Our work helps keep our communities livable and accessible for everyone
Bellwether’s affordable apartments provide triple bottom-line benefits for the communities we serve: social, economic and environmental. Our visionary founders at the Downtown Seattle Association understood that they were starting something bigger than the impact on their businesses – and Bellwether continues to lead the region in making communities better by providing affordable rents for working people, their families, and low-income seniors.
Business succeeds
When employees are able to get to work every day, on time, business owners and employers reduce turnover, save money and provide better service to their customers. And families with money left over after the rent is paid are likely to spend it in their communities—to buy food, clothing, school supplies, and other necessities. They can even save for their children’s education.
After paying their rent, Bellwether households with jobs have more than $20,000,000 per year to spend and save in the community.
Residents succeed
Many working people in Seattle and King County live from paycheck to paycheck. At the beginning of 2011, average rent for a two-bedroom, one-bath apartment in Seattle was $1,355 per month. Add the cost of utilities, and a household has to have a full-time job that pays at least $27 per hour.
Families and individuals thrive when they can afford to pay rent and still have money left over for groceries, health care, and transportation. Children who have a reliable place to do homework do much better in school. And, people who can afford rent tend to be healthier as their stress is reduced.
The environment improves
When people can live near jobs, services and transit, they drive less. So, they spend less time and money commuting, and more time with their families and friends, not to mention the better air quality that results. Many Bellwether residents don’t own cars—which saves even more money.
Urban apartment buildings are one of the most effective ways to improve environmental quality. The less land we use per person, the less contaminating runoff in our water supply. In building and managing our apartment buildings, Bellwether pays close attention to environmental sustainability, from waste reduction, sustainable construction and interior finishes, to cleaning supplies.
Call to action (link to Projects and Results pages):
For a more complete description of the projects we’ve developed, please see History of Projects
