Contractor · Member since 2018 · 4 posts · 4 votes
Hi, I’m new to BP from Wenatchee, WA. My husband and I have been custom homebuilders in the Wenatchee valley and surrounding areas for the past 15 years. We are ready to start investing in or building multi-family units and pursuing waterfront rentals in the Chelan area. Our customers are many Seattle area residents building vacation and soon to be retirement homes in our area. We are ready to start diversifying and going in a multi family direction and looking for others with a similar path. We’ve owned single family rentals in the past and have had experience in that area as well. I have a wealth of knowledge when it comes to construction costs and design.
Gotta love Chelan and Wenatchee! Wenatchee is an under-appreciated submarket in Eastern WA in my opinion. Average markets are up over 40% since 2010 in Wenatchee / East Wenatchee, vacancy sub-5.00% marketwide, limited rent concessions, and a job market that's added over 12,000 jobs since 2012. Forbes recently named Wenatchee as the #10 Fastest Growing Job Market in the US.... https://www.forbes.com/places/wa/wenatchee/. Plus - multifamily supply growth is relatively stagnant (other than Dean Weidner's new deals near the River) - and skyrocketing single family home prices in the Wenatchee Valley are making high end new multifamily apartments relatively more attractive.
Reason I can rattle this off - we did the Freddie Mac acquisition financing on the The Rylee Ann Apartments - a 105 unit multifamily deal a few blocks northeast of the Old Wenatchee Bridge (and future Hale Park) in 2019 and have been active in the market over the years.
Let me know if you ever need any market data that would help with your planning (CoStar / Yardi / REIS / Axiometrics / Appraisal), rent/sale/expense comps, entry/exit construction / bridge / takeout planning, or stabilized operating budget assistance. We work with a few institutional developers building in Walla Walla, Tri Cities, Boise ID, Bend OR etc. and frequently get called on to help out with this sort of thing.
Thanks for letting our little secret out, Ian. LOL
I could not believe the Rylee Ann (Vince and Lorre's daughter) deal at $199k per unit. Assessed at $7.5M, sells for $21. Even if rents are averaging $1400 each... wth? Complete insanity IMO. Can you spell cap rate compression to treasury rates?
Anyway, cool insights you have. I don't see these larger MF valuations as being sustainable by any stretch, especially given that 500 additional units are in various stages of development and we aren't silicon valley cranking out IPO insta-millionaires. Our staples are Ag and hydro energy.
I remember the dark days. It was the Rylee Anne's that were offering 2 months free + a tv to entice renters while my b class rents skyrocketed. I'll still be here when the music stops and these absentee corporate landlords are looking for chairs.
Investor · Camas, WA · Member since 2014 · 95 posts · 91 votes
8y
@Joy VanAssche Welcome to BP! I went to school and worked in Seattle for a few years before moving back to Hawaii...one of my biggest regrets was not venturing east to explore the rest of the state! Well, that and not going to a Hawks game.
Anyway, wife and I are planning to purchase our first multifamily unit in Clarksville, TN by the end of the year and, like you, are always looking to connect with like-minded people. We're real estate newbies, so a lot of research, reading, and networking at this point! Please keep in touch!
Investor · Shelton, WA · Member since 2017 · 6k+ posts · 6k+ votes
8y
Joy, welcome and you probably want to network? Two vehicles we use are the BiggerPockets monthly get togethers which take place at Ramblin’ Jacks in Olympia, and the Washington State LL association which meets monthly at a larger meeting facility. That will give you a start.
Realtor · 98830 · Member since 2016 · 250 posts · 65 votes
8y
Hello Joy,
Welcome to BP. There is a ton of information on this site and if you do not find what you are looking for just ask and all the helpful people will point you in the right direction.
I am from you neck of the woods also, infact I was in Wenatchee on Friday. I am working on my property and own land already North of Wenatchee.
I would be very interested in conversing with you about the work and service you provide. Please feel free to PM me or text.
I wish you all the success in the world on all that you do.
Rental Property Investor · Nashville, TN · Member since 2017 · 108 posts · 66 votes
8y
Congratulations on finding BP! With your background, @Joy VanAssche, you will have a competitive advantage in whatever market you decide to work in, I'm sure you will discover excellent ways of leveraging that.
Do you know where you want to buy? Are you looking for residential or commercial multifamily?
