One of the most delightful things about Seattle is the abundance of nature surrounding us.  Although this is a large metropolitan city, I appreciate the fact that you can escape to nature at any time.  Big or large, we have parks situated in every neighborhood and convenient access to rivers, lakes, and vast ocean.  However, with the rapid development and higher cost of real estate, many Seattleites resorted to condos and townhomes that did not leave much space for those with green thumbs.  So, when I noticed community gardens or patches popping up everywhere, I wasn’t surprised at all.

Community gardens are simply a piece of land gardened by a group of people.  The neat thing about them is that not only it provides a mean for people to garden and produce fresh produce, it also promotes sense of community, healthier urban environment, and pride of ownership.  People can experience both the joy of growing and being in touch with the source of their food.

In Seattle, the city began the non-profit organization P-Patch Trust 35 years ago.  According to the City of Seattle website, the organization acquires, builds and protects community gardens in Seattle.  Most of the supplies are provided at the sites, such as water and tools.  Your responsibility as a community gardener is to care for your plot.

Interesting facts about P-Patch:

- The “P” originally stood for “Picardo”, after the family who owned Picardo Farm, part of which became the original P-Patch.

-The P-Patch program only allows organic farming techniques to be used on these plots.

-The P-Patch community gardeners give back to the city by supplying 7 to 10 tons of produce to Seattle food banks each year.

-You are not allowed to sell what you grow, only share it or donate it.

As the broadening interest in organic food source and gardening increases, you will see the demand for community gardens increase.  The city currently has 55 patches in the city but most of them do have a waiting list.  If you are interested in starting your own Community Patch or for more information, check out City of Seattle website!

Community Patch in Seattle Neighborhoods

If you are the parent of a college kid,  you might want to take a minute to think about real estate investing.  You’re already spending a ton of money sending the kid to school, “investing” in his or her future, so why not hedge your bets on an investment that might actually pay you back someday?  Think about it- you’ve got at least four years of living expenses to pay for on top of the tuition. You can either throw it away paying for a tiny, overpriced dorm or some dumpy, overpriced rental, OR you can take that money and put it toward something that has a future. Like real estate.  Let me explain…

I went to Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA, so I will use that area as an example, though the numbers would likely look quite similar in just about any college town. Rates per person at Western’s dorms run roughly $500 (3 kids in a room) to $800+ (single occupancy) per month, NOT including food expenses.  Rental rates anywhere near campus run about $400-600 a month per room, depending on the number of rooms.  Studios and 1-bedrooms are commonly $700-900/month, whereas you might find a decent  3-bedroom for $1400.   Let’s be conservative and say it’s about $600/month on average, per room. Over 4 years (48 months) that’s almost $30,000(!) that you will NEVER get back.  As Everett Dirksen famously said,“ A billion here, a billion there…pretty soon you’re talking about real money!”

Consider this:  Right now, you can buy a 1-bedroom, 600 square foot condo, built in 2006, less than a half-mile from Western Washington University, for $120k.  With 20% down at 6% interest, the monthly payment, which includes taxes, insurance, and HOA dues (W/S/G) comes to about $825, leaving only electricity and cable for expenses.  Sounds like kind of a lot, doesn’t it? Let’s take a closer look.

• Similar units in this building are currently renting for between $725 and $800.

• You can write off some (maybe  all) of your interest payments , giving you roughly 25% back at tax time, depending on your bracket, making the effective monthly expense closer to $600. Make sure to talk to your accountant about this and other creative write-offs you might find…

• As an owner, your monthly expenses remain fixed over time.  According to a colleague who studies rent growth in the area, rents near Western have increased at an average of about 6% per year, over the past 5 years.  Assuming that trend were to continue, the monthly rent on that same unit would go up  to almost $900-$1000 by the 4th year of your student’s education. Over 4 years, that would cost you between $38000-$42000 in rent! Gone, flushed….never to be seen again…

• Don’t forget about appreciation! Even in these tough times, most analysts are expecting the market to have corrected itself in the next couple of years, meaning there is a good chance the value of your investment will begin to increase during the 4-5 years that your student will live there. That’s right, you might even MAKE money on this thing! Worst case, you can always hang onto it to make sure the kid doesn’t try to move back in with you after college…

This is just one example, of course.  There  are several other condo opportunities I can point you toward.  There are also houses and duplexes, etc… The numbers can look even better if you buy something with more rooms. Then, you can collect $500-$700/month of OTHER PEOPLE’S money! That ‘s the best kind of money, after all…

If you’d like to look more seriously at this type of investment, keep in mind that there are all kinds of different programs available, requiring anywhere from 3.5% to 20% down.  You can buy as an investment property, as a second home for yourself, or possibly as a first home for the kid. Each of these options has it’s own credit and income requirements, as well as unique tax implications.  Again, I would suggest consulting your accountant, as well as a mortgage professional, to make sure you understand clearly these particular details. You can talk to me if you want to know where to find these properties.

Thanks for reading! Please leave comments or suggestions below, e-mail me at rob.leroy@exprealty.com, or call me at 206.883.6668 …and yes, you CAN hire me as your real estate agent!

Rob LeRoy is a Seattle real estate agent and social media marketing coach with eXp Realty.

Hawthorne Hills, the triangle shaped neighborhood just bordering the famed biking and walking trail on the south and Sandpoint Way NE on the east, is the lovely community known for it’s Cape Cod style and brick Tudor style homes. Developed from the 1920′s to the 1940′s, one of the original seven homes that make up the neighborhood still stands on the southwest corner or NE 60th Street and Princeton Way. The Metropolitan Market, a fresh and slightly upscale corner market, is a busy grocery spot, once the site of Albertson’s for many years, and before that, a large dairy farm where cattle grazed in the 1940′s. How things have changed.

Many of the streets are named after college towns such as Stanford, Ann Arbor, Pullman, and Princeton. The area also boasts the Hawthorne Hills Veterinary Clinic and Professional Center side by side, and a great little Chinese Yummy Cafe Restaurant as well. Don’t miss the wonderful old fashioned general store City People’s. They sell everything from hardware, to boots, to stationary to clothing. And next door, you will
find a wonderful moderately wine selection at La Cantina Take a break from shopping and step into the aromatic coffee roaster next door at Gretchen’s Place. They offer an array of baked goods and homemade salads and goodies, too.

The most attractive feature of this vibrant neighborhood is being just a hop, skip, and jump away from a whole slew of restaurants, shops, the University Village, and the University of Washington. The best part of it is, you can access all of these local hot spots by way of the Burke Gilman Trail. Stretching all the way from Woodinville on the north to Ballard on the south, this is a perfect way to travel that is healthy, earth friendly, and avoids all car traffic. What could be more fun?
All the more reason to live in the earth friendly and conveniently located community of Hawthorne Hills.

Realtor
Helen@SeattlePowerSearch.com

There is an expansive open section for big dogs and one for little dogs.  It is like the neighborhood social for animals, where they meet and greet one another.  Quite the experience and the dogs are absolutlely gorgeous to look at.  Good exercise for the human companions, as well.  The views of Lake Washington are also stunning, and the breeze that hits you is refreshing and cool, even on a hot summer day.  You will also see on any given day a bunch of kite flying enthusiasts just next to the dog run.  Vibrant colors and some really great designs of kites to watch.  Plenty of parking and oh, what a day for doggie and you!