If you're thinking of moving to Bellevue, Washington, you've probably got a lot on your plate right now. You've got to put your house in the Waterloo, Ontario real estate listings so it will sell, you've got to pack up all your things, you've got to find somewhere to live when you get to Bellevue. It can all be very stressful, but don't throw in the towel just yet. We've created this guide to help ease the transition for you by listing some the more important things you'll need to know about the Bellevue real estate market.

Bellevue is a fairly small city, only about 123,000 people live there. However, it exists on the edge of Washington's largest metropolitan area, just to the east of Seattle. This affects both the home styles you're likely to see here as well as the housing prices. It may not seem like a lot for people who have owned downtown Toronto homes, but compared to the average for the state of Washington, Bellevue is a fairly expensive place to buy a home. The median price for a house or condominium in the city is over $600,000, twice what you might pay elsewhere in the state.

Being located on the edge of the Seattle metro area gives Bellevue an excellent balance of commercial and residential real estate. Space or lease pricing concerns have lead a lot of major companies to take out their commercial mortgages in Bellevue instead, making it a great place for new businesses to look for shopfronts, industrial land, or warehousing space. On the residential side of things, you'll find all types. The city is a haven for Seattle workers, making single family homes popular, but there are also town houses, low rise apartments, and high rise condo buildings where you can find a place to suit your budget.

Though most of the developments in Bellevue have taken place in the last few decades as Seattle's popularity and success level rose, you can still find some variety in the architectural styles. Like Oshawa real estate, the most prominent style is the modern suburban home type that has become known colloquially as McMansion, both because Bellevue is a bedroom community and because it has a high average income. Some of the downtown high-rises are good examples of modern architectural styles and there are also a few historic buildings.

As you would expect from a bedroom community, most of the neighborhoods in Bellevue are quiet suburban ones. Anyone who has looked at Mississauga homes for sale will recognize the configuration in Eastgate and other Bellevue neighborhoods: winding streets, fairly homogenous homes, lots of trees and yard space. Great for kids. The high average income also makes communities like Bridle Hill possible, where many residents own horses and pasture land. The alternative to such suburban living is to live downtown, where more of the shops, restaurants, and high-rise towers can be found, or in Factoria, a combined industrial/residential area.