Parkview Unit Offers Value and Views!

I have written about the Parkview Condominium tower on this blog before, but it has been awhile. I recently listed a park facing unit in the building and thought I would revisit the development. One of the nice things about condos is that there are smaller units in buildings like Parkview that are much more affordable than a single family home and often have nice views. 

Parkview is an urban condominium project in Downtown Vancouver. It is located on the east flank of Esther Short Park in Downtown Vancouver. Despite the rise of Vancouver's spectacular Waterfront district a few blocks away, Esther Short Park remains the beating heart of Downtown. 

Established in 1853, it is the oldest public park in the Pacific Northwest and one of the oldest in the entire Western USA. It covers four city blocks in a nice square shape with some "old growth" Fir and Cedar trees that rise more than 100 feet above the streets. The rest of the park is filled with lovely Maple trees that provide gorgeous fall color in the autumn. The park is host to festivals, concerts, and events throughout the year. There is a fantastic Farmer's Market on Esther Street along the west flank of the park and a full block of 8th Street that now runs year round.

The unit I listed is on the 4th floor and offers lovely views of the park. The balcony patio is 90% covered and large enough to host a small patio set to enjoy the views outside. It is a one bedroom unit with about 550 square feet of living space that truly feels bigger than it is. Parkview is a type one concrete building which makes it very quiet inside compared to a wood frame building. It is truly one of the absolute best locations in Downtown Vancouver flanking the heart of the city and walking distance to just about every essential service from the Post Office and local government services to the grocery store, and literally hundreds of restaurants, pubs, shops, and entertainment. You live car free in this building with ease, but should you desire to own one, parking is available in the secure garage underneath the building.

This unit is currently listed by me, Rod Sager, Weichert Realtors® Equity NW for $280,000. MLS #102456262. There are a few others listed in this building facing the Park as well as facing the east which offers a more quiet experience on the patio.  

Here is a link to the currently listed properties at Parkview and neighboring Viewpoint. 

https://myre.io/0P3TgBIINKGe

Vancouver may finally complete her annexations.

Vancouver is way behind on annexing large swaths of urban density unincorporated neighborhoods. It seems the council is seriously considering a one time "go big or go home" approach that would swallow the entire urban growth boundary. 

I am actually in favor. The State of Washington in 1990 passed legislation aimed at doing just what Vancouver may do now. Many years ago Mayor Pollard attempted to complete the Orchards annexation and ended up in a duel to the death with the County. The whole thing stalled out. Since then Vancouver has been taking little bites out of the large UGB slowly and well behind schedule. 

The council is looking at four options the last of which is aunt just nibbling away like they have for the last 20 years. The other three are big chunk acquisitions, one adding 75,000 residents to the city, another adding 95,000 residents to the city, the third and my personal favorite the full enchilada, the entire UGB adding 171,000 resident to the city.

Keep in ming the City isn't growing new residents, they are in fact already here simply outside the city boundary. It is essentially a jurisdiction change. Cities are much better suited to managing urban areas and counties are really supposed to run the rural areas. The Vancouver UGB is no longer rural, it is mostly suburban housing areas with a few commercial sections.

If they select option three, and they should do just that, the city would officially have 380,000 people placing it ahead of well known "big cities" like, Pittsburgh PA, Cincinnati OH, New Orleans LA, Cleveland OH, and several others. 

This annexation option would put Vancouver on the radar on par with big cities including our neighbor Portland as far as companies looking to expand or relocate. It would be a boon to the local job market.

Vancouver has done an effective job increasing housing density and that will help younger people get into the homeownership market.

Is Daylight Savings Time Real Estate Time?

