Sequim Real Estate Market Report 2017

In a most recent report in the Sequim Gazette Managing Broker Doc Reiss came up with some really interesting numbers. Let's just pick up a few relating to our blog post "Sequim House Sales are soaring", which will be helpful for those who have not given up on finding the perfect house to buy in Sequim at the current house sales slowdown this September and October.

In August, 77 home sales were down 30% from the level at the same time in 2016 but up from the number sold in July. The average house purchase price of $357,507 is definitely of interest for potential home buyers which is 20% up from 2016. The lack of inventory has buyers  scrambling to buy the house they want reflecting our market observation expressed in our blog post. Last August the average home that sold was 75 days on the market. This August houses lasted  just 36 days on the market. Looking at the year so far, the average home has gone from 76 days on the market to only 54. Bottom line: Home Buyers be aware. Homes are selling 35% faster than last year.

Our personal opinion is that sales might not slow down over this fall or winter season with climate change and weather reports of devastating hurricanes, century floods and wild fires becoming the regular norm across the United States. The nice, sunny weather all over the Olympic Peninsula this summer
attracts lots of home searchers looking for moderate weather.

Sun over Sequim and dark rain clouds over Seattle in the East and Port Angeles in the West produce the most impressive double rainbow over  Sequim town

Sequim House Sales are soaring

One of the most recent issues of the Sequim Gazette tells us and Sequim house hunters all about it. Looks like the Sequim housing market is following now the Seattle trend, which even during the house bubble burst did not seem to be affected by the down spiral of the national market but instead continuously proved solid and stable in its trend.

The recent surge in house sales led to low inventory with 270 homes for sale a month, the lowest second quarter inventory since 2005 according to Team McAleer and an increase in prices. In the second quarter 204 homes were sold, which is the highest amount ever sold in the second quarter. Since 2007, that's when we bought our house in Sun Meadow at a high real estate market, the median price sale went from $290,000 to $300,000. A lot of Sequim home buyers are coming from the Seattle area - selling their Seattle homes for a decent price and buying in Sequim to retire for half the price.

Our own observation of the fast real estate market in Sequim these days was proven by "Sales Pending" signs showing up without there ever have been a "House for Sale" sign. Realtors have their own waiting list and jump in right away when something new shows up on the market. Sequim house hunters often noticed, when they had their act together to move forwards with an offer, the home was already sold or they were at the end of a line of home buyers' offers.
Bottom line at the current Sequim Real Estate market is, if you want a house, you'd better move fast.

One last word by loan officers. They seriously recommend to be preapproved by an underwriter: "When we get into those multiple offers on homes, cash is always going to be king.  Team McAleer reports that on August 1st Sequim has 181 homes for sale at a median price of $375,000, 105 are under contract.

Sequim Council approved impact fees for new home builders

Welcome back to Sequim Town Vacation blog,

Decision is made by Sequim council: Building a new house in Sequim will soon cost Sequim home builders more money. We discussed the issue of impact fees as a means for Sequim town to make some extra money to maintain streets, parks etc. in our recent post 'What is new for Sequim home owners?'

On March 222 Sequim city council and its manager Steve Burkett voted to adopt new impact fees in order to keep Sequim's infrastructure up-to-date. Starting in July 2010 new home builders in Sequim will have to pay for each single-family home an extra $4,868 in impact fees. Those charges will be added on the current $15,800 cost of a building permit.

We are happy that we did not postpone the building of our new Sequim home after we had bought our new town lot with those wonderful views of the Olympic Mountains. Building in 2007 saved us in hindsight a lot of money. Well, we don't know how much money the City of Sequim can rake in with that new impact fee, if the applications for building permits stay the same low as in 2009.

We have been talking and are still talking to quite a number of people who found Sequim Town Vacation blog on the Internet and have serious plans to move to Sequim for good. Most of them, don't want to go through the hassle of building a new home - who does when being retired and looking for an easy relaxed life. The majority wants to buy a house in Sequim which fits best their budget and expectations.

Also read our post about 'Sunland Golf Course'.

Tags: Sequim real estate, impact fees for new Sequim home builders

What's new for Sequim home owners?

Well, the 'Economic Slowdown" did not go around the city of Sequim, as Sequim home owners might have hoped for. Sequim City struggles to make ends meet just like the rest of the nation. The big question is where to get the money from for improvements of streets, parks, public transportation, police etc.

Financial means for education seems to be taken care of after a recent vote for Sequim Schools where 61% of Sequim residents voted for a higher property tax for Sequim home owners to generate some extra money for Sequim education. The votes included Sequim residents who don't own a home and won't be affected by the higher taxes, at least not at first glance. Eventually, home owners who rent out a second home will try to get some money back from their tenants by raising their rent!

We were actually quite happy when we noticed that our high Sequim property tax had gone down for 2010 but that 'saving's evaporated with the recent vote approval for raising the taxes for schools which meant another $200 more property tax on a Sequim estimated home value of $250,000. Quite a steep raise, we think.

