Condominium buyers (& sellers alike) in Belltown and Downtown Seattle have talked to me about crime in close conjunction with value. Buyers, when assessing the neighborhood, will be willing to pay less for a condo in an unsafe area.  Seattle condo owners experience a strange dichotomy where million dollar homes share their front doors with nefarious characters. (Though it could be argued some millionaires are themselves nefarious.)

So what hope is there for condo owners? Could a caped crusader of sorts clean up the streets and in turn raise home values?

Could Phoenix Jones & The Rain City Superhero Movement, be what Belltown home owners are looking for? The Huffington Post reported that Phonex Jones “stopped an in-progress grand theft auto recently by chasing away the perpetrator”.While I find his antics amusing, I unfortunately don’t think he alone will affect condo sales… unless he wants to host the available condo tours in Belltown and downtown?

You are a busy person, so I will make this fast.

If you are planning to finance your home purchase:

For every 1% that interest rates increase, your buying power decreases by 10%.

Conversely, for every 1% interest rates decrease, your buying power increases by 10%.

For example:

Interest rates are at 4%, & your lender determines you are currently able to make payments on a $700,000 home.

You think about that home for a week. (Is the view just what you want, the trees-are they mature enough? etc)

Over that week, interest rates go up to 5%, now you have a heftier interest payment on the money you borrow, so those same monthly payments will now only get you a $630,000 home.

Conversely, if over that week, interest rates went down to 3%, you would now have the ability to buy a $770,000 home.

Your monthly payments are the same in each scenario.

Synopsis:

Interest rate 3% — you are able to borrow/buy a home at $770,000

Interest rate 4% — you are able to borrow/buy a home at $700,000

Interest rate 5% — you are able to borrow/buy a home at $630,000