Silver Beach home sale prices drop within a short period

Home sales in the Silver Beach neighborhood during 2010 have slid lower than the average price of a home for sale in 2009, according to Johnson Team Real Estate.

Whether it’s the end of federal tax credit programs or general worsening of the market, in a report from Lylene Johnson of Johnson Team Real Estate, a noticeable decline in the local market can be seen.

Photo courtesy of The Muljat Group.

The number of sales over $500,000 in Silver Beach is down to zero compared to nine in 2009, this has had a substantial impact on the average prices over the last two years.

Silver Beach is the only neighborhood in Bellingham that surrounds Lake Whatcom and is known for having lavish, high-end properties along N. Shore Drive.

Johnson points out that what has happened with real estate in this neighborhood is what has happened throughout the country.

“Most people thought real estate values could never go down,” Johnson said in an e-mail. “Limits on development probably saved us from it being worse.”

High-end home sellers have to lower their sights because of the slump in the high-end housing market.

The number of sales under $300,000 in the neighborhood increased in 2010, which pulled down the average and median sale prices, said Johnson.

Johnson’s report on the Silver Beach neighborhood showed the average price for a home down to $319,079, a 3 percent decrease from 2009.

Although there was a change in prices from 2009 to 2010, Johnson says it was less dramatic than the average and median price changes would indicate.

Statewide home sales have declined 26.5 percent from the second to third quarter of 2010, according to the Washington Center for Real Estate Research at Washington State University.

David Jefferson, the Silver Beach Neighborhood Association Chair, said he has seen homeowners possibly having more difficulties selling their homes.

The declining market and tighter regulations put on homeowners by the new ordinance governing the neighborhood make selling and buying a home less approachable.

People may be more reluctant to buy a house [in Silver Beach] because of the restrictions that limit more development from being done, Jefferson said.

According to the City of Bellingham, increased development in the Lake Whatcom watershed has contributed to its deterioration.

The restrictions he is referring to are laid out in the Silver Beach Ordinance, most recently updated in 2009.

The types of things hindering homeowners include residential development not following stormwater treatment regulations, limitations of square footage built on impervious or partially pervious surfaces and land disturbing activities greater than 500 square feet require a permit.

These types of restrictions restrain a potential homeowner from wanting to add on a garage to an existing home or extra square footage.

Tighter regulations in the neighborhood could potentially be restrictive in the eyes of a buyer who is looking for a home in Silver Beach, but the economy doesn’t help either.

Since the real estate bubble popped a couple years ago throughout the United States, Whatcom County was hit quite hard, according to local real estate agents.

High-end home sellers have to lower their sights because of the slump in the high-end housing market.

The burst of the housing bubble hit the mid-priced and low-end housing markets first, now luxury home prices are dropping and agents have to advise sellers to set their homes at realistic prices.

A four bedroom, three bathroom, 2,500 square foot home on the waterfront of Lake Whatcom is priced at $1.4 million, whereas a recently sold four bedroom, three bathroom, 2,000 square foot home with lake access, recently sold at $359,500.

The numbers for the Silver Beach neighborhood may be less startling as a whole but reflect how tough it can be to sell a luxury home above $500,000 in the local housing market.

 

City planning extended Bloedel off-leash dog hours, if conditions allow

The city is working towards increasing the hours of the off-leash dog area at Bloedel Donovan Park according to the Bellingham Parks and Recreation Department.

Dogs need to work off all their wound-up energy and stimulate their minds and they may be getting the chance to run free longer with a shift to extended hours at Bloedel’s off-leash area as early as Dec. 1, 2010 said Marvin Harris, Parks Operation Manager.

Harris wasn’t able to disclose any more information about the proposed new hours because they are still in the planning process.

This is good news to pet owners only if the city can find a solution to the grass destruction around Bloedel, residents may see the off-leash area getting closed off, similar to what happened earlier this year.

The off-leash area was temporarily closed from March to June to try and repair the worn down grass areas in preparation for summer.

Examples of the grass destruction 

happening at Bloedel Donovan Park.

Photo courtesy of gratefuldogs.org

Grass destruction is due to the wet winter weather and more human and animal traffic.

The city is looking into better ways to manage the destruction of the grass for the upcoming winter season with the help of the Grateful Dogs Off-Leash Association for tips to minimize the grass damage.

Grateful Dogs is a non-profit organization promoting responsible dog ownership and acts to protect off-leash dog areas in and around Bellingham.

In a letter to the Grateful Dogs Off-Leash Association from Paul Leuthold, director of Parks and Recreation, he mentioned that the Parks and Recreation Department was warned by the City and the Department of Ecology, that the “bare soil” from the turf destruction was running off into the lake.

“We were cautioned that this condition [grass destruction] cannot persist,” said Leuthold in the letter. “If it does, the Parks and Recreation Department will issue a citation and subsequent fine for this violation.”

Keeping up the grounds at the off-leash area also means that Lake Whatcom dog owners need to remember to scoop the poop.

 Harris said that frequent users of the park do a good job of picking up after their pets, but even with free biodegradable bags in place for pet owners some may not be taking responsibility for their dog’s waste.