Still there remains the question where to get the money from for keeping Sequim's infrastructure updated and in good shape. Well, the solution seems to be very easy, at least according to a consultant the City of Sequim hired. The 'magic word' is introducing 'impact fees' to new home owners and builders. If the City of Sequim approves the new impact fees, then new Sequim home owners will have to pay an additional $9036, whether they build a new home for $1million or $200,000! The new impact fees would cover Sequim town's future expenses for improvements of infrustructure, parks, transportation, general government and police.

This will be a tough decision to be made by the City Council and Sequim City's new manager Steven Burkett. Naturally, the new impact fees find strong opponents among Sequim builders and realtors. Imagine in 2005 about 190 new building permits were issued for Sequim and area, whereas in 2009, it was only 11 building permits. Sequim builders and realtors believe that those steep impact fees in a slowed-down economy, will have further negative effects and might turn off potential home builders from building in Sequim. The Sequim consultant argues that better parks and infrastructure will attract new home builders to Sequim. What do you think?

Tags: Sequim town, impact fees Sequim, Sequim home owners

Sequim Real Estate Update August 2009

Welcome back to our Sequim Town blog visitors,

First things first. We had a great break from the reported heat wave with nice cool temperatures as we are used to. Today, temperatures are climbing more than usual though. It's now 1pm and thermometer in the back of our house shows 79F. I think I will delay my walk through the Carrie Blake Park to later this afternoon, when the sun is not so strong.

Somebody told us that our Sequim hummingbirds also migrate. As we had not seen any for over a week, we stopped hanging out the feeder. We definitely miss our little friends. We have been seeing the Canadian geese crisscrossing the skies frequently. They must be gathering and getting ready for their way south!

Well, the birds move south where it's warm and toasty but you might want to move north to the Olympic Peninsula. Most of our Sequim blog visitors are the ones who love Sequim, the Olympic Mountains and our plenty of water around it for a vacation. Another group of mostly retired people have heard about Sequim as a wonderful retirement town - small town living with big town amenities!

Today's Sequim vacation blog post is an update on the real estate market in Sequim and Clallam County, which is especially for those who want to move to Sequim sooner or later. A recent article in the Peninsula Daily News "2nd Quarter home sales rise in Clallam, Prices fall" states that sales of existing home sales grew slightly in Clallam County while prices for homes dropped compared to the 1st quarter. The price of a median home is currently $212,100, which is a drop of 15.2% and somewhat below state average. There are many more real estate stats listed in the article.

Bottom line: Sequim real estate is welcoming buyers. The buyer's market is strengthening. Visit Sequim and see for yourselves what houses are available and at what prices!

A good way to find out whether Sequim living is right for you, is staying in Sequim for a month, maybe even at different months of the year. We offer the best monthly rates for a fully equipped 1Bd/1Ba Sequim vacation rental with top amenities at premier, peaceful location, near Park + Shopping! We are happy to share our knowledge of life in Sequim and moving to Sequim with everybody who stays with us!

Tags: Sequim real estate, Homes for sale in Sequim, Sequim home bargains

Olympic Peninsula Biggest Open House Weekend

Dealing with Sequim vacation and Moving to Sequim, we could not skip this information. Yesterday, we received a brochure in our mail 'The Biggest Open House Weekend on the Olympic Peninsula' this Saturday June 27 + Sunday 28. The brochure was published by the Peninsula Daily News. What it basically means, Sequim and Port Angeles realtors joined the biggest Washington state wide open house weekend announced for this weekend.


One of the headlines on the front cover of this Open House brochure reads 'Over 100 Open Houses this Saturday and Sunday'! I could not resist and counted all the houses for sale listed in Port Angeles and Sequim with open house dates, hours and realtors: 116 homes + lots all together, 43 of those listings were for Sequim.

This is a great effort by WA and Olympic Peninsula realtors to get the housing market moving again. As in the rest of the nation, not much moved or sold in the past 1 to 1 1/2 years. I myself as a lay person see one reason for the current stagnation in the Sequim real estate market that house prices came down somewhat from the inflated prices yet they are still high (too high), especially, when everybody struggles to make ends meet in these days of economic slowdown.

People who originally wanted to move to Sequim, put their project on hold and rather stay where they live right now. This way saving money on expensive moving costs or house closing costs. Quite a number are not able to sell their homes in CA, AZ or Hawaii because they don't want to take huge losses.

Perusing the 100 homes for sale listings, I noticed that there are not many homes under $200K available for purchase. If so, they are really very old, manufactured homes or really small. First time home buyers might get tempted when viewing those homes, especially with the $8,000 tax credit.


We will have to wait and see whether this biggest Open House Weekend on the Olympic Peninsula will be a stimulus for Sequim home buyers. I hope that Sequim realtors were smart enough to advertise it way ahead on Craigslist or ads in CA and AZ.

Tags: Sequim real estate, WA biggest open house weekend, 100 houses for sale

Get Ready for your Sequim Vacation

Hello again to all our Sequim Town blog visitors,
We just made it back from our vacation in Hawaii to celebrate Keoki's 70th birthday with family and friends there. In addition to the birthday, our vacation in Hawaii was wonderful. It was an interesting feeling though to be a visitor in Hawaii watching life go by much slower and pay close attention to the weather, not any different to visitors who come to Sequim on vacation.


