When people are looking at Seattle floating homes, they almost always want to know about the end of the dock moorages. The Dox dock has two docks so there are four end of dock locations and lots of floating homes toward the end. If you can find a floating home on this dock community, it offers stunning panoramic views of Lake Union, from the Seattle skyline to Gasworks Park – if it has good dock position.
Located in a charming floating home neighborhood, this floating home dock features a clean, well-planned open design and remarkable views. This dock is a Coop moorage & there is room for boats on some slip.
Lake Union is your own private “swimming pool”
off street parking
Want to see any floating homes? Courtney Cooper 206-850-8841 [email protected] We specialize in Seattle houseboats for sale. Our Seattle Realtors are waterfront experts and have been in the floating homes community for well over a decade. We are huge advocates for the community and promise to honor your special home and our neighborhood.
Welcome to the 2420 Cooperative Seattle Floating Homes Dock
2420 Westlake Avenue North #8 Seattle, Washington 98109
The FLOAT
You should always start with the float on a Seattle floating home, but most people start with the house itself to make sure it checks all the Seattle houseboats boxes. Each one of these is so very different, but it is important that once you identify the perfect Lake Union floating home that works for your living style, then you go right to the float. The true value in Seattle floating homes in across Lake Union and Lake Union’s eastern arm Portage Bay is the slip dimensions. The slip sizes for any given slip were largely determined and set in stone across coop docks by looking at any existing structures that occupied the slips at the time that the dock was converted to a coop. These dimensions were then recorded and grandfathered in. Many of them exceed the limit of brand new homes allowed on the lake so slips with footprints larger than 1200 square feet are especially valuable.
Length: 37.4ft Width: 30.8 ft
Water Depth: 45ft with no obstructions.
Stringers: 11 pressure treated stringers running east to west. Decks The front deck is constructed of treated 2×6 surface boards and 4×6 joints.
Log pack. Beneath the stringers are 9 old growth logs that run east to west. They provide both structure and flotation for the home. They are in a stable configuration, anchored securely with stringers pins.
Early 1900’s year built | 2 beds | 1 Bath | Approximately 700 sq ft
Hardwoods | wrap around deck | sunroom | boat moorage
$500 Home Owner Dues include: dock water, sewer, garbage. Dock maintenance, DNR lease, pay off for 8 slip marina, and floating home moorage real estate taxes
Personal property tax (paid biannual or annually) is $1,200
8 slip marina owned by 2420 Cooperative anticipated paid off by December 2018
Laundry and shower facility at the head of the dock is for the slip tenants.
Home Insurance $1900 annually through Lloyds of London underwriters. July 2018 Home and Dive Inspection performed.
New mini split (heating/cooling) and new attic insulation.
New steel moorage arms in 2018.
From Our Lovely Seattle Floating Home Sellers:
Things We Love About Living Here
We love to hop on our bikes and cruise along the newer Westlake bike trail to Fremont. We would sometimes attach our pet bike carrier since our favorite bar in Fremont Norm’s on 36th Ave allows dogs inside!
We walk out our sliding glass door and hop on our Paddleboards and other water toys to unwind after a long working day. However our favorite time is in the early morning hours when the city is still sleeping. SUP yoga anyone?
We love to watch the beautiful yachts cruise into the Westlake marinas and play a game of how this billionaire made their profits! Plus we like the privacy of living next to a quiet marina instead of a house around every corner.
Nature is everywhere we look and our favorite is to see the Blue Heron hunt for its food right outside our door.
We love to hear the sounds of seaplanes in the distance. The next time we want to go to the San Juans, we can kayak to Kenmore Air to catch a ride.
The Floating Home Association (FHA) is an awesome community that is always bringing the floating home community together. Sometimes it’s a dock party (Docktoberfest) or it’s an informative annual meeting (each April) to discuss how we can continue to preserve and improve our lifestyle.
Above all, we love to tell people (when asked) that we live in a houseboat or floating home. It never fails to bring a slew of questions about what it’s like and that they’ve always wanted to do the same thing.
Want to see this one? Call/Text Courtney Cooper 206-850-8841 or email us at [email protected] We are Seattle Floating Homes Experts and happy to help you with this special kind of Seattle home.
Seattle Lake Union Christmas Ships Are Back In 2015 –
Map of Parade route on Argosy Cruise site.
