For those of your looking to rent in 2012, there are a new wave of rentals that just hit the market in Seattle. Unlike traditional “apartment” projects, these rentals are condo owners leasing their units in highly coveted buildings. I’ve included the listings below.  Just click the picture to view more details.

5th and Madison unit #1704 (learn more about 5th and Madison)

Cristalla Unit #1107 (Learn more about Cristalla)

Cristalla unit #703 (Learn more about Cristalla)

Enso Unit #1608 (Learn more about Enso)

Ruby Condos Unit #213 (Learn more about Ruby)

Avenue One Unit #1202 (Learn more about Avenue One)

Downtown Rentals:

Capitol Hill Rentals:

Queen Anne Rentals:

Greenlake Rentals:

Eastlake Rentals:

Wallingford Rentals:

I have to be honest.  I was a bit surprised, when I saw this.  There is a rental at One Lincoln Tower in Bellevue that just hit the market for $12,500 per month! Apparently, it is not available until February of 2012. It has 3,000 sq ft, with 3 bedrooms and 4 total baths. Features include, granite counters, high-end appliances, built-in espresso, updated baths with heated floors and a work out room.

Just in case you are wondering, this is now the most expensive rental unit* on the market.  The second place finisher goes unit #4103 at One Lincoln Tower. (priced at $8,800 per month). The third highest rent goes to unit #2401 at Escala (priced at $7,500 per month).  I’ve included all three of them below:

1. One Lincoln Tower $12,500

2. One Lincoln Tower $8,800

3. Escala $7,500

*Only includes condos in the downtown Bellevue and Seattle market

Unit #2401 at Escala just hit the market for rent. For a cool $7,500 per month.  Pictures have not been posted, but I can give you a few of the details.  It is 3,562 sf with big views of Downtown, Queen Anne Hill and South Lake Union. It is one of the biggest floor plans in the entire building.  With its own master wing, wet-bar, out-door deck, floor to ceiling windows and a spacious living area.

Other Downtown Condos For Rent

There is big news out of the Escala camp today.  With 51% of their units sold, they reached FannieMae approval.  I’ve included a portion of their announcement below. There are a total of 269 units in the building.

A portion of Escala’s release from this morning:

Why is this important if you’re looking to purchase a home at Escala?

Reduced down payment - in place of 20% buyers now have the potential to put down as little as 5%.

Lending Options - The number of financial institutions providing home loans at Escala will increase and give buyers a broader selection of mortgage possibilities.   

Lower Rates - With additional lending options comes the opportunity to take advantage of the lowest interest rates.

For those of you looking for a rental right now, you may want to check these out.  They both hit the market in the last 24 hours.

1 bed, 1 bath at 1920 4th Ave #704 (Escala):

Private elevator, big views, its own private deck, kitchen, dining and living.  Hardwood floors and wall-bed for guests.  Includes office-nook.  Amenities include elliptical swimming pools, gym, theater room, 24 hour concierge and wine cave.  Pretty cool unit too:

Click here for more details:

Furnished studio at 2033 2nd Ave #904 (Cristalla):

Corner unit on the 9th floor. Good exposure, great building.

Click here for more details:

According to an e-mail that was sent to me this afternoon, the sales team at Escala reached 100 closings.  The e-mail also noted that they are selling an average of 8 units per month with 20 sales under-contract.  If all 20 of their pending sales close, they will have 149 units left to sell. Given their monthly volume that would be an estimated 19 months left until they reach their final closeout.  That puts them into the first quarter of 2013.

A few minutes after our post this afternoon (Fannie Mae and Seattle Condos) a bank owned 1 bedroom+ den at 5th and Madison hit the market.  It’s priced at $434,900 which is about a 10% reduction from its original sale price in 2007.  It has been listed both for rent and for sale multiple times in the last 4 years.

It is not very often that a condo rental hits the market at Escala, so when I noticed 1209 this morning I wanted to make sure you guys could see it before the weekend. It is 910sf, has 9.5 ft ceilings, its own private (covered) balcony and big views of Downtown Seattle.  The balcony alone is 136 sf (not included in square footage) and the kitchen features high-end appliances, granite counters and quality cabinetry. As a tenant you have access to all the amenities including the fitness studio, lap pools, yoga/pilates studio, concierge, secured parking, private elevators, separate freight elevator and great access to downtown.

The asking rent is $2,200.  See more details here : Escala Unit 1209

PICTURES OF THE UNIT:

Picture courtesy of Windermere Property Management

Project: 5th and Madison
Neighborhood: Downtown

For those of you looking for a rental, the penthouse at 5th and Madison just hit the market (see here).  It is 2,043sf with big views and substantial upgrades.  Referred to as penthouse 3, this unit has a formal entry, 12.5 ft ceilings, fireplace, deck, audio/visual system, automated blinds and customized closets. It has an island kitchen, granite tops, Sub-Zero refrigerator and Wolf range. The rent includes 2 parking stalls. Building amenities include 24/7 concierge, gym, guest suite, club room and terrace. For those of you unfamiliar with the building, I’ve included our rating system and additional info below

picture courtesy Julie Barber

Could there really be a new 40 story tower coming to Belltown?