Coming back home to WA, Seattle had a big surprise for us. We thought it was an April Fool's Day joke. It was snowing big time! Driving out of Seattle with heavy traffic was challenging and took all our attention. After Leaving Tacoma behind, snow turned into rain and rain eased into a drizzle. Time to relax again. The rest of our way to Sequim was fine. Sequim welcomed us with a gray, overcast sky, but no rain. Next day though, Sequim showed itself from its best side with the sun breaking through the clouds occasionally - our beloved blue hole! So, we told everybody that we brought the sun from Hawaii to Sequim.


Ever since our return to little Sequim town last week, we have enjoyed wonderful Sequim Spring weather this April. Daffodils and primroses are blooming, birds are singing everywhere, trees and bushes have lots of buds ready for Sequim spring. Most impressive are the cherry blossom trees everywhere. Sequim is not only the capital of lavender but of Cherry Blossom trees. We should really have a Cherry Blossom Festival in addition to the Irrigation Festival in May and the Lavender Festival in July! I am still going on a photo hunt for Cherry Blossom trees in Sequim.


To all our Sequim blog readers, who are looking to buy property in Sequim, come vsit Sequim, the Olympic Peninsula and the Olympic Mountains just as we did in Fall 2005. There are great Sequim real estate bargains to have, homes and lots! So watch the Sequim Real Estate carefully and stretch out your feelers, you might just find the special place matching your budget and expectations to live in Sequim.

For all the retired people, who can go on a monthly vacation to Sequim, we offer a great monthly stay at our private, peaceful 1Bd/1Ba Sequim Vacation Rental apartment at SPECIAL rate of $950/mo. for April, May and June for top amenities (such as free WiFi and free long distance calls) and premier location. Regular monthly rates for fully furnished places in Sequim are starting at $1200/mo. You will fall in love with Sequim just as we did. Happy Easter to all our Sequim Town Blog visitors!

IMPORTANT REMINDER:

When you plan your Sequim vacation for May and June, please, read our post on the Closing of the Hood Canal Bridge during this period.

Tags: Sequim, Sequim vacation, Sequim real estate deals

Best Retirement Towns by the Water

Just a short notice today that Sequim advances on list of best retirement towns! Our friends from Hawaii who follow our new life in Sequim on our Sequim Vacation blog, recently told us that Sequim is listed on Wallet Pop on their 'Road Map to Retirement 2008' as Number 3 of '6 Top Towns on the Water':

"Many baby boomers dream of retiring somewhere by the water. These half-dozen places are on a lake, a river or an ocean -- yet they won't sink your retirement budget." This is what their site is stating about our favorite retirement town Sequim:

Pros: Water, mountains, culture and a small town all at once.
Cons: The Pacific is a tad nippy for a swim.
Located two hours north of Seattle, Sequim (pronounced skwim) offers a lower cost of living and an easier pace than its burgeoning neighbor to the south. For about $300,000, you can get a three-bedroom house there. Read more about Sequim as a retirement option on their site.

Happy to share this information with everybody who put Sequim on their list of best retirement towns. Come and see for yourself. Enjoy a Sequim Vacation combined with house hunting and stay with us at our Sequim Vacation Rental.

p.s.

Speaking of house hunting. Remember our post about the Sequim house for sale auction in Sun Meadows. The winning bidder got the house for $205,000. Congratulations! That was one happy bidder!

Tags: Sequim, travel, vacation, best retirement town, vacation rental

Sequim Home for Sale Auction

We just made it back from a short vacation to the LA area to visit family, Keoki's sister and my niece and families. We had a great time but are happy to be back home again and picking up on our exercise and swimming routine after SARC was closed for maintenance for 2 weeks. It's time to follow-up on our Sequim Vacation blog.

Sequim visitors can get a little lost with our shopping options in Sequim, so my original plan was to write a few shopping tips for Sequim visitors on vacation. Well, that was my intention till I found this morning this advertising on craigslist Olympic Peninsula Homes for Sale '$100,000 Sun Meadows Real Estate Auction (Sequim)'

I actually did not believe my eyes when the Sun Meadows house which our friends had tried to sell for Sale by Owner at $279,000 for over a year - they got two offers for $250,000, which they did not accept - is now up for auction at $100,000. I know the home owners had to move on into an assisted living home and just let go of the house.

I could not resist and called the phone number with the craigslist Sequim Home auction ad. I reached Carl Reed at Connect Realty who gave us auction info by email. The address of the property is America Blvd. in Sun Meadows of Sequim. Interested buyers can inspect the home from 10:00am to 5:00pm both this Saturday and Sunday. The auction will be will be a 'round-robin auction' by phone.

To be honest we both never heard of such an auction. Anyways, everyone interested in the auction will need to leave an initial bid at the home, or by phone for those out of state, during the inspection period. The real estate company will be calling everyone who left an initial bid at 8:00pm on Sunday and giving them an opportunity to advance the high bid. This process will continue in round-robin fashion until only one bidder is left. That bidder will be given the opportunity to purchase the home at the high bid price.

