  These numbers do not include townhomes which I will pull out separately in another post.  There are currently 16 Active homes in this area of the Queen Anne neighborhood.  There are 6 pending homes and 37 sold in the last six months.  Queen Anne homes are selling! 

Active Queen Anne lisintg:  These are Queen Anne homes that are available right now on the market. These range in price from $525,000 to $1,545,000 with an average of $826,557 and a median list price of $783,835.  I have previewed or toured most of these and there are some amazing offerings included so let me know if you are interested and I can show you my favorites. Pending Sales:  This is Queen Anne Real estate that has not closed yet, but has offers.  Sold homes: 37 in the last 6 months!!!!  This is great news!  They range in price from a very affordable $375,000 to $1,900,000 with an average of $741,5111 and a median of $660,000. Average days on market was 68 days for Queen Anne homes. 

Average listing price per square foot is $309 for these homes and average selling price per square foot is $306.

Happy Halloween Queen Anne!

A good halloween ghost story!