Community Spotlight: Medina

Years ago, when I worked in commercial pest control, I remember driving my work truck through Medina and getting some interesting looks from the locals. I joked that driving a pest control truck through Medina apparently attracts about as much attention as driving a McLaren through Downtown Everett.

That should give you some idea of where we’re headed with this week’s Community Spotlight.

Welcome to Medina, where a $2 million home is the affordable option.

Let’s acknowledge the obvious. Most of us probably aren’t casually scrolling through $10 million homes while deciding which one to buy this weekend. But who isn’t a little curious about what life and real estate look like in one of Washington’s most exclusive communities?

So, for this week’s Community Spotlight, we’re taking a peek behind the hedges.

Lifestyle: Privacy, Lake Washington and Some Very Famous Neighbors

Sitting along the eastern shore of Lake Washington between Bellevue and Seattle, Medina is a small residential community known for privacy, large properties, mature landscaping and some truly spectacular homes.

And when I say small, I mean it. Medina has only around 3,000 residents and just over 1,000 homes.

This isn’t a community built around a bustling downtown district. The appeal is almost the opposite. Quiet residential streets, heavily landscaped properties and relatively little through traffic give Medina a much more secluded feel than you’d expect considering Downtown Bellevue is only about two miles away and Downtown Seattle is less than ten miles away.

Of course, there’s also the lake.

Some of Medina’s most spectacular properties sit directly on Lake Washington, with private docks, sweeping views and the kind of outdoor spaces that make you wonder whether anyone actually goes inside their house.

Away from the waterfront, large lots and mature evergreen trees create another layer of privacy throughout the community. The median lot size is more than 16,000 square feet, which is increasingly unusual this close to the region’s major employment centers.

Residents also have access to places like Medina Park, Medina Beach Park and the trails and tennis courts at Fairweather Nature Preserve. Overlake Golf & Country Club, established in 1927, sits right in the community as well.

And yes, Medina has had some recognizable residents over the years. Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos have both owned property here.

So if you’ve ever wondered where the phrase “lifestyles of the rich and famous” applies locally, we’ve found it.

The Medina Real Estate Market

Okay. Here’s where things get fun.

I pulled recent Northwest Multiple Listing Service sales for Medina, and there were 41 closed sales in the data over the last 12 months.

The median sale price?

$4,925,000.

Not a typo.

The average sale price was even higher at approximately $5.37 million.

And here’s perhaps my favorite Medina statistic: the least expensive sale in the data was $1.92 million.

So yes, in Medina, a home selling for just under $2 million is apparently how you get your foot in the door.

At the other end of the spectrum, the highest closed sale in the data reached $11.55 million.

For perspective, the average single family home in Medina is nearly 3,800 square feet. But size alone doesn’t explain these prices. You’re buying location, land, privacy and, in some cases, Lake Washington waterfront.

And waterfront takes things to another level.

Among the waterfront sales in my MLS data, the median sale price was approximately $7.51 million.

Apparently the lake view isn’t included in the base model.

But Even Medina Homes Don’t Automatically Sell

This may actually be the most interesting part of Medina’s current market.

Homes.com currently reports roughly 9.8 months of housing supply and an average market time of about 56 days.

That’s a good reminder that expensive doesn’t automatically mean competitive.

At this level of the market, the buyer pool becomes dramatically smaller. A beautiful $5 million home can still sit. A $10 million property can still need the right pricing and marketing strategy. And when you’re dealing with highly unique properties, finding the right buyer can simply take time.

There’s also some serious inventory competing for attention right now.

Current Medina offerings include homes around $3 million, $6 million, $10 million, $15 million and beyond. One current waterfront estate is offered at $24.5 million.

So if you’ve been waiting for interest rates to drop before jumping into that $24.5 million lakefront estate, I completely understand. 😆

Thinking About a Move?

Medina obviously represents a tiny and very specialized slice of our regional housing market.

But that’s part of what makes looking at different communities so interesting.

Within a relatively short drive around the Puget Sound region, we can go from rural acreage and starter homes to suburban neighborhoods, waterfront communities, downtown condos and, occasionally, a place where the median home sale is approaching $5 million.

Real estate is incredibly local.

And while Medina probably isn’t making everyone’s weekend home tour list, it’s still fun to peek through the gates every once in a while.

If you are thinking about buying or selling anywhere around the Puget Sound region, I’m always happy to help you understand what the numbers actually look like in your market.

Question of the Week

If money were absolutely no object, would you rather have a massive Medina estate tucked behind the trees or a Lake Washington waterfront home with your own private dock?

I’m taking the dock.