We should all be investing in Seattle!

General Landlording & Rental Properties
12yFollow

We should all be investing in Seattle!

Chanté Owens
Insurance Agent · AZ · Member since 2013 · 306 posts · 161 votes

Hi BP Gang! I've just started my search for an apartment for my move to Seattle. Let me just say that their market is EN FUEGO in the areas I am looking to reside in a studio or one bedroom apartment.

I called about 15 apartment complexes today and only 2 had availability for late March. Now, to be fair, a few of them did say to contact them the second week of March, as some renters who may be vacating in April would put in their notice then.

It's hard for me to wait, because I am a planner, and I prefer not to wait to the last minute for things.

Anywhooo, just thought I would share my recent experience with my attempts in finding a place to rent.

Just as an aside, the areas I am looking in are:

  • Lynnwood, WA
  • Edmonds, WA
  • Northgate area
  • Maple Leaf area (I think that's the name)
  • Queen Anne
  • Belltown

And other areas in and around those areas. Obviously, downtown Seattle area is (currently) out of my price range. Kirkwood, and Bellevue are too, as they are nice areas, but apparently a lot of the Microsoft, Boening, and the like, reside in those areas (from what a couple of the PM's told me); thus pushing those rental prices up, up, up!

Also, for any of you who own rental properties and use PM's, I'd recommend doing "secret shopper" type of calls, because some of the people I spoke with on the line were...interesting, and I'm being polite. Some were completely zoned out; others were nonchalant and vague when asking specific questions. Just some food for thought, because these are the people who are the face of the property and if the potential tenants are turned off even before they see the property, that's not a good thing.

0Reply
34 views

Most Popular Reply

Stephanie Dupuis
Residential Real Estate Broker · Bremerton, WA · Member since 2013 · 494 posts · 142 votes
12y

Yes, it is still much more affordable. Car passes are available. I haven't bought on ein a long time, you'd need to look them up. But even at $200-225/mo in ferry auto pass (or $60-70/mo for walk on passenger tickets) - $200-$300/ mo is what people are paying for parking and/or gas to commute to work in Seattle. So...$200-225 for ferry costs is a DEAL!! Plus it's a beautiful and relaxing ferry ride into Seattle (vs. sitting in hours of traffic...waiting...waisting your life away behind thousands a other people). You need to think about your entire commuting expenses and time - plus you're paying hundreds more in rent over there so that you can spend just as much in commuting and spend twice as much time commuting. Makes ZERO sense.

1Reply
See this reply in the discussion

11 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Scott Kelley
    Lacey, WA · Member since 2013 · 52 posts · 4 votes
    12y

    You're right, there's a ton of rentals out here, but the prices have also been going up, up, up. They really didn't dip too much with the adjustment and have gone up 20% in some areas. Of course that's awesome for investing, but can be prohibitive to some investors.

    If you are looking, Redmond Ridge and Issaquah will have decent pricing for renting and a relatively easy commute to most places. Renton is mixed but has some rough neighborhoods and some traffic issues (but the area around the Landing is good if you're renting), and I'd avoid Kent for the most part. Kirkland and the East side are great but the prices are high. Bothell is good but the traffic to get anywhere from there is rough.

    The current trend is these "apodments" which have a communal living space and each renter has a room that is basically a studio cut in half. For those who loved the dorms, they might be a good option.

    0Reply
  • Chanté Owens
    OP
    Insurance Agent · AZ · Member since 2013 · 306 posts · 161 votes
    12y

    Thank you so much @Scott Kelley , I appreciate any and all information. I am familiar with Seattle, to a certain degree (since I used to travel there quite frequently for business), so I did know that some parts of Renton are ok, and that some parts..not so much. Seatac area...much like most areas around airports; fairly shady. Tukwila I heard wasn't that good either.

    Most people speak of North of Seattle, but again, as I'm finding out - it's popular and expensive. Sigh...I don't want to live out of my car!

    0Reply
  • Stephanie Dupuis
    Residential Real Estate Broker · Bremerton, WA · Member since 2013 · 494 posts · 142 votes
    12y

    You may want to consider renting in Bainbridge Island (a quick 20 min ferry ride into downtown Seattle) - Bainbridge has very nice rentals and the rates are still reasonable. The commute is faster than commuting from the outskirts of Seattle (Edmonds, Bothell, Issaquah, etc.) and it's an upscale community.

    Bremerton also offers a nice community, not as upscale as Bainbridge. Although, Bremerton has several pocket communities that are very nice and within walking distance to the ferry. One of those communities is Manette. Manette offers incredible views, beaches, shops, restaurants, walking distance to ferry. Drawback is that the ferry commute (as of right now) is 45 min. to Seattle and does not run as often. Although commuter times are frequent. Rents are lower. Cost of living is incredibly low compared to Seattle and Bainbridge. Almost 2/3 to half.

