BuyerTours Realty Fairhaven Real Estate Blog

Glenn Sanford

One of the most popular pages on http://realestate.bellingham.net/ is the Fairhaven page.  In fact I pulled up some web stats from our Google Analytics Account and found that outside of the main portion of the site the number one place our visitors visited is the Fairhaven page.  This really shouldn't be a surprise.  As Chris McNamarra pointed out in a prior post earlier today all roads in and out of Bellingham tend to lead to Fairhaven.

We have been working on a model that would make sense to provide an ongoing conversation on communities in Bellingham.  We had done that in an original blog however it seems that the blog itself should be in the same place that individuals are researching homes.  To that end we decided to start the conversation here where visitors are already visiting and searching for homes, condos and other property.

Be sure to check out the Fairhaven Map Search:

mapsearch

Over the next few weeks and months and hopefully years stop by, read and participate in the conversation.

Questions: Feel free to email Glenn Founder / CEO of BuyerTours Realty LLC direct @ Glenn@BuyerTours.com or call Glenn at 360-220-1470.

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Fairhavenosity: Getting the feeling of Bellingham


Chris McNamaraPicture looking at a list of your favorite albums/CD's/8 Tracks (what ever age or level of technical ineptness you find yourself currently). There's the one you ALWAYS talk about, always are telling friends about, always the one you go to for the peace, the celebration of it.

If all the hamlets that made up Bellingham were your music collection, Fairhaven tends to be that album we're asked about when people look for homes in Bellingham.
Fairhaven's edges blur into the surrounding neighborhoods of South Hill, Edgemoor, Happy Valley, and Chuckanut, but the feeling of when you know you're in Fairhaven is quite visual. It's the Firehouse Cafe , converted, and home to a great performing arts venue. Coming up over the hill, and seeing the Ferry Terminal, past the homes that, of late have been selling in less than 60 days (over 60%).

And if ever there were parallels, adages, or parables to be pulled from the draw, the magnetism of Fairhaven, they'd have to be regarding the line a mile long to get in, to breathe in part of Whatcom County that really put our mecca on the map here. It's the festivals, the art boutiques, the Chrysalis, the view of the San Juan's, the cheap seats for watching how the Bellingham Marina is going to turn out, the perch you can forecast how the wind is going to treat the Lummi Ferry this time around.

Your options are endless. Which is sadly where the analogy ends for Fairhaven and Real Estate. Currently there are less than 10 homes, and less than 40 condos on the market through the Northwest Multiple Listing service, though more are making their way onto Craigslist, as are more sellers looking to try their hands at a tough profession at this date. The number of rentals in the area is growing strictly from the fact that though the prices of homes at this point are low, as are interest rates, the uncertainly of the future and the melee strewn across the front page of every paper reports a national slowdown.

Properties that have sold in Fairhaven? Click on this link here

"It's always sunny in Fairhaven." It's a quote friends who live there beam with a grin, when I ask about the weather before a cookout, a night out on the town, or a festival that we're experiencing from a spectator's point of view because I forgot to sign us up for the Ski to Sea in time. And with the demand for Fairhaven homes built a hundred years ago starting in the high $200's and low $300K's, wouldn't it be a great report to read about that over your morning joe?

With a lot of well-planned growth for Bellingham as a whole, and tourism fueling the fires for the trip there, the draws of our area are going to grow. But as it did with Bellingham, it's all going to start with Fairhaven.

If you think a home in Fairhaven is something you'd be open to discussing, feel free to e-mail me directly @ chris@buyertours.com and we can take a few moments to talk.

Chris McNamara BuyerTours Realty, LLC

Chris@BuyerTours.com

360-303-1034

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Fairhaven Neighborhood

Fairhaven, one of Bellingham’s most popular communities, is located on Bellingham Bay. Known as the Historical District, Fairhaven was its own city before it was consolidated to the city of Bellingham back in 1903. In the late 1800’s, Fairhaven was a big boom city where residents were working on making Fairhaven the next hub city of the west, building railroad tracks, commercial buildings, and hotels. Seattle became the main transportation city, however; the residents were crushed and the city went into a depression for a short period of time.


Why Fairhaven?

There are several reasons why tourists and residents flock to Fairhaven. Downtown Fairhaven has reserved its turn of the century brick buildings and cobble-stoned streets, and the city has restored many of the buildings. There has been several new developments with commercial space on the ground level and condos above going into the downtown area as well, but due to the Bellingham Municipal Code the buildings are required to conform in exterior appearance to the community’s traditional 19th century style.

fairhaven bellinghamSycamore Square


fairhaven downtownHarris Avenue


Fairhaven is also home to the Bellingham Cruise Terminal and transportation center, where ferries leave for Alaska and seasonal foot ferries and charter vessels provide connections to Victoria, British Columbia, and the San Juan Islands. Fairhaven is the southernmost port for the Alaskan Marine Highway System. Conveniently located next to the ferry terminal are the Amtrak Station and the Greyhound Station, where travelers can take scenic train rides to Vancouver and the Greyhound buses run several times a day to both Vancouver and Seattle.

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Fairhaven Village Green

The Village Green, located in the heart of downtown, was redone in 2003 to better serve the community when holding Fairhaven’s farmers market, which starts in June and held every Wednesday. During the summer, movies are projected here and locals get together with blankets and snacks for the show.


fairhaven neighborhoodThe Fairhaven Village Green

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Homes in Fairhaven

Real estate in Fairhaven is pricier than other areas in Bellingham because of the prime location. There is a small residential area south of Donovan Avenue, where the side streets are undeveloped and homes modest. Downtown Fairhaven has been busy developing new condo projects, but in general it’s hard to find anything for under a quarter of a million.

Neighborhood Market Statistics

Average sold price
  2-Bedroom 3-Bedroom 4-Bedroom 5+Bedroom
  $350,528 $397,333 $482,800 $545,000

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