Sudden Valley (Bellingham) (Spokane: rent, condo, house)

[sberdrow]

I thought home prices in Sudden valley were dropping. Was I mistaken? I would love to come back to the Bellingham area, and sudden valley is SOOOOO beautiful. I can see myself with my BBQ one of those fantastic deck overlooking the woods.

[nullgeo]

Originally Posted by sabrinalee

... the climate is definitely better than the Seattle area--Bellingham gets a lot more sunny days. ...

*sigh* Seems to be a real, never-ending enigma: people claiming that one place in western Washington has more sun than another ... this entire area is simply NOT sunny — except for smack-dab mid-summer. Period. Before anyone from away makes a decision to move to the NW, they really owe it to themselves to research the stats and charts Carefully.

Bellingham:




Seattle:
If I can save one person from away from leaping off Seattle's Aurora Bridge, all this cutting and pasting will be worthwhile.

If weather is a concern, you should consider staying in California.

[sberdrow]

bummer, no one wants to answer my question on pirces in Sudden valley.

[poogie777]

Originally Posted by sberdrow

bummer, no one wants to answer my question on pirces in Sudden valley.

Hi sberdrow! I live in Sudden Valley. To answer your question about prices here, yes, they have been dropping. And there are quite a few homes out here for sale. Proble competition for sellers. It's definitley a buyers market. (NO, Im not a realtor.)
The amenities are really nice out here. They have a new gym and coffee shop that have gone over quite well out here, too.
We bbq all year around out here on our wrap around deck in the woods! Sunny or not, we absolutely love it out here!

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by poogie777

Hi sberdrow! I live in Sudden Valley. To answer your question about prices here, yes, they have been dropping. And there are quite a few homes out here for sale. Proble competition for sellers. It's definitley a buyers market. (NO, Im not a realtor.)
The amenities are really nice out here. They have a new gym and coffee shop that have gone over quite well out here, too.
We bbq all year around out here on our wrap around deck in the woods! Sunny or not, we absolutely love it out here!

Sounds dreamy. I have been looking at Bellingham since 1987 to live...I know its a long time. I used to live in Oak Harbor WA while in the Navy. I swore that I would live in BH some day. So far I have no luck. The homes are getting quite tempting. I absolutely love those wrap around decks. All those fern plants....it looks like paradise.

THanks for answering my questions.

[poogie777]

Oh it really is...I came up from the mid-west and found my little paradise on earth here! My husband and I drive through the neighborhood now and then around Sudden Valley Drive and take some of the off roads...the whole neighborhood "is" dreamy! It really is something.
You know what's really funnny...the other day we were watching HGTV and they were "buying ferns" for ppl's homes. My yard is full of them! No need to mow around here! We love that part, too!
When we decided to make this big move it was because we found where we wanted to spend the rest of our lives. I hope you find your place as well! Keep looking, keep dreaming, and perhaps your dream will come true, too!
Best wishes...

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by poogie777

Oh it really is...I came up from the mid-west and found my little paradise on earth here! My husband and I drive through the neighborhood now and then around Sudden Valley Drive and take some of the off roads...the whole neighborhood "is" dreamy! It really is something.
You know what's really funnny...the other day we were watching HGTV and they were "buying ferns" for ppl's homes. My yard is full of them! No need to mow around here! We love that part, too!
When we decided to make this big move it was because we found where we wanted to spend the rest of our lives. I hope you find your place as well! Keep looking, keep dreaming, and perhaps your dream will come true, too!
Best wishes...

I miss the fern plants, you can find pine forest almost everywhere if you want to drive, but none of them seem to have that pacific NW lush green ground cover.

[poogie777]

No, they don't don't have the lush of the firs and the cedars. And pine needles are really hard on the bare feet, too! lol

[inuitboater]

I've spent the past week looking at properties all over the Bellingham area, including Sudden Val.ley, and am hoping that I've found the "right" property. And, yes, it appears that it'll be in Sudden Valley. As others have mentioned, it appears that home prices are a bit easier to take in SV, and I've certainly found a wide range of homes available in a wide range of prices. I've got a very modest budget, and there have been quite a number of places to view within that budget. Some have been abused and are, frankly, dumps; but most have been reasonably well taken care of with several that I inspected inside and out in wonderful shape. My assessment is that the majority will need at least a fresh coat of interior paint and a thorough carpet cleaning.

When I compare prices/conditions/availability to Bellingham proper, SV has a lot of advantages. I couldn't find anything in Bellingham in the low $200s that wouldn't immediately require an infusion of another $10-20K in repairs, refurbishing, and cleaning, which I found sad and a bit discouraging. If someone has the ability to finance a $350-400K home, there are enough choices in Bellingham and SV to keep you busy for weeks looking at properties. For a retired person with a lower income, or a young family, it could be tough job to find a lower price home unless sweat equity is no obstacle. It does appear that there are plenty of sources for building materials and supplies in the area, so that shouldn't be an issue.

I can't recall a city I've visited with so many beautiful early 1900s homes, and the evidence of the dedication and pride of the owners in rennovations is extensive and great to see. Bellingham is a beautiful city, and I'm looking forward to living here (if my deal works out). But, back to Sudden Valley.

Small lot sizes, lots of natural environment beauty combined with many homeowners' efforts with plantings. Many houses are practically built on top of each other, which won't be to everyone's taste. I reviewed the "Rules & Regulations," Decs and Bylaws (aka CC&Rs) and found them to be sensible and reasonable as compared to others I've read from Colorado. Be aware that the HOA dues just went up to $60/month for improved lots and to roughly $50/month for unimproved lots.

There are many steep and narrow roads out there. If you can't drive in those conditions, SV may not be the place for you. They do help keep the speeds down, which is a positive in my book. I did learn one thing that bothered me, and that was that some very large and beautiful trees are being planned for cutting because they "might fall over the roads." While I understand risk management, I think this might be overdoing it more than just a bit.

If someone is interested in SV, they should come here and do some serious driving around to look at what's available. Consult the MLS listings and find a good realtor to take you around. I think I found one and have been very happy with the information flow I've been receiving. On prices, what I've heard is that SV prices got somewhat inflated a few years back, were used as comps for Bellingham properties, and that they've been settling back somewhat recently. This might be of concern to some, in terms of potential for some negative equity, but I think there's an opportunity to find some truly beautiful properties at "better" prices. Oh, and I clocked the time from I-5 to the first entrance gate off of the Lake Louise Rd. while driving the speed limit and came up with 12 minutes. I don't think that's too bad (although $4.50/gal. gas does make one pause...).

[poogie777]

Great post! With loads of info, however,

Be aware that the HOA dues just went up to $60/month for improved lots and to roughly $50/month for unimproved lots.

is not true. That would be per quarter, not per month.

Yes, some of the homes do seem to be close to one another. My husband and I were fortunate to find one with a lot of privacy! You can see us in the winter, not in the summer because of the maple trees! We're kind of in a "tree house" out here! Love it!

I noticed in the Bellingham Heralds business mag. they said the median prices "have" gone down..from $280,450 last May to $255,000 this year. So to answer the original post question and that's all of Whatcom County, which I would gather would affect Sudden Valley as well. Their posting for our economic indicators are quite interesting. Doesn't seem like our area is affected as bad as other areas! That's good news!