I don't know whether this will turn out as the super deal for a cheap house in Sequim but we are very curious what the final price for this Sequim home will be. If you want to see the house online and lots of photos, we still have it on our website (second listing) Sequim Home for Sale by Owner, Sun Meadows, Near John Wayne Marina. Good luck, if you are entering this Sequim home for sale auction.

Last but not least, if you are looking for a unique upscale luxury Sequim house, don't miss our post Sequim Home. Again, we are not realtors but just regular people who love Sequim and like to help friends who are selling their Sequim home. For all those who look for real estate in Sequim, it's a buyer's market!

Tags: Sequim, Vacation, Travel, Real Estate, Sequim Home for Sale

Sequim Home

Ever since we have moved to Sequim, exploring this town and its splendid surroundings plus meeting new friends has been a top priority in our daily Sequim life. As we told our Sequim blog visitors, the easiest way to make new friends is at SARC Sequim Aquatic Recreation Center. First it's just saying hello and then it's more talk and finally, and after that, it's having the new friends over for dinner and playing some cards.

This is how we met Beate and Jesse several months ago, who had originally moved from California to Sequim. Recently, they told us that they miss their children and grandchildren, which are all still living in the CA area. Going back and forth does not seem to be an option for them anymore.


Now, their biggest project is letting go of and selling their beautiful Sequim house. As we did in the past with other Sequim Homes for Sale by Owner, we told them we are happy to help and share the house information with our Sequim town blog visitors. Most of Sequim visitors are looking for Sequim real estate as an investment for later or buying a house to retire in Sequim. So, Beate and Jesse invited us to a house tour...

Driving on a private country lane lead us into the large turnaround. The home welcomed us before we even entered it. Warm, old-fashioned with many flower baskets, yet modern, it made us admire the work of the Seattle architect who had designed it. We really wanted to settle into the hammock on the sunny porch and look at the mountains but our friends saw us, so we got ready for the house tour. We went inside and were surprised to find a formal entry hall as warm as any room. Light from everywhere. As ex-Hawaiians, we loved that! A fireplace can be lit right in the entry during the winter season.


From the house it's an easy walk to the Dungeness Spit, where committed hikers can approach the 5-mile hike to the Dungeness Lighthouse or paddle along the coast in a kayak. Jesse is a passionate fisherman and goes out with his 20ft boat to catch some big fish, as you can easily see from out photo. We were lucky as we got invited to a fresh catch dinner of King Salmon. What a treat! Jesse showed us his special place outside the house - pretty mosaic fish/vegetable cleaning trough - where he can prepare the fresh fish. Before having dinner, I went with Beate to pick some fresh berries from her organic garden for dinner dessert. So delicious! Keoki and Jesse played some pool downstairs in the guest quarters in the meantime.


My favorite place is the kitchen. Who minds having to cook while watching all that is going on outside through 3 large windows! Mt. Baker is an ever impressing sight with its snow-covered summit.

One sees the Dungeness lighthouse being dwarfed by humongous container vessels, and the cruise ships heading to Alaska which look like ghost ships all lit up when it gets dark. I liked the upstairs a lot also, but best of all coming down the elegant staircase made me feel like a queen. Yes, weird, but true.

And why would B & J want to move away from this? I guess dreams change, especially with the arrival of 3 grandkids too far away ...

Well, if you want to see more house photos, description in detail and all the inside and outside features of this Luxury Sequim Home go to Sequim Homes for Sale. For a house viewing appointment with Jesse and Beate, send us an email at Sequim Town blog and we happily connect you with them.

Related Sequim Real Estate Articles

Sequim Home for Sale in Sun Meadows

Sequim Home with a View

Sequim Home for Sale

Tags: Sequim, Real Estate, Sequim Home, Vacation, Sequim Home for Sale

Developments in Sequim

We mentioned several times in previous post how much and how fast Sequim Town is growing. It's really hard to keep up with all the new developments. To tell you the truth not everybody likes it, especially not those who have been living in Sequim for many years. However, this seems to be the fate of any area or town which attracts people because of its special location and unique features. The word spreads fast about Sequim on the Olympic Peninsula - whether it's for vacation or for buying real estate and eventually moving to Sequim.

The biggest development is in the building sector of new subdivisions and building of private Sequim homes, townhouses and condos. In addition, there are new hotel projects like the one by the Jamestown S'Klallam tribe. By the way, did you know that that klallam means 'strong people'? Good to know when you intend to move to Sequim in Clallam County.

Anyways, Jamestown tribe owns 7 Cedars Casino besides other local businesses. The Jamestown tribe intends to make more use of their land possession of 275 acres. They already finished a new convenience store and gas station on Hwy101, next to 7 Cedars Casino. With a wine shop, walk-in cigar humidor, plush cafe, fireplace and 12 gasoline pumps, the Longhouse Market has become addition to the Jamestown S'Klallam tribe's enterprises on the North Olympic Peninsula.

