Seattle Archives - Page 4 of 6

Washington housing market improves in 2nd quarter of 2014

Washington State’s housing market showed improvement over its first quarter performance, according to a new report from the Washington Center for Real Estate Research here at the Runstad Center. However, year-over-year sales activity is still down across the state.

Runstad Center director Stephen O’Connor explains that while most economic statistics are reported at seasonally adjusted annual rates, these are not forecasts of future activity. He further discussed the Center’s findings with UW Today.

Here’s a preview of the data, in our Q2 2014 Snapshot. The full report, now available to subscribers, will be posted online when the third quarter report snapshot is released. If you’d like to become a subscriber, please contact wcrer@uw.edu.

Runstad real estate research roundup

The Runstad Center has been in the news lately, having released new statistics about record-setting median home prices in Seattle, as well as increased housing vacancy rates in the Tri-Cities. Glenn Crellin talked with KOMO News and the Tri-City Herald about the Center’s findings.

Additionally, Runstad Center Affiliate Fellow and faculty member AP Hurd has an article in CityLab about how outdated parking laws price families out of the city.

On a smaller community scale, M.Arch/MSRE ’13 alum Michael Kaiser is leading an effort to bring a “parklet” to life in the Uptown neighborhood of Seattle. A parklet transforms a small portion of the right of way into a pocket of public park space. They’re almost halfway to their fundraising goal… contributions large or small can be made by following the link here.

Touchstone preparing to start NorthEdge complex in Fremont

Touchstone Corp. is getting ready to start construction on a four-story, 210,000-square-foot office project across the street from Gas Works Park. This is just steps away from the site that our victorious 2014 NAIOP studio team explored in this year’s challenge, solidly in the middle of the “intellectual triangle” formed by the technology/corporate/scholarly hubs of Fremont, South Lake Union, and the University of Washington. Compare the two visions and hear what Runstad affiliate faculty member AP Hurd has to say about Touchstone’s plans for the site in this article from the DJC.

Congratulations, MSRE Class of 2014!

Our 2014 graduating class of Master of Science in Real Estate students celebrated in grand style last week, prior to receiving their diplomas from the University of Washington.

MSRE '14 graduates Eric Hadden, Craig Ratchford, Stephanie Anderson, Nowelle Knutson, Jon Beem, Louisa Galassini, B Peng, Yifan Cui, Jin Seok Park. (Missing: Jay Kipp) — MSRE ’14 graduates Eric Hadden, Craig Ratchford, Stephanie Anderson, Nowelle Knutson, Jon Beem, Louisa Galassini, Bo Peng, Yifan Cui, Jin Seok Park. (Missing: Jay Kipp)

More photos from our festive graduation reception are posted below. Thank you to all the many board members, faculty, staff, family members, and friends who came out to celebrate our students! All of us at the Runstad Center offer them our heartiest congratulations. We know you are destined for stellar careers of leadership and service… stay in touch!

Executive Q&A with Greg Johnson

Runstad Center advisory board member (and former chair) Greg Johnson was profiled in Seattle Business magazine this week. In the article, Greg shares his vision for the Spring District as one more place where Seattle’s Eastside can bloom. He also shares a bit about his history prior to becoming President of Wright Runstad & Co., offers his thoughts about new development, and explains a few of the things Seattle that must do to build a solid foundation for the future.

Wright Runstad awarded contract for Rainier Square redevelopment

Last week, the University of Washington Board of Regents approved the selection of Wright Runstad & Company to redevelop Rainier Square, a 140,000 square foot retail property that is part of the University’s Metropolitan Tract in downtown Seattle. Wright Runstad & Company was selected through a competitive process managed by the University of Washington.

The project will total 1.15 million square feet in the taller tower and a separate, connected 15-story hotel. The taller building will include approximately 750,000 square feet of office, 240 apartments and 30,000 square feet of retail. The luxury hotel will have 198 rooms, and the project would have a 1,200-stall parking garage. The project schedule calls for design and entitlement to occur in 2015-16, with early construction targeted for 2017 and completion three years later. A detailed development portfolio is available at the Wright Runstad website.

The new skyscraper will be the second-tallest building on the Seattle skyline. We at the Runstad Center extend a hearty congratulations to our friends at Wright Runstad, especially Jon Runstad and Greg Johnson!

Washington housing market weaker in 1st quarter 2014

Washington State’s housing market finished weaker in the first quarter of 2014 when compared to the end of 2013, according to a new report from the Washington Center for Real Estate Research here at the Runstad Center.

The housing market is still suffering from low inventory, as evidenced by decreased sales volume and by an overall decrease in available listings. Preliminary analysis shows that only 4.2 months’ worth of supply is currently available on the market across the state, with metro counties such as King and Snohomish having as little as 2.0 and 2.8 months available, respectively. Final numbers on supply constraints, prices, building activity and more will be released next month in the Center’s full Washington State Housing Market report.

Here’s a preview of the data, in our Q1 2014 Snapshot.

Former Runstad fellow to speak at Bisnow Summit

Former Runstad Center Affiliate Fellow Liz Dunn will be speaking at the Seattle Creative Office Summit, hosted by Bisnow, on May 21. She joins a panel of experts in exploring the exciting world of creative office space in the Seattle area. Hear about the new trends in office space, what is attracting growing and established companies alike to new types of collaborative workspace, and what the distinguished panel foresees for the future of the office.

This event runs from 7:30am – 10:30am and will be held at the Hyatt Olive 8 in downtown Seattle. For more information and to RSVP, please click here.

Maria Barrientos meets with Runstad students

Accomplished Seattle developer Maria Barrientos gave our students a veritable master class in residential development at a brown bag lunch session yesterday. Maria has completed trendsetting mixed-use apartment and condominium projects in all of Seattle’s hippest urban neighborhoods. She also has an impressive project management practice, focused on cultural arts facilities, having managed the renovation of McCaw Hall, and served as the project manager for the development of the Bellevue Performing Arts Center and the Olympic Sculpture Park as well as other arts facilities. Students dug deep with questions regarding market analysis and the selection of amenities to meet each target market. Maria provided valuable counsel to our NAIOP challenge competition team, and we will be looking for other ways to engage her expertise with the program in the future.

L to R: Jun Yong An (incoming 2014 MSRE/MUP), Patrick Kassin, Eric Hadden, Suzanne Cartwright, Maria Barrientos, Michael Miller, Cameron Hypes, Ben Lukes — L to R: Jun Yong An, Patrick Kassin, Eric Hadden, Suzanne Cartwright, Maria Barrientos, Michael Miller, Cameron Hypes, Ben Lukes

Runstad team wins the 2014 NAIOP Challenge!

Congratulations to our Real Estate Development Studio students for winning the Eleventh Annual NAIOP Real Estate Challenge! This unique competition features teams from the University of Washington, the University of British Columbia, and the University of Alberta; each vying for bragging rights and the prestige associated with the mastery of the event. Students from each university’s real estate program compete from January through late March to create and present a development proposal for a multi-faceted and challenging real-world project.

The Runstad Center’s team of graduate students studied various development scenarios for the Mariners Square site in the South Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle. Their proposal, “Gas Works Flats,” represents an opportunity to build on what’s existing to transform a key site and create enduring value without a large footprint. For those who couldn’t attend today’s NAIOP breakfast, the team’s full report and full presentation are available online.

Big thanks and a thunderous round of applause to our hardworking students and their talented, devoted instructors, Chris Bitter and Al Levine!

Here are some images from our exciting morning: