Bicycling and real-estate gawking: They go together. On a sunny ride today, mainly along the Burke-Gilman Trail, I noticed a number of “For Lease” signs on shabby old waterfront properties that developers ordinarily treat at tear-downs. Or did, until the economy turned sour and construction loans became hard to find. On the new construction side, where old shacks stood last summer, many nice new homes are nearing completion at just the wrong time. Good luck finding buyers, and good luck to buyers looking for mortgages. Farther north, along the Sammamish Slough, I’ve always loved the old canal-side trailer home parks: affordable housing just beyond the city limits. But in recent years, three-car garage McMansions have lately been encroaching there in Bothell. One in particular caught my eye today, looking something like the model pictured above: Half-finished, “For Sale” sign stuck in the mud out front, a couple of contractor dudes standing around idly. It looked like the project had run out of money mid-way through the project. And now they were looking to unload it, cheap. I almost stopped to see what price they were asking. But, with $10 emergency money in my pocket, I was worried I might be tempted to make an offer–and that they might accept.