An even bigger project will be new resort hotel behind the Casino, which was announced plans in 2005 as a 135-room hotel. Now, plans have changed to a much larger hotel with 175 rooms with conference facilities. The hotel will rise behind 7 Cedars, but it won't cater only to the casino customer. The estimated costs are around $100 million.

The tribe's vision is a destination resort with amenities that will put Sequim on the national conference map plus while attract travelers who look for ultramodern comfort. The new hotel at 7-Ceadra Casino is estimated to open in 2010, following the Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Columbia. More Sequim Town development news to come! Visit Sequim Town blog for staying updated for your next Sequim Vacation.

p.s.
Read our update on ferry service Port Townsend - Whidbey Island.

Related Articles

Sequim Affordable Homes

Sequim Real Estae 2008 Some Thoughts

Sequim Home for Sale in Sun Meadows
Gambling on Sequim Vacation

Tags: Best of Sequim, Sequim Vacation

Sequim Affordable Homes

We are back!
After we articulated a few personal thoughts about 2008 Sequim Real Estate, I came across a few articles in our local newspapers like the Sequim This Week and The Peninsula Daily News, which I thought should be mentioned here on our Sequim Town blog.

As Sequim has developed into this attractive retirement town for people from CA, AZ, CO or even Hawaii over the past 20 years, a lot of them financially independent and thus building or buying quality homes at the most desired Sequim locations - ocean or mountain views being a must - it seems like the regular folks are left behind. Those people who work at Wal-Mart, Costco or HomeDepot for hourly wages around $8 can definitely not buy a house in Sequim at the current prices.

City Councilman Bill Huizinga, a former real estate agent, quoted the median selling price for Sequim in 2007 at $316,750. He concluded this number from an online search of last year's house sales. The average 3 Bd home on a lot was $230,000. These high selling prices for Sequim homes affect naturally the rents people have to pay for renting a house. When we lived in Sun Meadows, we did not see one of the 2Bd homes for rent under $1000 a month. Basically, it comes down to the situation that there is hardly any affordable housing in Sequim, whether to pay or to rent.

For all the Sequim residents or those people intending to move to Sequim and work there and who are in the low income range, the new apartment buildings 'Elk Creek' off Hwy 101 might offer a solution for finding affordable housing in Sequim. The article in the Peninsula Daily News about 'Affordable Housing in Sequim' does not only list features of the apartments, requirements for being eligible but also seriously reflects an the entire issue of promoting affordable housing in Sequim and integrating those into our community. Whether Mr.Huizinga as member of Sequim's affordable housing subcommittee, will be able to 'bring home prices down to earth' in Sequim, depends probably to a great deal on Sequim developers but also Sequim residents.

Remember the value of your house gets affected by the value of houses in your neighborhood, meaning not all Sequim residents support the idea of lower-priced homes in their neighborhood. Let's hope Sequim town will find a solution accommodating the needs for affordable homes and protecting the value of Sequim homes at the same time!

Tags: Sequim Real Estate 2008, Home Prices in Sequim

Sequim Real Estate 2008 Some Thoughts

Welcome back to our Sequim Town blog,

In our recent blog post about Sequim Spring awakening, we mentioned that it's time to talk about Sequim Vacation and Sequim Real Estate Market again. With new spring life approaching, our Sequim blog gets more visitors again, mostly consisting of tourists searching for places to stay in Sequim and things to do on the Olympic Peninsula.

Won't you believe it, it's just 2 months to the 113th Sequim Irrigation Festival, which will be held May 3rd - 11th, 2008? We reported about our 2007 Sequim Irrigation Festival experience, which was great fun for everybody, spectators like us and lots of participants! But let's not get carried away. Your next Sequim vacation will be the topic of our next blog post.

Today it's time for talking business, Real Estate business in Sequim. Just kidding. Several blog visitors had asked us in the past whether we are realtors because we have several posts about Sequim Real Estate and even list two Sun Meadow homes for sale by owner FSBO on our blog. Well, reason is we try to help our friends. We are not realtors but we have the web at our fingers, with owning our own sites, like our Kohala Coast Vacation Guide and blogs, like the Sequim Town and our Best Hawaii Vacation Blog. It never hurts to have some extra exposure for a home for sale online.

When you have a close look at our Sequim town blog, you will notice that we display lots of information about Sequim, from vacation rentals & hotels, to moving & relocation resources and vacation highlights in Sequim. You won't find links to real estate companies, as there are too many to be listed and it would not be fair just to list a few and not the others.

Well, we decided to share a few thoughts about the current 2008 Sequim Real Estate market with our blog visitors. Not claiming to 100% correct or even complete with our thoughts. This is what we noticed:

Yes, Sequim has turned into a buyer's market just as so many other locations in states like CA, AZ or even HI.

Is it wise to buy now or is it better to wait even longer? Will prices for homes and land in Sequim still come more down? Well, this is a gamble, similar to the stock market. Who knows at what point the Sequim market will turn around and follow the uptrend again.