If you wish to tag someone in the conversation on the forum, type @ followed by their name and then select the name of that person which should appear below the comments box. He or she will be notified of being tagged so that the conversation will continue.
Rental Property Investor · Richland, WA · Member since 2017 · 50 posts · 11 votes
8y
Hi @Joy VanAssche! I’m from the Richland in the Tri Cities area of Washington State so we are pretty close. I am working on a BRRRR currently and find it interesting what you said about Chelan. I have always thought it would be extremely profitable to own homes on Lake Chelan as either rentals or Air BnB’s. I have my Real Estate license and would be interested in hearing more about your path you e taken and where you want to go.
Contractor · Member since 2018 · 4 posts · 4 votes
8y
Thanks everyone for the welcome! I'd love to meet up with some of you locally. I am also hoping to join in some Washington investing groups and trek over to Seattle for some meet ups.
Real Estate Broker · Spokane, WA · Member since 2018 · 125 posts · 32 votes
8y
hello Joy and welcome to bigger pockets. Sounds as if you have a few of the bases covered. I am a Spokane Washington Real Estate brokers whom work with out of state buyers. Take a look at the Spokane vacancy rate, currently.5 and under, a great market to get involved in. Shoot me a message would love to discuss your goals etc....
Rental Property Investor · Spokane, WA · Member since 2018 · 11 posts · 6 votes
8y
@Joy VanAssche my friend is a builder in that area as well. He recently took a multi family near the lake and turned it into an Airbnb. He has been killing it!!
Contractor · Member since 2018 · 4 posts · 4 votes
7y
Hi Dustin, that is great to hear. I have been looking for property in the Chelan area with this in mind. I’ve mainly been looking on the lake though and you’re right with the Airbnb multifamily property. Prople just want to vacation there and this is a great opportunity.
Another company that is heating up in Chelan is Vacasa, a lot of people are using their services to manage their rentals in that area.
Real Estate Broker · Boise, ID · Member since 2017 · 101 posts · 41 votes
7y
Little late to the thread here but I can verify that Chelan WA is one of the best vacation rental destinations in the Pacific NW! I'm continually blown away by how well many of our properties there perform. Especially the waterfront ones. If you have a waterfront 4+ bed home, you'll have 100% occupancy during the summer (with fixed turnovers!), mainly from large family groups coming from Seattle.
Little late to the thread here but I can verify that Chelan WA is one of the best vacation rental destinations in the Pacific NW! I'm continually blown away by how well many of our properties there perform. Especially the waterfront ones. If you have a waterfront 4+ bed home, you'll have 100% occupancy during the summer (with fixed turnovers!), mainly from large family groups coming from Seattle.
Couple of questions:
Lk Chelan is great during the summer months but what is the vacancy rate like during the rest of the year? I've been going to Chelan for 40+ yrs but I've only once stayed during the winter months and I wouldn't do it again (Leavenworth has much more appeal during the winter season).
Also, the fire season has been trending worse over the last decade or so. Have you seen bookings increase for the June/July months to avoid the dreaded August fires and smoke?
Wenatchee, WA · Member since 2019 · 9 posts · 0 votes
7y
@Joy VanAssche hello Joy I'm Amanda and I'm new to investing and i found a deal in Wenatchee wa and I need some help with running basic rehab numbers would you by chance be willing to help me?
Gotta love Chelan and Wenatchee! Wenatchee is an under-appreciated submarket in Eastern WA in my opinion. Average markets are up over 40% since 2010 in Wenatchee / East Wenatchee, vacancy sub-5.00% marketwide, limited rent concessions, and a job market that's added over 12,000 jobs since 2012. Forbes recently named Wenatchee as the #10 Fastest Growing Job Market in the US.... https://www.forbes.com/places/wa/wenatchee/. Plus - multifamily supply growth is relatively stagnant (other than Dean Weidner's new deals near the River) - and skyrocketing single family home prices in the Wenatchee Valley are making high end new multifamily apartments relatively more attractive.
Reason I can rattle this off - we did the Freddie Mac acquisition financing on the The Rylee Ann Apartments - a 105 unit multifamily deal a few blocks northeast of the Old Wenatchee Bridge (and future Hale Park) in 2019 and have been active in the market over the years.
