I got a little later start than I wanted, but I am here and was in time to hear Mayor McGinn introduce 12 year old Adora Svitak, published author and accomplished speaker. I was really impressed and she has a really good point – we all need to have more of a child-like attitude about life. Anything is possible, don’t let the laws of physics restrict your ideas about how to make a better world!!

Right now I am sitting at the GreenWorks Realty/Trails at Newcastle (#243) by the Green Living Pavilion, where I can hear Laura Sweaney talk about permaculture and an herb spiral she built, and how to plant the plants – the ones needing the most water at the bottom since water runs downhill. I used to have one in my backyard when I lived in Puget Ridge (West Seattle). Now I just grow everything in pots on my porch at my townhome in High Point. I really have trouble agreeing with her idea that weeds are beneficial to her garden, tho. The dandelions mocked me daily and it was frustrating keeping up such a large property (1/4 acre).

I’ve signed a couple of petitions so far, including one for Seattle to have an OPT-IN  list for PHONE BOOKS. I hate those damn things showing up on my doorstep all the time. We’re banding together now and trying to do something about it! If you come down here this weekend, sign their sheet!!

Here are a few other interesting things I have seen so far.

        This is the model of Trails at Newcastle.

GreenSpacesTV — June 05, 2010 — Wendy Hughes-Jelen takes you on a visit to Roxhill Park/Bog/Wetland, on the southern edge of Seattle in the west, to see how a community-based restoration project has made a difference and looks great 10 years later.

It’s June so we’re going to start with a level playing field and take a look at what’s available in the most affordable real estate bracket – under $250. There are 173 properties listed for sale for $250,000 or below.

Click to see West Seattle Real Estate Priced Under $250,000

Contact me for more information on any of the properties you see here.  ~ Wendy Hughes-Jelen, your West Seattle (green) Real Estate Source

As the self-titled “resident green agent” in High Point, I wanted to give a WEST SEATTLE WIDE summer-season launch update. School will be out in a couple of weeks and then the moving frenzy begins.

A lot of people turned over a new leaf with the start of 2010, adding more environmentally-friendly choices to their lifestyle. Many people agree some of these choices are pretty easy to make. But did you know you could also make an easy choice to buy a green home, too?

In King and Snohomish counties, and many other counties in Washington state, we have a Built Green Certification program for homes. And the Northwest Multiple Listing Service added check boxes to their search parameters so people who wanted to find “environmentally-certified homes” of any persuasion, whether it be Built Green, Northwest Energy Star, LEED, or another similar approved program, could easily find them.

So with the click of a button and about 2 seconds of my time, I can show you all of the green homes in West Seattle currently on the market. See West Seattle Environmentally-Certified Homes For Sale

Some homes currently being marketed for sale require lender approval (short sale). Ask for details. The listing links are only good for 30 days from the date of this post.

What makes West Seattle so great?
Well, first of all, it is close to everything (even though everyone thinks it is so far away). I have lived in West Seattle since 1997. And I won’t leave. It has everything I need so I don’t actually have to leave at all, which is nice. And for when I do want to pop
downtown for a night out, pick up someone at the airport, or go mall-hopping at Southcenter, all of that is within 15 minutes (using the West Seattleites travel tips, which I am happy to share).

In West Seattle you have many choices for green homes, and even an entire Built Green Certified Community is available to you, called High Point. That’s where I live now. It was wonderful to have the opportunity to buy a brand new home in a Built Green Certified Community right in my own neighborhood. I lived within a mile of this location for ten years, and watched the development of this community over that time with great interest. When I took a property tour in April 2007 I wasn’t looking for a new home and had no intention of moving – but what I found in High Point made me put my house on the market almost immediately, and the sale of our home on 18th Ave SW and the purchase of our townhome on SW Raymond all managed to squeek through right at the beginning of the real estate market fallout. We feel lucky that we managed to get moved and settled without any hassle.

The utilities are underground so the views are not impeded by anything…but trees. And I like trees. The old trees in High Point were saved during redevelopment and they *make* this neighborhood. There are great views of downtown, sunrise, sunset, trails in the woods, access to Camp Long and the Longfellow Creek Legacy Trail all within walking distance.

For the developer-identified benefits of living in High Point in West Seattle, check out these High Point Highlights.

If you are considering a move to West Seattle…

Call me. Or email me. Or send me a message on Facebook or Twitter. I know the Westside inside and out and can answer any questions you may have about what it is like living here. Just know you will get biased answers – because it is clear that I love it here and don’t see why anyone would want to move!

Tomorrow: West Seattle homes for sale by price bracket! Conventional and green homes will appear in this search. Check back tomorrow!

Just a quick note that I am sharing most of the “green lifestyle” information I find on my Facebook page, Westside Green Living With Wendy. I decided I was probably diluting the real estate information by mixing in so much other material and the creation of a page on the Facebook platform was a super easy way for me to share articles, pictures and also original videos.

I am working really hard to limit my posts here to real estate related information. How am I doing? Do you prefer it the old way, with lots of green info here, or do you like this being more targeted to just real estate? Let me know!

A recent photo of my husband and I, sitting on a bench next to High Point Pond in West Seattle. With Sophia of course!