Right now it looks like developers and contractors got carried when times were good but I guess when you got once started it's not that easy to stop building. Reading the recent Olympic Peninsula Homes & Land I was more than surprised to count 23 new home developments in Sequim. 23 that is! This number does not even reflect how many building lots and sites are offered in those new home developments. Cedar Ridge alone offers 244 lots starting at $69,000 for cottage lots and asking $109,000 for estate lots. Well, considering those numbers, it looks like lot prices will have to come down.

It looks like to an outsider that not many homes get sold in Sequim these days. Our area next to Carrie Blake Park, which is much desired for retired people with walking distance to shopping and park, showed even over the winter months for sale signs and sold. Admitted, it took a much longer time to sell plus we don't know how much the seller came down in order to make the sale happen but most important it happened.

Sequim is developing and growing at a rate, residents don't know whether to welcome it or not. One thing is for certain, small town living with big town amenities + the amazing location of Sequim between mountain and ocean will keep attracting the retired folks. No question there that moving to Sequim and investing into land or house purchase seems like a good move. Make sure the price is right and you get what you wanted - sunny exposure, nice views and away from the highway! What do you think?

p.s.

Stay tuned for our next post for reasons to plan a Sequim Vacation. Don't miss our webcams - wonderful Sequim area scenery.

Sequim Real Estate Articles

Sequim Real Estate - Homes for Sale Analysis April 2007
Sequim Home for Sale in Sun Meadows
Sequim Real Estate Summer Analysis 2007
Sequim Home with a View
Sequim Home for Sale By Owner

Tags: Sequim Real Estate

Sequim Real Estate Articles

Dear Sequim Town blog visitors,
As a lot of our blog readers are interested in Sequim Real Estate & Sequim Homes for sale, we decided to make blog navigation easier for you.

This blog post lists links related to Sequim Real Estate articles.

Sequim Real Estate - Homes for Sale Analysis April 2007
Sequim Home for Sale in Sun Meadows Asking Price $299,000
Sequim Real Estate Summer Analysis 2007
Sequim Home with a View
Sequim Home for Sale By Owner Asking Price $279,000

We will continually update this list of relevant information about the Sequim Real Estate market for all those who consider to move to Sequim and buy a Sequim house.

Best wishes for finding your perfect Home in Sequim. It's a buyer's market!!!

Tags: Sequim, Sequim Real Estate, Sequim Homes for Sale

Sequim Real Estate Summer Analysis 2007

Dear Sequim Town blog visitors,
As we know that a lot of our Sequim blog readers are interested in moving and living in Sequim and therefore like to hear how the real estate market is doing in summer 2007, we asked Jason Lee from Welcome Home Realty on his current thoughts of the Sequim Real Estate market. Feel free to compare this one with his market analysis in April. Thank you Jason for sharing your realtor knowledge with us!

"Hello again to everyone interested in a Sequim lifestyle.
This is your midsummer update on our real estate market. Despite all the doom and gloom of the national news media the Sequim realty situation is very stable. Homes sales for the general Sequim area are down about 8% from the year before, which isn't too bad considering the nation as a whole. The surprising fact is that the average and median sold price of a stick built home is up approximately $2500 from last year. This tells me that while the number of sales has tapered off slightly, there is still more than enough demand to live here.

What's great about our market is that even with the relatively small slowdown in sales last year and this year our inventory of homes for sale has grown exponentially to where we have about 450 or so to choose from at any given time. This had led to the greatest buyers market we have seen in years.

Because of this and the need for good buyer representation I have decided that what Sequim needs is a Buyer's Agent. Thus a little over a month ago when my last listing sold, I stopped taking them and have gone to only representing buyers. Having a strictly Buyer's Agent is beneficial to people in that there is never a conflict of interest and concerns with the agent trying to push their own listings. Sellers always have an agent and are represented to the fullest, now buyer's have that option also. Enjoy the summer, come to Sequim if you're not getting enough sun."

You may reach Jason Lee, Sequim's Exclusive Buyer's Agent Accredited Buyer's Representative, Direct # 360-460-8161 Welcome Home Realty

Tags: Moving to Sequim, Olympic Peninsula, Sequim Real Estate Market

Sequim Home for Sale in Sun Meadows

This Sequim House just SOLD! July 2008.

Well, by now after reading our Sequim Blog About everybody knows that we are not realtors but still like to talk about Sequim real estate and Sequim homes for sale. Sequim is a town of steady transition, more so people moving here from California or Arizona or even Hawaii like us than leaving Sequim. When you once live here, there are chances you move within Sequim or even build another house in Sequim.

We never thought we'd sell our home in Sun Meadows till this chance came along to build a new 2-storey Sequim home with extra 1Bd/1Ba guest apartment for our families and friends. Now, we can rest and relax till whatever other chance comes along.

Some time ago, we introduced Bill's and Arlyn's Sequim house for sale to our blog visitors. They are in transition to move into an assisted living home where Arlyn can get the right care when needed. They are still looking for the right buyer of their wonderful home. Our website shows all the details of their Sequim house for sale, with lots of photos & contact information (second property).

Today, we show you Margaret's and John's Sun Meadow Home for Sale. They were nor ready to retire and built their new house with big RV garage and workshop on 2 acres. Now it's time to sell their very unique house which you can easily fall in love with...light and bright and open, inside and out! Lots of privacy behind the house with nice BBQ area in garden setting.

