Seattle Apartments | In Seattle, even the Rich are Renting
Renting an apartment is easy. It's making the apartment feel like a home that's tough. OK, maybe it's not that black and white. After all, securing an apartment in the right neighborhood for the right place can be hard work as well. But, when you search for your new place using a trusted rental company, the job is made easier. Then all you have to decide is where to put the sofa, how to hang your favorite lamp. It's a big deal. And for the most part, an enjoyable one, especially when the search is made easy.
The most notable downsizing of the American home has been in its price. The luxury end usually escapes the worst of housing downturns, but not this time. For those seeking a reprieve from teardown mania, this is not a bad development. I refer to the trend whereby bungalows, Cape Cods and other assorted gracious homes are flattened and replaced by monster mansions. Perhaps the forces of sanity can regroup.
Prices on many super-deluxe properties have been slashed from their 2007 levels. In Walla Walla, Wash., a 15,000-square-foot spread, listed for $13 million, sold recently for only $3.5 million. In Jackson Hole, Wyo., the asking price on a log palazzo has been cut from $14.5 million to $9.9 million (and 99 cents?).
How about a 10,000-square-foot oceanfront pleasure palace in Vero Beach, Fla., with its own gym, barbershop and waterfall? Owners Richard and Amanda Peacock are also selling other treasures, including six sports cars, leopard-skin chairs and an elephant head.
"It's time to simplify," Richard told The Wall Street Journal.
The Peacocks did unload a scarlet Ferrari and the head. But they're staying in the house for now because they can't afford to let it go it for $5.5 million, which was the top bid at auction.
High-end property values have been historically shielded by their owners' cushion of wealth. Unfortunately for the fortunes, the Dow meltdown has badly hurt the deep pockets. Some are losing their mansions to the bank. In 2008, only 279 homes worth $3 million or more went into foreclosure. In the first three months of this year, 1,214 did.
This is part of what experts are calling the third wave of the real-estate crisis. The first wave was speculators fleeing when prices began to fall. The second was homeowners hit hard when their interest rates "reset" from their very low introductory rates. Many of these adjustable-rate mortgages were subprime.
The third wave has hit prime mortgages held by the cream of the borrowers. Many of these homeowners had suffered a job loss or collapse in business income.
So there you have it, with an overextended apartment market, it is essential to have a step ahead of the competition. Using a trusted source for apartment listings and resources is the best way to get going.
About the Author
Michael Russell writes about a variety of subjects. This article discusses Seattle Apartments. For more information, visit Apartment Finder.
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