Let me know if you ever need any market data that would help with your planning (CoStar / Yardi / REIS / Axiometrics / Appraisal), rent/sale/expense comps, entry/exit construction / bridge / takeout planning, or stabilized operating budget assistance. We work with a few institutional developers building in Walla Walla, Tri Cities, Boise ID, Bend OR etc. and frequently get called on to help out with this sort of thing.
Gotta love Chelan and Wenatchee! Wenatchee is an under-appreciated submarket in Eastern WA in my opinion. Average markets are up over 40% since 2010 in Wenatchee / East Wenatchee, vacancy sub-5.00% marketwide, limited rent concessions, and a job market that's added over 12,000 jobs since 2012. Forbes recently named Wenatchee as the #10 Fastest Growing Job Market in the US.... https://www.forbes.com/places/wa/wenatchee/. Plus - multifamily supply growth is relatively stagnant (other than Dean Weidner's new deals near the River) - and skyrocketing single family home prices in the Wenatchee Valley are making high end new multifamily apartments relatively more attractive.
Reason I can rattle this off - we did the Freddie Mac acquisition financing on the The Rylee Ann Apartments - a 105 unit multifamily deal a few blocks northeast of the Old Wenatchee Bridge (and future Hale Park) in 2019 and have been active in the market over the years.
Let me know if you ever need any market data that would help with your planning (CoStar / Yardi / REIS / Axiometrics / Appraisal), rent/sale/expense comps, entry/exit construction / bridge / takeout planning, or stabilized operating budget assistance. We work with a few institutional developers building in Walla Walla, Tri Cities, Boise ID, Bend OR etc. and frequently get called on to help out with this sort of thing.
Thanks for letting our little secret out, Ian. LOL
I could not believe the Rylee Ann (Vince and Lorre's daughter) deal at $199k per unit. Assessed at $7.5M, sells for $21. Even if rents are averaging $1400 each... wth? Complete insanity IMO. Can you spell cap rate compression to treasury rates?
Anyway, cool insights you have. I don't see these larger MF valuations as being sustainable by any stretch, especially given that 500 additional units are in various stages of development and we aren't silicon valley cranking out IPO insta-millionaires. Our staples are Ag and hydro energy.
I remember the dark days. It was the Rylee Anne's that were offering 2 months free + a tv to entice renters while my b class rents skyrocketed. I'll still be here when the music stops and these absentee corporate landlords are looking for chairs.
Haha! I should delete the post so that we can keep the Wenatchee secret hidden!!!
Too funny - I did not know that Rylee Ann was the name of Vince's daughter. Great, original name for an complex - especially in an age where every other deal is is named _____ Vista, The Heights of _______, or __________ Terrace.
Yeah - we actually got some pushback from Freddie on our value... Fortunately, all we needed was a copy of the PSA, a statement from the broker saying that the deal was publicly marketed with multiple offers, and a couple appraisal blurbs and... boom... you've got a certified, undeniable market value to tie to. Buyer was also in a 1031, so they needed to place their sale proceeds relatively quickly - not an arms length transaction. When it sold, the deal was pushing $1400 avg on the 2's and $1600 avg on the 3's, and was about a 5% cap. Great job by the brokers at Summerfield Residential marketing that deal. That said - Alison wasn't offering any concessions when the deal sold! No freebies were being given to lease the deal up... makes you wonder!
Neither do I. I talk about this with our team all the time. The massive dip in treasuries since we went off the gold standard has made money so cheap, and has inflated values so far, that eventually we should be due for a correction due to the price of capital rising. But for now - Weeeee! The market has turned many investors into geniuses. The managing mortgage banker on our team was a developer in Seattle in the 80's - and he often reflects on when rates were between 8-12%... back in the day.
That said - to Wenatchee's credit - it's so affordable relative to Seattle, Tacoma, Bellevue, etc - and has great outdoor attractions that it is generating demand just due to its relative affordability. Great family area - and the area around the Wenatchee / Columbia River confluence is nice. I drove down in the fall for the property tour right when the leaves were changing - wow, very nice.
Your Class B deals are going to crush. Wenatchee - as you said - is not exactly Silicon Valley of the world. It may be the Apple capital of the world, but not Steve Jobs' Apple capital of the world - that's Cupertino. But will always appeal to workforce, trades, homebuilders, heart and soul of America families. Those jobs aren't going anywhere, no matter what happens in the broader economy.
If you're ever in Seattle - let me know! I will do the same.