This beautifully landscaped 1788 sq ft Sequim home with 2 Bd/2.5 Ba plus Office is located in the gated community of Sun Meadows with CC&R's, just minutes from John Wayne Marina, (voted the "Best Small Marina on the West Coast"), 7 Cedars Casino, all major shopping and entertainment, Carrie Blake Park, and all the amenities of "Sunny Sequim". See for more photos and detailed Sequim house description.

If you need help contacting the owners, please, let us know with subject 'Sequim Home for Sale Sun Meadows'. Hope our Sequim Town blog helps you find your perfect home in Sequim. Greetings from the Sequimers

Tags: Best retirement town Sequim, Sequim Home for Sale, Sequim, Retirement town

Moving to Sequim

Dear friends of Sequim and the Sequimers,
This is a short update about happenings in our our Sequim life, personal happenings that is. As most of you know, we had moved to sunny Sequim on the Olympic Peninsula in January 2006 after selling our Hawaii property and vacation rental cottages. Weeks of Internet research and many talks to Mainland friends helped us to define Sequim as the best town to retire at. Our 2-week vacation in fall of 2006 confirmed our decision to move to Sequim. Never regretted it one bit. On the opposite, we are loving it in Sequim.

Well, here comes the big news for some of you. We always kept a close eye on Sequim real estate homes and lots for sale. When Keoki found this perfect lot on a gentle hill with oak trees overlooking Sequim and 180 degrees of the Olympic Mountains - a few yards from Carrie Blake Park and walking distance to shopping- he made his move and bought it at a great discount price. The odd shape of the lot had probably turned many buyers off. After Keoki had spent a few weeks designing a house with daylight basement guest apartment matching the lot shape, he came up with a version which would work with our main quarters upstairs and 1Bd/1Ba guest apartment downstairs for family (our kids from Alaska, Hawaii and Germany) and friends coming to visit us.

We sold our Sequim house in Sun Meadows to Bill from California who owns a boat in Sequim Bay John Wayne Marina. He likes to live on his boat but would also like to have a home base when coming back from his boat trips in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Bill will move into 'our' house at the end of this week. Unfortunately, our new Sequim house is not ready yet for moving in. Moving into new house is supposed to happen middle of May. So far, we are still on schedule with the construction. We hope it will stay that way. Sequim weather is cooperating so far.

For the transition time, we will stay at one of the 2Bd/2Ba cottages at the Sequim West Inn where we stayed on our Sequim vacation in fall 2006 when looking for a house to buy in Sequim. We liked the affordable rates and the full kitchen and cleaning service. Better than any hotel room.

Sorry guys but there are no new photos of the new house yet. The above photo (two balconies for sliding glass doors are missing) was taken a couple of weeks ago. It will probably take some time till we get new house photos taken and downloaded. This makes it more exciting and interesting for you and us! Greetings from the Sequimers

Tags: Moving to Sequim, Sequim house construction, Sequim Real Estate

Sequim Real Estate - Homes for Sale Analysis

This post is written by Jason Lee, Real Estate Agent at Sequim 'Welcome Home Realty'. Meet Jason for his Sequim Open House April 7 (info below).

We consider his realtor's Sequim real estate market analysis a great contribution to our Sequim town blog. Thanks, Jason, for taking the time to give us an insight into Sequim homes for sale of the present real estate market.

Hello to the all the folks who love Sequim whether they be residents or just wish they were. Spring has definitely arrived in full force this first week of April with temps hitting 65 degrees and my neighbors rhododendrons threatening to collapse under the weight of their own blossoms. The sun's out, lawn mowers are firing up and we come to that time of year when many people's thoughts are turned to love. Well. okay I'm probably not the person that should be writing about love, but I can write about next the most popular item of interest and frequently asked question in the spring, namely "what is the world is the current condition of our real estate market in Sequim?"

There is a lot of doom and gloom out there that just isn't justified. Sequim's real estate market is strong and if we are to believe the corporate folks who keep trying to plug the town with big box stores then there is no predicted end in sight to the area's growth. There is a misconception
because of all the homes on the market that nothing is selling which just isn't true. There is definitely a phenomenon of an abnormal amount of people trying sell their home right now brought about by a cooling of the economy, fear that home prices will continue to fall, rising interest rates and various other reasons. Home prices in Sequim did cool in the second half of 2006 and since early 2007 have started to level off. Many people will disagree, but the appreciation did need to stop for the time being and it's certainly in the communities interest as a whole to have some homes that people can afford.

That being said homes continue to sell at a brisk rate and all signs point to a busy summer in the real estate market. The amount of homes sold last year in the general Sequim area was a virtual tie for the 4th best year ever, which isn't too shabby considering if you believed the media it sounded like it was the 4th worst year ever. Year to date sales in 2007 are strong and only 3 homes behind 2006 at 109 and 112 respectively.