Although the city hasn’t done any scientific surveys in the Bloedel area on pet waste Harris said, waste can still get carried into storm drains and the lake.

Dennis Pate, owner of Doo Bandits [a local pet waste removal company], said in a press release that the nutrients from dog waste can feed the growth of algae leaving the water uninhabitable for fish, a problem Lake Whatcom already suffers from.

“During rain, dog poop melts away and runoff carries it to storm drains, ditches and streams that feed our rivers, lakes and marine waters,” Pate said. “The bacteria can also make water unsafe to drink or to swim in.”

According to the City of Bellingham, 11,000 pounds of waste is produced by all the dogs in Whatcom County in one day.

The disease-causing pathogen found in animal waste presents a health risk if it does end up in the city’s lakes and streams.

The off-leash area at Bloedel has been around for almost six years.
During the winter months the off-leash area at the park is open from Oct. 1 to April 30 during daylight hours and May 1 to Sept. 30 from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.

To find out more about the efforts being made by the Grateful Dogs Off-Leash Association visit their website, www.gratefuldogs.org. 

And to follow up on the animal related regulations according to the Bellingham Municipal Code, visit www.cob.org. 

Homeowner incentive program gaining momentum around the watershed

The recently introduced Lake Whatcom Homeowner Incentive Program is giving Silver Beach residents the chance to be part of the solution in turning around the water quality in the watershed, while empowering neighbors to work together to successfully make their homes "lake-friendly".

The incentive program, which isn’t slated to begin until 2011, has gained enough interest this year that the city decided to do as much as they could with their existing resources to get it started, according to Eli Mackiewicz, a field technician for the Lake Whatcom incentive program.  

Today, 35 homes are participating in the program with 14 homes already through the design and permitting process and one complete.

 The other 20 homes are still in the various stages of being assessed for planning and design options.

Residents of Silver Beach are invited to participate in this collaborative program sponsored by the City of Bellingham and Whatcom County.
 Residents will be reimbursed for reducing runoff on their property to help improve Lake Whatcom’s water quality.

            As the rainy season approaches, Silver Beach residents start entering that time of year when the annual land clearing regulations around the watershed start taking effect, October 1^st to May 31^st. This time of year is when the lake experiences the most stormwater runoff, the most common cause of water pollution.

            Through the efforts of this program water quality of the lake could start to rise back up without dumping more chemicals into it, according to Kurt Nabbefeld, Senior Planner for the City of Bellingham.

            After enrolling in the program, the homeowner can schedule an on-site visit with a city representative to evaluate which stormwater project will be most effective on their property.

            Homeowners are provided with up to a $1,000 to $1,500 reimbursement for completion of their selected project and compensation for materials. 

            Homeowners who participate in the program want to be able to stay within their budget, and since these projects can often require high cost private engineers to obtain permits for building, it would put the homeowner over budget.

            Since the City wants these projects to succeed and have homeowners come in under budget, said Mackiewicz, they are completed by city staff instead but still produce engineered stormwater plans.

            “Our designs are very comparable to private designs, and we face the exact same rigorous review process as any private project,” Mackiewicz said.

Rainwater collection systems, rain gardens and infiltration trenches are a few examples of the projects specific to residential homes.

            Many residents of the neighborhood are willing to take part in this program to protect their drinking water source, yet some are still reluctant.

            “Silver Beach is a very affluent neighborhood,” said David Jefferson, the Silver Beach Neighborhood Association Director. “There are plenty who don’t think they need to change what they already have in place.”

            Lake Whatcom is not only an important recreational area but the water source for more than 80,000 residents of Bellingham and its surrounding areas. According to the City of Bellingham’s Lake Whatcom Stormwater Plan, the lake is experiencing a decrease in water quality, degraded fish habitat and elevated phosphorus levels.

The Silver Beach Neighborhood Association hopes that the program will be successful, seeing it as positive way to reinforce good stewardship practices in the watershed, said Kate Grinde, the Mayor’s Neighborhood Advisory Commission representative.

Residents living around Basin One in the City’s portion of the Lake Whatcom Watershed are eligible for the program. Basin One has been identified, by the Washington State Department of Ecology, as having the lowest dissolved oxygen levels, making it the area where the most harm has been done.

Homeowners are finding that most of the projects they already planned on doing in the first place work into the program, according to Mackiewicz, making it hard to turn down this opportunity since there is a financial reimbursement.

Examples of projects homeowners are encouraged to build.
Infiltration trenches, rainwater collection systems and rain gardens.
Photos courtesy of the City of Bellingham.

If you’re interested in getting involved with the incentive program, visit www.cob.org and search for the Homeowner Incentive Program.

Welcome to the Silver Beach Spotlight

This is a news blog dedicated to the Silver Beach Neighborhood in Bellingham, WA. This blog is a project for a journalism class I am taking at Western Washington University. This project will be giving me the opportunity to develop my reporting skills as a journalist, so along the way there will be news articles and blog updates about current happenings in the Silver Beach area.

View of Lake Whatcom from Bloedel Donovan Park