    There are openings on the Bainbridge/Bremerton side. Let me know if I can help. I'd recommend contacting a RE Agent when looking for a place in Seattle - a Seattle RE Agent who works the area. They have access to rentals that the general public does not. Some rentals in Seattle only allow access with an agent. Holler if you want some agent names for that area. I know some good agents downtown Seattle and others on the forum may also know some agents to contribute.

    0Reply
  • Chris Martin
    Investor · Willow Spring, NC · Member since 2009 · 5k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    12y

    The premise is "...to reside in a studio or one bedroom apartment." Scarcity rules. Si es pequeño, es de fuego. Si! And that is Nationwide.

    0Reply
  • Chanté Owens
    OP
    Insurance Agent · AZ · Member since 2013 · 306 posts · 161 votes
    12y

    @Stephanie Dupuis Thank you so much! That's definitely something I'd look into after my first 6-12 months, as I'll be in an office in Lynnwood for awhile, but since I'm in insurance, I'll eventually be all over; primarily in Seattle, so then I can really live where I want as I won't be tied to an office.

    I'll definitely take your advice and look into Bremerton area. I appreciate you all piping in to help me!

    0Reply
  • Chanté Owens
    OP
    Insurance Agent · AZ · Member since 2013 · 306 posts · 161 votes
    12y
    Originally posted by @Chris Martin:
    The premise is "...to reside in a studio or one bedroom apartment." Scarcity rules. Si es pequeño, es de fuego. Si! And that is Nationwide.

    True, true!

    0Reply
  • Zach Schwarzmiller
    Investor · Snohomish, WA · Member since 2013 · 629 posts · 84 votes
    12y

    @Chanté Owens

    I think Seattle Area (specifically Snohomish & Pierce County) is excellent places to invest. There are still somewhere around 12,000 units under construction in the Seattle MD with about 2,000 in lease up. Somewhere around 40% of those are in core Seattle (that’s 4,800 units) – funnily enough the projected demand is about 4,800 for 2014. I would anticipate the core market is going to have to start offering concessions in 2015 unless we just keep growing at this crazy rate.

    Maple Leaf is correct – actually a really neat little area between Shoreline and Northgate. I have debated buying some rentals there.

    Edmonds is fantastic – very quaint little City where rents don't ever seem to increase too much. I'd love to own something there but you can't justify the price to buy because rents are so low and prices are so high. The IRR's are awful.

    I have a rental, maybe a couple available in the end of March; however, in Snohomish.

    0Reply
  • Chanté Owens
    OP
    Insurance Agent · AZ · Member since 2013 · 306 posts · 161 votes
    12y

    @Zach Schwarzmiller I appreciate the information and additional background on other areas too.

    Those growth numbers are something else! I am looking to be in a good position to invest at the end of 2015. It will give me more than a years' worth of time being able to look around a get a feel for the areas, and where I would possibly want to live and invest (which aren't always the same thing). I was thinking about going the duplex/triplex route when I first start out, so we'll see.

    Thanks again to everyone whose provided information!

    0Reply
  • Chanté Owens
    OP
    Insurance Agent · AZ · Member since 2013 · 306 posts · 161 votes
    12y

    Thanks to everybody in this thread who offered their suggestions regarding the locations I should look at to rent. I found a great place and the property management has been top notch...can't say that about 99% of the places I contacted, and I contacted at least 40+ places!

    I'll be in that North Seattle area; not too far from Northgate and the University District.

    Now, looking forward to my move and getting busy with: working and getting my multiplex at the end of 2015!

    0Reply
  • Jeremy Housekeeper
    Kirkland, WA · Member since 2013 · 33 posts · 6 votes
    12y

    @Stephanie Dupuis Would living on Bainbridge or Bremerton really work out to be cheaper if ferry costs are added in? I checked WSDOT and they only sell monthly walk-on passes. Throw a car in the mix and that gets very expensive.

    0Reply
  • Stephanie Dupuis
    Residential Real Estate Broker · Bremerton, WA · Member since 2013 · 494 posts · 142 votes
    12y

    Yes, it is still much more affordable. Car passes are available. I haven't bought on ein a long time, you'd need to look them up. But even at $200-225/mo in ferry auto pass (or $60-70/mo for walk on passenger tickets) - $200-$300/ mo is what people are paying for parking and/or gas to commute to work in Seattle. So...$200-225 for ferry costs is a DEAL!! Plus it's a beautiful and relaxing ferry ride into Seattle (vs. sitting in hours of traffic...waiting...waisting your life away behind thousands a other people). You need to think about your entire commuting expenses and time - plus you're paying hundreds more in rent over there so that you can spend just as much in commuting and spend twice as much time commuting. Makes ZERO sense.

    1Reply
Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.
Log InJoin for Free