Christmas Ships On Lake Union: The 2015 Argosy Cruises Christmas Ships are part of their Christmas Ship Festival has its Parade of Boats Night on December 18th. The Parade of Boats is a long standing Seattle Tradition and a huge party of holiday living on Lake Union. Simply put, the holidays would not be the holidays in Seattle without the Christmas Ships. The holiday boats parade route begins at Fisherman’s Terminal in Magnolia, goes through the Fremont Cut into Lake Union. Northlake and Westlake floating homes are the first to see the beautiful parade of boats come into Lake Union as they make their way South along the west side of the lake before curving back up in South Lake Union and going along their way adjacent to Eastlake. Seattle houseboats in both Westlake and Eastlake have the very best vantage points, but there are a lot of parks along the way and throughout the Lake Union Loop making it an amazing site for all.
More thank just Christmas Ships Passing in 2015 – There are Performances, too!
The parade of Christmas Ships officially begins at 7:45 PM and ends just past Wards Coveat around 8:30. There will be performances along the way including one at Fisherman’s Terminal from 7:30 to 7:45, so get there early if that is your vantage point. Another performance will be at the Fremont Cut from 8:05 to 8:25 so a great place to watch the parade from is the Fremont Canal Park or also along the Burke-Gilman Trail.
Lake Union Holiday Tradition –
The Christmas Ships are a Lake Union tradition and a hug part of Seattle houseboat living and the Seattle holidays overall. It is such a lovely event that Argosy Cruises puts on. There is nothing quite like seeing the beautiful lit up boats parade through Lake Union and surrounding Seattle waterways. The reflections and pure holiday spirit are invigorating and worth every effort in finding parking. The other thing I forgot to mention is that you can register to have your boat in the parade if you like. There will judging as you enter Lake Union and there will be prizes for best decorated vessels in the following categories according to the Argosy site:
1. Peoples’ Choice Award (method of tallying votes TBA)
2. Best In Show
3. Best Seahawks 12’s Boat Theme
4. Best Santa, Reindeer Christmas Theme
5. Most Overall Christmas Lights with Holiday Spirit
6. Best Holiday Decorated Powerboat
7. Best Holiday Decorated Sailboat
8. Best Holiday Decorated Commercial Vessel
We are looking forward to seeing some of the creative Seattle Christmas Ships and can’t wait to be sipping our hot cocoa from our own choice spot on Lake Union. Please let us know if you are interested in learning more about life on Lake Union or in a Seattle floating home. We would love to show you our favorite Lake Union docks and Seattle houseboats. email: [email protected]
Seattle Floating Homes November 2015: Catching up with Life Afloat on Lake Union, Seattle floating homes are still in high demand and Seattle Houseboat Living is very popular. In the last 60 days, three of these Seattle houseboats have closed in escrow through the MLS, although we also know of a couple private floating home sales if you interested in learning more about those or others.
Seattle Floating Homes that have closed in escrow:
2019 Fairview Ave E #D
This Seattle floating home is located on the middle dock of The Log Foundation cooperative which has three docks. It is an extremely well run coop and houseboats on these lovely docks are always sought after. The Log Foundation floating homes are located on the southern most docks in the Seattle neighborhood of Eastlake. This particular Seattle floating home was represented by Cooper Jacobs Real Estate and was south facing on the middle dock. It is a two bedroom and 1 bath Lake Union floating home with 1300 square feet of living space. It closed on 10/13/15 for $677,500. (You can reach out to us for more info on this or other Seattle floating homes that are available both on and off market.)
This amazing Seattle floating home is located on the Flo Villa dock. Flo Villa is a beautiful dock with a willow tree on it. It is further north than The Log Foundation dock and the floating homes on it are well maintained. This houseboat was the ultimate in Seattle Waterfront Living. Built in 1994, it has two bedrooms and 1.5 baths plus 1550 square feet of living space. It closed on 10/7/2015 for $1,150,000
Welcome home to Mallard Cove floating homes. Mallard Cove is one of the Seattle luxury floating homes docks. Most of the floating homes on this dock have been updated and seem more modern than they are. The dock is always at the top of houseboat buyer lists. This 2000 square foot home was built in 1978 and has two bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. It closed in escrow on 10/30/2015 for $1,350,000.
