Seattle Area Boating Community Real Estate

Spotlight on Real Estate for Seattle Area Boat Owners

Ever dream of having a yacht in your backyard? Having your own private dock? Or, how about owning your own private island or sharing an island with other passionate boaters? Does it sound like an impossible dream? Maybe for some of us it is, but for many of us it can come true somewhere in the Greater Puget Sound area. For some, just living within a short walking distance to their boat in a nearby marina would make both them and their boats much happier.
Dreams like these regularly come true for many Northwest boat owners who are buying homes and condominiums in one of the many Boating Communities located throughout Puget Sound. From Olympia to the Canadian border, from Lake Washington and Lake Union to the Hood Canal, boaters are buying primary residences, summer or second homes, floating homes, or depending on your phase in life, retirement homes and condominiums. Some boaters are buying vacant lots or property in these boating communities with plans of building a home for their family and boat sometime in the future. They are buying in Seattle Area Boating Communities like Mariners Cove, Port Ludlow, Skyline, Friday Harbor, Gig Harbor, Bainbridge and Mercer Island, just to name a few.

"Our reputation as one of the Best Cruising Areas in the World is also attracting many out-of-state boaters who are eager to snatch up waterfront homes and properties while they are still affordable" says Joe Marvin, founder of BoatCommunities.com, an association of real estate agents that exclusively focus on over 50 boating communities throughout the Greater Puget Sound area. (the title on his business card says Boat Community Specialist). "Waterfront with moorage that has access to the Oceans of the World is where it’s at from an appreciation standpoint. In fact, just being close to a marina or having community moorage available adds greatly to your home’s value and appreciation. It’s what boaters want. And it’s a hot market and getting hotter all the time."

"You can spend $ 3 to over $10 million for a home with 100 feet of waterfront and a dock on Lake Washington; or around $ 2 million for the same in a commutable distance to Metro Seattle like Bainbridge Island; or around $600 thousand for a home with a dock in a more remote boating community somewhere in Puget Sound" says Bill Slonaker, a Boat Community Specialist on Bainbridge Island. " With many homes and condominiums close to a marina selling for under $300 thousand, you don’t have to be a millionaire to live in a boating community. A 42’ boat slip with live aboard privileges just sold in Eagle Harbor on Bainbridge Island for less than $80 thousand".

"But you need to be fast because any reasonably priced home with a private dock or a marina close by sells in a matter of days" states Marti Lewis, a Boat Community Specialist who lives and works in Gig Harbor. "My best advice to anyone serious about buying their dream in a boating community is to make sure you have an experienced team of real estate agents searching the boating communities for you and be ready to act fast when the right home or property comes on the market".

These Realtors (and boat owners!) agree that the best way to find and purchase your dream home in a Seattle Area Boating Community is to:

1) Get on the Internet and find a website that can help, like BoatCommunities.com
2)Next, use the website to help you evaluate and select one or more boating communities you think might just fit your lifestyle, location, price range, etc.
3)While online, review the currently available homes/properties for sale to help you get an idea of what the community’s homes look like, inside and out.
4)Get a knowledgeable specialist to show you around the boating community(s), answer questions, and maybe show you a home or two.
5)Make sure you are on top of any new listings just as soon as they are listed. Have the website notify you by email of any new listings just as soon as it happens and check the website at least daily.
6)Stay in touch with your Boat Community Specialist (or your agent). Make sure they fully understand what your needs and wants are.
7)Be patient! If you do the right things, your dream will come true.

For more information about our Greater Puget Sound boating communities and properties for sale, go to BoatCommunities.com