Best Beach town in Washington? (Seattle, Bellevue: sale, rental, mortgage)

[fnh]

David, I suspect what you are seeking is Cannon Beach in Oregon, or even Seaside. It is further away (~200 miles vs. 135 to Ocean Shores) but it is much more developed as a tourist area with all the amenities - great restaurants, beautiful scenery, nearby wineries, easy access from Portland (with airport). As BellevueNative points out, many Washington families head to the Oregon coast for that experience. My husband's family from WA was no different, Cannon Beach being their annual coastal destination.

[CrazyDonkey]

A good place to check is the Gray's Harbor Daily World's real estate listings:

http://realestate.thedailyworld.com/

[seattlefun]

All great info.... Maybes I should rethink my WA beach idea and go for one of the islands. Ahhh. I want a cute getaway home!

[Ira500]

Originally Posted by seattlefun

All great info.... Maybes I should rethink my WA beach idea and go for one of the islands. Ahhh. I want a cute getaway home!

It doesn't get much nicer than Orcas or Lopez islands in the San Juans. Langley, on Whidbey island, has magic to me. Tourists do make it to all those places. Long Beach is pretty nice, around Ocean Park and Nahcotta. I've always thought it was kind of weird that you can drive your car on the ocean beaches in this state.

[CrazyDonkey]

Originally Posted by Ira500

I've always thought it was kind of weird that you can drive your car on the ocean beaches in this state.

That's because they originally were the roads. There are good stretches where cars aren't allowed, however. The beach access points are fairly spread out, so if beach driving was banned, beach goers would be much more concentrated at those points.

When I was a kid, we'd just drive on the beach to where there were no more cars - and then get stuck.

How many other places can you fly a kite out your car window?

[CrazyDonkey]

Here's a beach front 2bd/2ba condo at Westport listed at $209,500 (Zestimate $178,163):

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/16...05569813_zpid/

Other units in the same complex ($93,000 - $274,000):

1600 Ocean Ave - Westport - WA 98595 - Zillow

[CrazyDonkey]

And here's an updated 3bd house "on 60 ft ocean front w/nature trail to beach" at Grayland listed at $194,000 (Zestimate $185.607):

2041 State Route 105, Grayland, WA 98547 is For Sale - Zillow

Yeah, the San Juans or Cannon Beach would be nice, but how much for a beach-front condo or house? How often would you be using it?

[seattlefun]

I saw those crazydonkey... They are great! It concerns me the majority of coastal properties stay on the market for a lengthy time. I'm gonna start touring the coast as well as the islands before I start jumping into purchasing.

Love the insight tho.

[CrazyDonkey]

Definitely take your time, do your research, run numbers. One factor is that the Seattle real estate market is hot, but not that of the rest of the state, much of which is still in the economic doldrums (particularly SW Washington). Plus it is the off-season on the coast. On the other hand, where else are you going to find beach-front houses within 130-40 miles (2 1/2 to 3 hour drive) of Seattle for less than $200,000. I'm not sure you can find that anywhere else on the West Coast.

One source could be VRBO and other vacation rental sites, for what kind of rates are being charged and how quick (or not) their dates start filling up next spring.

One factor is that the Quinault Resort/Casino at Ocean Shores is advertising rooms at two nights for $149, although winter season. Shows, however, that they can undercut local vacation rentals, since their rooms are basically loss leaders. That's another reason I'd steer clear of Ocean Shores, looking north (Copalis to Moclips) or south (Westport to Grayland), which I think are much more authentic (rustic and beachy) NW coast communities.

When people say they don't like the Washington coast, they're likely talking about Ocean Shores (a.k.a., "Open Sores"), without venturing any further. I grew up in Aberdeen (age 5 to 13) and am old enough to remember before Ocean Shores existed, digging clams (big fat ones) at Oyhut and going on a 4WD camping trip to the end of the spit (which was state land, until it was sold off to real estate developers in a shady backroom deal by the Land Commissioner. Needless to say, we didn't spend a lot of time at Ocean Shores. What could have been...

The question is whether you can get enough from vacation rentals during a three- to four-month season, with some clamming and whale-watching (at Westport) dates thrown in, minus the value of your family's enjoyment, to make it pencil out. You also have to figure in necessary improvements, maintenance, and operating costs.

Note: You're not going to find many houses right on the beach - Moclips would be your best chance for a decent price - you might find one across the street from the beach at Ocean Shores for similar money. Elsewhere, houses are more likely to be on bluffs overlooking the ocean or within or behind sand dunes. Condos can be had, but you'll pay for facing the beach (not sure you'd even be allowed to use them as vacation rentals).

[Prple]

San Juan Islands, for sure!
Friday Harbor or Roche Harbor if cost is a non issue.