Pending Seattle Floating Homes For Sale:
There are two Pending in escrow Seattle floating homes right now as well. The price range on these is between $499,000 and $925,000.
Active Seattle Floating Homes For Sale: Just one at Wards Cove. Price? $3,295,000 43 days on market.
Additional information: Here are the details for the sold Seattle Floating Homes on Lake Union as well as an overall market report.
Please let us know if you have any questions at all or if you would like more information about Seattle Houseboat Living. We are happy to share and look forward to speaking with you whether you are a buyer or seller.
As of today, 19 Seattle Houseboats (Lake Union floating homes and housebarges only)have closed in escrow through the MLS. There have been many more off market closings on top of that number, but to give you an idea of the increased action on Lake Union, consider this: Last year in all of 2014 in the NWMLS 19 Seattle Floating homes and house barges closed. The entire year. You can see the detail here: Seattle Houseboats sales 2014 When looking at the MLS at this time last year, there were 11 Seattle floating homes and house barges that had closed. Add to that the fact that there are five Seattle floating homes pending in escrow in the MLS right now and 2015 promises to be a record setting year!
So here is what it looks like on the Seattle houseboats market right now:
There are 2 Seattle floating homes for sale that are marked Active in the MLS – priced between $750,000 and $1,495,000 – both of these Seattle houseboats for sale are Eastlake homes as opposed to Westlake or Portage Bay (BTW – there are also Seattle houseboats for rent currently, too, if you want to just try it out). As mentioned above, there are 5 Seattle floating homes that are pending – ranging in price from $179,000 to $1,150,000. Looking at the last 60 days of closed sales for floating homes, there are three:
2420 Westlake Ave N #7 sold for $875,000 on 8/18/2015
2017 Fairview Ave E #K sold for $959,000 on 9/9/2015
A quick note on that last sale above. 2821 Fairview Ave E is Wards Cove and this was our first resale from the Seattle floating homes new construction development in Eastlake. Obviously it was well received on the Seattle real estate market because it sold for 103.63% of its list price! You can see the full listing sheets for these sold Seattle houseboats here: Seattle houseboats SOLD and then details for all of 2015 Sold Seattle floating homes and housebarges here: 2015 Seattle houseboats sales
We look forward to seeing how the year ends in floating homes and housebarge sales in Seattle – please let us know if you need any information at all or are curious about the value of your floating home. [email protected]
SeattleAfloat® Enjoy Life Afloat On Lake Union – Your Authority On Seattle Houseboat Living
Colorful Seattle Houseboats History on The Log Foundation docks of Eastlake in 2014. Image courtesy of Cooper Jacobs Real Estate.
Seattle Houseboats History Has A “Colorful” Background & Entrepreneurial Spirit Transcends Time…
To look at all the colorful and cheery Lake Union floating homes today is to never know how truly Seattle houseboats history is. Seattle floating homes are a living and evolving part of Seattle’s history. From their humble beginnings over a hundred years ago as floating shanties compiled of pillaged lumber, it is amazing to see that some sell for over $3 Million dollars in today’s real estate market.
Seattle houseboats were originally built in two different ways. Either the worker would utilize his commuting work boat and build living quarters above it, or they would gather “loose” logs and raft them together to build a completely free floating structure. It was an inexpensive way of living and was tax free on top of it.
Map of Seattle houseboats along shores of Madison Park. Image Courtesy of Seattle Municipal Archives Item #944
At the peak, the Seattle floating homes community was as large as two thousand houseboats lining the shores of the city in various locations which even included Madison Park in Lake Washington. The residents of the surrounding Seattle neighborhoods reportedly snubbed them and looked down at this way of life. They apparently felt that it was beneath their standards and so began the struggle of Seattle houseboats to Stay Afloat In Seattle™. Today there are around 500 Seattle floating homes and probably another two or three hundred liveaboards that are officially newly categorized as Seattle Floating On-Water Residences (final count once all have registered themselves in the latest legislation). The latest Seattle floating home dock was a new construction floating home development called Ward’s Cove. Very specific requirements need to be in place in order to develop new construction Seattle floating homes, so it is next to impossible to do so.
If The City Historically Wanted Them Gone, Why Did They Allow Docks To Begin With?
