Is Seattle Doomed to Overbuilding?

Every boom brings some risk of overbuilding. But for every boom doomers, there's boom boomers. (We're just trying to get one of these catch on so we can use them in Scrabble.) What side are you on? Come hear the debate at our fourth annual Seattle State of the Market event Sept. 17 at 1201 3rd Ave.

Wallace Properties’ Kevin Wallace, who will be speaking at the event, is a bit skeptical that all those apartments will have occupants. According to Dupre + Scott, Kevin tells us, the number of apartment units in the five Seattle neighborhoods of Downtown, Belltown, South Lake Union, Capitol Hill, and Eastlake will double between 2012 and 2017. “An additional 10,307 units are forecast to be delivered to these neighborhoods between 2015 and 2017 alone,” he says. “This is as many new apartment units in five neighborhoods as there are residents in Woodinville. What could possibly go wrong?

Still, the demand for apartments is there in many markets, and Wallace Properties recently broke ground on a 24-unit, six-story project called 47+7 in the University District. It’s the first project to use a component-based construction system devised by Innovative Building Technologies and the Seattle-based architectural firm CollinsWoerman, the only pre-fabricated system on the market that’s scalable for mid- and high-rise construction. And it’s a fast system: 47+7 will be completed by year's end. Hear more from Kevin and other market experts at our event: sign up now!

Continue reading this story with a free account

Log in or register
Sign up for more articles like this
Subscribe to Bisnow's Seattle Newsletters
Related Stories

NYC Pushes To Use Opportunity Zone 2.0 For Mamdani's Housing Goals

DOJ Charges LA Nonprofit Workers With Misusing $8.7M Meant For Housing Aid

Bugatti Lends Brand To 60-Story Miami Condo Tower

With Occupancy Brimming, Investors Pile Into Bay Area Apartments

FBI Drops Investigation Into Financially Troubled StoryBuilt

GTIS Partners Rebrands As Brightshore Capital, Launches $250M Debt Platform

Dublin BTR Had A €1B Summer

Sales Of Lower-End Apartments Surge In Philly As Landlords Face Financial Issues

Wu Proposes Tax Breaks To Jump-Start Stalled Housing Projects

Developer Seeks Permit For Denver Energy Center Conversion Project

Airbnb Launches $250M Fund To Invest In Affordable Housing

DFW Multifamily Distress Creates Opening For Investors As Development Slows