There is a general feeling of concern in Sequim that there are too many lots on the market. Whether there is or not does not seem to be affecting real estate prices in general. Lot prices have continued to remain high with more price increases over the last 6 months than reductions. As long as land prices stay high and affect the cost of having a house built homes will continue to hold their value regardless of how many lots are available. Another important variable is that as long as gas and material prices go up and make it more difficult to have a house built economically existing homes will be an attractive option.

As far as what is in the works for this summer in Sequim, well let's just say it's going to be busy. There are several new developments that have come on line with a mix of lots and homes for sale Several builders are trying to keep their prices in the mid 200's which is a little less that you could find a new home for last year. For the first time in a while there should be some smaller saltwater view lots coming on the market this summer on Bell Hill that will be priced significantly less than what we have now.

Enjoy the Weather, Jason Lee real estate agent at Welcome Home Realty
For your Sequim Real Estate needs, you may contact Jason at 360-460-8161 or email.

If you or your friends are interested in moving to Sequim and buying a Sequim home with mountain views in peaceful neighborhood, meet Jason for his Sequim open house April 7, 11am - 2pm.

Expansive views from this new home in The Estates neighborhood. Well-laid-out 3 bedroom home with a den and formal dining room. Hardwood floors, Corian counters, and vaulted ceilings make this the home you don't want to miss. Just minutes from shopping, with a neighborhood park and tennis court this is the best new neighborhood in Sequim. $359,950 ML# 224056 Directions: East on Washington to East on West Sequim Bay Road. Right on Morgison Loop into The Estates.

Tags: best town to retire, sequim real estate, sequim home for sale

Sequim Home with a View

Hi again from the Olympic Peninsula,

We are quite sure our most recent post about our friends' Sequim Home for Sale got your interest, provided you are discussing to move to sunny Sequim, just like we did.

Got to tell you this. Before we went house hunting in Sequim during our fall vacation in 2005, we had done our homework online. We showed up in Sequim with a long list of houses and addresses, which we thought were worthwhile looking at, as they met our price range and location expectations. No realtor involved! We wanted to get a first impression of the house, property and surrounding and not being talked into things.

This approach of Sequim house hunting worked well. The online listings don't always show you the whole picture...how close is the next door neighbor or the highway or a new subdivision under construction. After two days, our list of about 12 Sequim houses was down to maybe two or three houses for sale. Now, it was time to get a realtor involved and things got interesting.

We noticed pretty soon that with buying a house in Sequim, the question is: Do you want Mountain View (Olympic Mountains ) or Ocean View (all the way to Victoria, Vancouver Island) or even both? We furthermore noticed that Ocean Views, like from Bell Hill were rated higher than the Mountain Views. Much over our budget, what we wanted to spend on a house in Sequim. For houses with ocean views from upscale Bell Hill neighborhood, you have to dig deep into your pocket.

Bottomline of today's post, if you want to have a house with a view in Sequim, you have to pay for it, just like everywhere else. We had found a nice house in Sun Meadows with a glimpse of the Olympic Mountains but nice sunny exposure and both fell in love with it at first sight plus the price was right. Well, our new Sequim house will have nice mountain views. We won't complain! Love from the Sequimers. Stay tuned on our Sequim Life.

Tags: Sequim Home for Sale, Sequim, vacation

Sequim Home for Sale

More on our Sequim life...

We mentioned in an earlier post that we'd like to help friends to sell their Sequim house FSBO. Today we want to take the chance and promote their home for sale in Sun Meadows, just a short 1 mile drive to Sequim town and to John Wayne Marina. So, we would like to tell you a little bit more about their house in Sun Meadows and show you a few photos.

Why should somebody move to Sequim? Sequim enjoys mild weather, truly spectacular scenery, and the bounty of land and sea. Read more about this special place called Sequim. Best of all, homes and real estate can still be acquired at an affordable price, even though Sequim has seen a steady, strong growth in real estate market value over the last few years. If you liked what you read about Sequim and the Olympic Peninsula, this might be the perfect home for your retirement in Sequim.

Beautiful Sequim 1786sq.ft 2 Bd/2Ba home + den (office) and attached finished 528sq.ft double garage for sale by owner in peaceful neighborhood of Sun Meadows, with a short 1-mile drive to John Wayne Marina in Sequim Bay (perfect for boat lovers) or to Sequim town for shopping and other activities. House enjoys the advantage of great Southern exposure and beautiful mountain views. House is built with high quality Hardi Board siding (no rotting, no termites!) and 20-year composition roof.

This one level 2004 built Sequim home features an open floor plan with beautiful vaulted ceiling and oversized south-facing windows in spacious great room providing dramatic views of Olympic Mountains & sunsets with seasonal sightings of eagles, Canadian geese, ducks, birds and frogs. Laminate hardwood floors, custom window treatments, lots of closets and cupboards make this house your new perfect home in sunny Sequim. Spacious kitchen features plenty of maple cabinets & Island with slide out drawers for additional comfort and convenience provides additional storage space plus nice preparation area or extra seating for bar stools.

This Sequim House is SOLD.

Good luck with your Sequim house hunting project. Your comments are welcome.

The Sequimmers

Tags: Moving to Sequim, Retire in Sequim, Sequim home for sale