On Thursday May 5th, the Department of Planning and Development granted final design approval for a 400 foot tower located at 2116 4th Ave.  The applicant HAL Real Estate Investments plans to put 365 homes, above 2,743 square feet of retail space. This would also include 329 parking spaces. Seattle’s Weber Thompson Architects designed the building.  This adds to an already impressive resume for the Seattle firm.  Past condo projects include, Cristalla, Madison Tower and 1521 Second.  The entire design proposal can be found here: 2116 4th Ave

Here is a video of the proposed project:

Here is a look at the proposed project looking Southwest.  You can see the Seattle Monorail on 5th to the east of the building.

For those of you curious about how it might change the views of neighboring projects, the biggest impact in my opinion would be on the north facing views of Escala (see above in green).  Keep in mind that there are many variables. We have to assume it will built as they would not be asking Seattle for a conditional approval if they didn’t intend on doing something with the site.  If and when it gets built is an entirely different topic.  As we speak, financing a large condominium high-rise is very tough to come by.  In addition to that, many developers won’t likely take the risk for some time. Time will tell.

See the map here:

View Seattle Condo Map in a larger map

Street view:

View from the Puget Sound:

View from the Space Needle:

Amenity view:

Project: 5th and Madison
Neighborhood: Downtown

Remember the auction at 5th and Madison?  Not all of the 18 units sold to buyers who attended and a few other units were still developer owned.  These 3 units are back on the the market as of this morning.

Unit #2300:  In June of 2009  the asking price was $699,000.  Now they are asking $499,000.  You can view the details here.

Unit #2304:  In April of 2008 the asking price was 940,000.  Now they are asking $649,900.  See here

Unit #2402 (Penthouse):  In June of last year this was listed at $1,695,000.  Now they are asking $1,399,900.  See here

Quick Facts About 5th and Madison:

• Built by Turner Construction (Also built 2200 Westlake)
• 126 units
• 24 floors

Amenities Include:

• 24 hour concierge
• Fitness
• Lounge
• Terrace
• Pet Area

Map:

View Seattle Condo Map in a larger map

Project: Nautica
Neighborhood: Westlake

DESCRIPTION:

Built in 1992 the Nautica sits on the Westlake slope of Lake Union and Queen Anne. Designed to maximize both Lake Union and Downtown Seattle views, the Nautica features 56 units on 8 floors.  Many of the condos offer a 2 level floor plan making the home feel more like an in-city loft or townhome. Units feature decks, picture windows and spacious floor plans.  Maybe the most attractive feature that the Nautica offers is its 360 degree view deck.  You’ll see Gas Works Park, Lake Union Park, Downtown, the Space Needle and Queen Anne Hill.

SEARCH:

MAP:

View Seattle Condo Map in a larger map

PICTURES:

WALKSCORE:

WESTLAKE CONDOS FOR SALE:

According to the Escala sales team,  in one years time they have sold nearly 90 units.  Closing 76 of them since March 27th.  In addition to announcing their success over the last year, they have added a blogging element to their website See Here.  It looks like they are going to add photos and highlight certain floor plans.  This doesn’t surprise me as I have requested pictures to showcase some of their inventory for weeks.  Apparently they felt it would look better on their site .

Have a great weekend.  Happy condo hunting.

Clearly the impact of condos purchased between 2005-2009 is starting to rear its ugly head in Seattle.  As values plummeted, owners started giving their keys back to the bank.  Condo foreclosures are on the rise and in the upcoming weeks you could see foreclosures in some of the best buildings in Seattle and Bellevue.  I’ve included a “short” list of buildings that will have units auctioned in the next 60 days:

If you want to learn about investing at the Foreclosure Auction, contact us.

Remember this post from December? Major League Baseball Player Buys Condo At Escala

UrbanCondoSpaces.com broke the story first and in an effort to protect his privacy, we withheld certain information.  With that being said, this young up-and-comer just invited the CSN network of San Francisco to see what life is like in his brand new condominium.  Seeing as though he invited the public into his unit, we felt that it would be fun for you to see what he loves so much about his purchase at Escala!

It’s really pretty cool as he provides an in-depth look into his 3 bedroom 3.5 bath unit.  He highlights what he loves about the unit, shows us where he works out and gives everyone a look at what life is like in Seattle.  As you’ll see from the view, he’ll be enjoying his unit for years to come.  I take special pride in seeing his success as he was a University of Washington Husky during his collegiate years of playing baseball.

I’ve highlighted “general” unit and building information below.  We obviously encourage everyone to respect his privacy if you see him, but in the meantime enjoy this great piece  by CSN SportsNet Reporter Jaymee Sire.  You can follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jaymeesirecsn.

A special thanks to a friend of mine for originally bringing this piece to my attention.

Units Features:

Northeast facing
3 bedroom
2.5 bath
Private vestibule
Cherry hardwood flooring
Dark zebrano high gloss cabinetry
Slab granite and marble
Huge wrap around deck

Building Features:

24 hour concierge
Spa
Lap pools
World class fitness facility
Media room
Wine cave
Home owners lounge
29 stories
269 homes

Residence “F” Floor Plan