Here is a view towards Downtown from the South slope of Denny Hill in 1886 (photo courtesy of Seattle Municipal Archives Item # 2869)
The short answer is The University of Washington. Wait. What? The long answer is that Seattle has a very long history of making some incredibly hairbrained decisions as far as infrastructure goes. A perfect example (and my apologies for going off subject here for a minute, but….) The Denny Regrade: The hill is too big? Scrape it into the Puget Sound.In 1900, the city decided to basically eliminate a whole hill which covered 62 city blocks. Denny Hill was a significantly beautiful hill in Seattle. It had a gorgeous crowned jewel of a hotel atop it that was so grand that even President Theodore Roosevelt stayed there! It had an old cemetery and a beautiful park on it with expansivel views in all directions. In all, they removed a reported six million cubic yards of earth.
Connecting the dots: What does this all have to do with Seattle houseboats and The University of Washington? Let’s go backwards. The modern day campus of The University of Washington was largely laid out and shaped by The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition of 1909. In 1907 the city of Seattle platted and sold the submerged “parcels” in Lake Union to the adjacent waterfront property land owners. This enabled docks to be built and Seattle houseboats to be moored to them. According to The Lake Union Mail on an article about Submerged Parcels Park on the Cheshiahud Loop, “The “Lake Union Shore Lands” were created in 1907 as a funding mechanism for the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (S.B. #101). Water extending from shore approximately one block (roughly 400 feet) was platted as buildable land, then sold. These parcels didn’t sink, they started sunk. And they were considered valuable.” Now you know how a World’s Fair, Denny Hill, The University of Washington, and Seattle Houseboats are related.
While replacing the carpet for one of our Seattle historic houseboat listings in 2010, we found an old booze hatch left over from Prohibition days. Image Courtesy of Courtney Cooper.
More Shady Past on The Lake: Life Afloat In Seattle℠: You Want To Stay Dry, Except When It Comes To Your Drink…..
Creativity has always been a strong characteristic of the Seattle floating homes community. This was never so true as during the prohibition era. According to the 1996 article by Sharon Boswell in The Seattle Times, “But for those who couldn’t afford the pleasures of Doc’s or one of the hundreds of other boozy night spots and music clubs along Jackson Street, in Belltown or even on Lake Union houseboats, there was always a bottle of locally produced bootleg available to consume in the privacy of home.” If floating homes seem like an unlikely place to get your alcohol fix then consider thatIn his highly acclaimed book,“Seattle’s Unsinkable Houseboats”, Howard Droker tells the story of a very enterprising entrepreneur who along with the cedar bark he sold off his boat, also sold smuggled Canadian liquor.
It’s absolutely true. If you take a peek under carpets of older floating homes you will see the leftover evidence of the Prohibition era and how crafty houseboaters were able to not stay dry. Many of them have hidden trap doors under the floor that were used for storing alcohol. At one point in time there were regular “rum run” routes such as the one Droker writes about which would make their rounds delivering to Lake Union floating homes. These booze hatches were ingenious and stored between the floating logs with a wire cage so that the waters of the lake itself could keep the liquor cold and well hidden. According to HistoryLink.org, The Seattle Times noted at one point that in regard to those wild times, “Some of the stories behind the houseboat population are as colorful as anything that ever came out of Seattle’s history, but respect for another’s privacy and past is an unspoken code on the lake.”
This historic Seattle houseboat was once used as a floating dance hall. It is for sale today for $697,000. Listed by Cooper Jacobs Real Estate.
Seattle Houseboats Are Still Afloat & Strong Today
Go experience their magic – Take a kayak tour through Lake Union and Portage Bay where you will find what is left of the Seattle floating homes community. Take a walk around Lake Union on the Cheshiahud Loop. Lake Union is the very heart of the city. Try and imagine the colorful past as you look at the beauty and creativeness which is so abundant today. This is a living and breathing Seattle neighborhood, but also a significant part of Northwest history. It is as vibrant as the wonderful people who live in it. I am so thankful to have known so many of them and appreciate how they have enriched my life so far. Please also take a minute and donate to the Seattle Floating Homes Association if you can.
Want more information on Seattle houseboats?
We are happy to help! Please call Courtney. We are Seattle Houseboats Experts ℠, and have been Seattle Realtors specializing in floating homes and waterfront for many years. We look forward to helping you find your piece of Lake Union.