This article was published yesterday on "Urban Living in the Couv"

We are now more than a week into Daylight Savings time. I held two open houses for a listed condo at Parkview recently. The first was on Saturday March 8th the day before the time switched. It was a beautiful day with the Farmer's Market open and lots of foot traffic through the Vancouvercenter Plaza. I was out there 'barking' like I was in the red light district in the 1970s. "check out my open house...right here. overlooks the park..." I managed to get a few groups of people to look at the unit and handed out a gazillion flyers, but despite my online advertising I didn't get a single person that came specifically to see the unit. You could say the success of the open was 'all me' :) The following week I decided to do Sunday instead of Saturday. In the winter months the Farmer's Market is only open on Saturday so there was less traffic. The weather was also damp and chilly with a temp around 45º. I was thinking this is gonna be a disaster. I loaded the FEMA hotline into speed dial, just in case ;) I did the same advertising as the previous week and I got twice as many people though the open house and all but one group came specifically to see the unit via my ads. No barker required.

OK this is literally the definition of an anecdote and it could have just been a random action of the universe. But I notice every year right after Daylight Savings time arrives, there is an uptick in real estate activity. Even when the weather is more like January than springtime, they come. I think Daylight Savings time is a 'trigger' whether conscious or unconscious, people start engaging the world a little differently. Daylight Savings time is Real Estate time or so it seems to me. 

This morning as I was prepping to write this article and updating the Urban Living website with data from the local MLS, I noticed a significant uptick in new listings and new pending sales. Hmm, my anecdotal experience has legs me thinks. 

Esther Short Park and the Vancouver Waterfront definitely have massive increases in visitors, activities, and a general "buzz" as we move from the dark and dreary winter into the 'funshine' of spring and summer. Now is a great time for people considering a move into the urban core of the metro area's hottest urban living neighborhoods. Yeah that's us right here in America's Vancouver.

Take a look at the active listings in the area click here.

Houseboat in Felida

I have written about houseboats over the years as they are often an affordable way to own a home right on the water, literally ON the water. I had the pleasure of showing a houseboat to a client recently at the Felida Moorage. Most of the houseboats in the Portland - Vancouver metro area are located at North Portland Harbor between Hayden Island and the Portland mainland. But Clark County has three houseboat communities as well. This was a very nice home that is only about 20 years old. Houseboats give a unique water view that some find very soothing. I have written about this concept of water views as well as about houseboats in general check these out: 

Another look at Houseboats

Why are Water Views so Coveted?

This houseboat was modern with roughly 1700 SF on two levels. 3 bedrooms and a nature lover's paradise as it sits along the Lake River and is next to both the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge and the Shillapoo Natural Area. The amount of wildlife particular birds is amazing. There are nesting Bald Eagles in the area, hawks, geese, ducks, cranes, herons and scores of other birds of all sizes. 

The Lake River provides access to both Vancouver Lake just a half mile upstream, and the Columbia River about 9-10 miles downstream. The Lake river is unusual in that it can actually with flow directions depending on inflows from creeks and the flow and height of the Columbia River. 

The Lake River is fairly narrow and is really more like a slough with its calm slow moving water. Tidal influences on the river are minor but noticeable with tides ranging from 1 foot above sea level to a couple of feet above sea level. The river's height is more about inflows from streams than the tides. Unlike houseboats closer to the ocean the tides are not a huge factor. 

This particular houseboat is currently listed at $350,000 with a $500 monthly moorage fee that includes water, garbage, and sewer.

Whatever you do please enjoy the view.  

Lovely View from Columbia Palisades

Boulder Ridge is a development of townhomes atop the bluff at the Columbia Palisades master planned community in East Vancouver immediately adjacent to the City of Camas. Some of these luxury townhomes offer spectacular views of the Columbia River and Mount Hood or Portland City Lights depending on the unit. The view is protected by virtue of the sheer cliff they are perched on, some 100 feet above Brady Road. 

Not all the units in this development feature views but the eight or so that are right on the cliff definitely do. These clifftop units are priced in the $1.3 million range, but offer an attached two car garage and more than 2500 SF of living space. These are true townhomes as you own the dirt underneath. They are brand new construction that offers a luxury alternative to local premium condo living.

Contact your preferred real estate professional for a private showing of these amazing townhomes. Some additional pics are below.