Bellevue Outpaces Seattle in Housing Permit Applications, Driven by 'Wilburton Supercharger' Program
Bellevue, Washington, is significantly outperforming Seattle in the number of new multifamily housing permit applications, despite having only a fifth of Seattle's population. Between January and June, Bellevue recorded permit applications for at least 1,585 new multifamily units, while Seattle had 1,137 units during the same period, according to preliminary city data reported by The Urbanist. Seattle's new housing applications are projected to fall by 30% in 2026, following a 38% drop in 2025. Bellevue's success is largely attributed to its 'Wilburton Supercharger' program, which allows developers to count affordable units towards both the state's Multifamily Tax Exemption program and the city's affordable-housing mandate simultaneously. This program offers developers a 12-year property tax exemption in exchange for setting aside 20% of units as affordable for households earning up to 80% of the area median income. In contrast, Seattle's comparable Mandatory Housing Affordability program requires deeper a... 