Seattle Afloat®– The Seattle Houseboats Market Is Floating Despite Reports On Low Lake Union Levels…
Here we are in the final days of August 2015 already and the Seattle houseboats market has been incredibly surprising and action packed so far this year! Multiple reports on the risk associated with historically low Lake Union levels and still we are Afloat in Seattle™! As of this AM, in the last 30 days there have been 5 SOLD Seattle floating homes that have closed in escrow through the NWMLS. These are not the “For Sale By Owner” Seattle houseboats and these are just the Seattle floating homes – not the other types of Seattle houseboats like floating on water residences, etc. Just floating homes. Cooper Jacobs Real Estate has Seattle Realtors that specialize in Seattle houseboats and Seattle waterfront homes. (Seattle houseboats experts we were involved in two of the last five sales below.)
2818 Boyer Ave E #2 in Portage Bay is a 1 bedroom, .75 bath 600 square foot Seattle floating home. It was built in 1930. It was listed for $395,000 and after 5 days on the market sold on 7/21/15 for $410,000 (103.80% of sales price to list price). $683.33/sq ft
2031 Fairview Ave E #N in Eastlake is a 885 square foot 1 bedroom and 1 bath home built in 1925. It was orignially listed for $510,000 and dropped its price to $499,000. After 90 days on market, it sold for $465,000 (93.19% sales price to list price). $525.42 square foot
2420 Westlake Ave #7 * in Westlake is a 1065 square foot 2 bedrom and 1.5 bath floating home that we listed. It was built in 1929, but completely redone and sold for $875,000 after 103 days on market (97.44 % sales price to list price) 821.60 a square foot *Cooper Jacobs Real Estate represented the Seller
1214 Hamlin Ave St #9 in Portage Bay – A 3 bedroom 2 bath 1500 square foot floating home built in 1971. It was listed and sold for $1,298,500 after 11 days on market. $865.67 square foot
2466 Westlake Ave N #19* in Westlake – we represented the buyer for this fabulous Seattle floating home. It is a 2 bedroom and 1.75 bath home built in 1940. It was listed and sold for $1,350,000 with 7 days on market. *Cooper Jacobs Real Estate represented the Buyer
So what is for sale in Seattle Houseboats world now on Lake Union?
There are five Seattle floating homes for sale in the MLS right now. These do not include Seattle houseboats for sale by owner. They range in price from $499,000 to $1,495,000 with an average days on market of 38 days. The median list price is $750,000. They are all in Eastlake! In addition there is one floating home that is pending in the MLS priced at $2,895,000 (Wards Cove).
Our favorite by far of course is a great floating home on The Log Foundation dock which happens to be one of the best run and most established coop on Lake Union. If you are looking for Seattle houseboat living, then this is a great choice! It is a 2 bedroom 1 bathroom 1300 square feet floating home built in 1930 with lots of updates.
It is south facing! To be south facing and in Eastlake is highly coveted. This one is all one level and well oriented with the water. It is listed for $697,000. Please let us know if you would like to see it. It won’t last long. Also, if you are looking for Seattle houseboats for rent, there are some available right now (A lot of people ask about Seattle houseboats for vacation rental, but the majority of these homes are rented long term).
Want to learn more about Seattle Houseboats and life on Lake Union Afloat? We would be happy to help!
There are some great Seattle houseboats for sale out there, but this lovely Eastlake floating home is making its debut for the first time in a very long time.
2 Bedrooms
1 Bath
1300 Square Feet
Built in 1930
Remodeled Kitchen
South Facing
Owned Moorage on Well Organized Dock
More info about this great Eastlake Seattle floating home:
2019 Fairview Ave E
Look no further. You’ve just discovered the quintessential Eastlake Floating Home. The massive float size is perfect to entertain on your south facing deck. One bedroom & one smaller. Third room for another bedroom, office or den. Newly remodeled kitchen, with gas range, stainless steel appliances, and granite counter tops. Well established Log Foundation Co-op. Great location to enjoy all the Eastlake activities. Extra Boat Moorage with co-op approval. Welcome Home! $697,000
Lots going on across Lake Union! There are three Seattle floating homes for sale in Eastlake right now – ranging in price form $525,000 to $1,495,000. All are two bedrooms which gives you a good indicator that it isn’t about bedroom count for Seattle houseboats! There is one other of the Seattle Floating On-Water Residences for sale in Gas Works Park Marina at $519,000 as well.
Pending Seattle Floating Homes In The NWMLS
There are four Seattle floating homes pending in the NWMLS right now. These range in price from $395,000 for a Portage Bay floating home to $1,298,000 for another Portage bay houseboat. There is one of each in Westlake and Eastlake pending as well. They range in bedroom count from 1 to 3 bedrooms and have other individual perks as well. For instance, our Westlake Floating home for sale is part of a co-op that purchased a money making marina to pay for costs of the dock. It is currently pending. Each one of these homes is so different and that is why when you are looking at Seattle houseboats it is really important to talk to someone who has the experience needed to help you navigate the waters of lake Union and Seattle Houseboat Living ℠.
Closed Transactions on Lake Union: Seattle Houseboats SOLD – at least EIGHT IN SIXTY DAYS.
There were at least two other Floating On-Water Residences as well, but let’s look at the Seattle floating homes segment of Seattle houseboats for sale. There were six Seattle floating homes that closed in escrow in the NWMLS in the last sixty days. They ranged in list price from $499,000 to $2,595,000 and range in sales price3 from $465,000 to $2,475,000 with an average sales price to list price ratio of 98.03%.
You can see the full NWMLS sheets and comparisons here:
Average days on market was 26 days for these. They were all around Lake Union in Eastlake, Westlake, and Portage Bay. The Lake Union Dock had a couple change hands. Fairview Landing also had one sell. We specialize in floating homes and waterfront homes, so happily we were involved in a third of these home sales. We sold a great one at 2466 Westlake Ave N for $1,350,000 (on the market for just 7 days) and we listed the beautiful white floating home at 2031 Fairview Ave E for $975,000 (it sold in 5 days for $971,000). It is difficult to judge these unique Seattle waterfront homes by dollar per square foot. The range of dollar per square foot pricing is as unique as each of these homes – ranging from $525.42 to $1225.85. The median price was $1,160,000. For Seattle houseboats, it really is about your unique needs. Please let us know what you are looking for in a new Lake Union home.
Here are some of the most common things that we get asked about with Seattle Houseboats:
Views
Boat Moorage
Rooftop deck
Neighborhood
Parking
Dock Position (End of dock moorage is always the most desirable and the most expensive)
Form of Ownership (Co-op, Condo, Fee Simple, Leased)
Seattle Houseboats: Creative Living & Part Of Nature: Seattle Houseboat Living is one of the most unique in Seattle:
Are you a creative person looking for your perfect Seattle waterfront nest?
As we go into the snowy winter this year, I wanted to share one of my favorite houseboat shots from this summer:
The “Duck Lodge” floating raft is located on one of the Eastlake Seattle floating home docks and a great way to welcome in Seattle’s nature. This creative Seattle houseboater has made a duck house instead of a dog house on a floating raft attached to the float the home is on.
Lake Union Houseboats: living close to nature!
Ducks aren’t the only nature a Seattle houseboat owner co-exists with. Lake Union is a working lake with fish and fowl everywhere. Here is a peaceful guy. For being right in the middle of the city, the banks of Eastlake are incredibly peaceful and a great place to land for Seattle waterfront homes!
Seattle Houseboats Big Force In Keeping Lake Union Clean
In what seems like thinly veiled political agendas, the Seattle houseboat community has long been targeted as being potentially harmful environmentally over the years. The truth of the matter is that Seattle houseboat owners have been a major force in cleaning up Lake Union so that we all can enjoy it. One of the requirements for living on a floating home successfully is a fondness and care for the environment.
Seattle Floating Homes Real Estate Market Report
located on the middle dock of The Log Foundation cooperative which has three docks. It is an extremely well run coop and houseboats on these lovely docks are always sought after. The Log Foundation floating homes are located on the southern most docks in the Seattle neighborhood of Eastlake. This particular Seattle floating home was represented by Cooper Jacobs Real Estate and was south facing on the middle dock. It is a two bedroom and 1 bath Lake Union floating home with 1300 square feet of living space. It closed on 10/13/15 for $677,500. (You can reach out to us for more info on this or other Seattle floating homes that are available both on and off market.)
