The Seattle Office of Emergency Management is offering skills training for critical tasks that would need to be done in the case of a major disaster. Training in disaster first aid and light search and rescue will be given free of charge in April and May. Below is the announcement. Register early as these free classes typically fill up fast.
Click on announcement below for larger view.
For more information on emergeny preparedness give us a call.
Seattle area real estate levels are at a critical low for home buyers. As we move into the Spring 2013 home buying season, the amount of homes for sale will be less than half of those available in the Spring 2012 market. The culmination of low inventory and low interest rates have pushed our market into a buying frenzy with a high percentage of homes for sale entering multiple offers.
Check out Seattle real estate market statistics HERE.
If you are looking for a new home or would like usful advice about selling your home, give us a call, we are ready to assist you in the competitive real estate market.
By Peter Weber, Homestead Hounds Home Inspection Services.
Viewing this presentation is highly recommended for anyone that isn't quite sure of what is/isn't inspected on a standard home inspection & was made to inform consumers & real estate professionals about what to expect from your home inspector. The information given on this video was taken and edited from the WA Standards of Practice; that all WA licensed home inspectors must practice at the minimum requirements created by WA state legislature.
View Video Presentaion HERE.
For more information about home inspections contact us today.
By Peter Weber, Homestead Hounds Home Inspection Services.
Buying a home? The process can be stressful. A home inspection is supposed to give you peace of mind, but it often has the opposite effect. You will be asked to absorb a lot of information over a short time. This often includes a written report, checklist, photographs, environmental reports, and what the inspector himself says during the inspection. All this combined with the seller's disclosure and what you notice yourself make the experience even more overwhelming. What should you do?
Relax. Inspectors are professionals, and if yours is a member of InterNACHI, then you can trust that he/she is among the most highly trained in the industry. Most of your inspection will be related to maintenance recommendations and minor imperfections. These are good to know about. However, the issues that really matter will fall into four categories:
1. Major defects: An example of this would be a structural failure;
2. Things that lead to major defects: a small roof-flashing leak, for example;
3. Things that may hinder your ability to finance, legally occupy, or insure the home.
4. Safety hazards, such as an exposed, live buss bar at the electric panel.
Anything in these categories should be addressed. Often, a serious problem can be corrected inexpensively to protect both life and property (especially in categories 2 and 4).
Most sellers are honest and are often surprised to learn of defects uncovered during an inspection. Realize that sellers are under no obligation to repair everything mentioned in the report. No home is perfect. Keep things in perspective. Do not kill your deal over things that do not matter. It is inappropriate to demand that a seller address deferred maintenance, conditions already listed on the seller's disclosure, or nit-picky items.
Viewing this presentation is highly recommended for anyone that isn't quite sure of what is/isn't inspected on a standard home inspection & was made to inform consumers & real estate professionals about what to expect from your home inspector. The information given on this video was taken and edited from the WA Standards of Practice; that all WA licensed home inspectors must practice at the minimum requirements created by WA state legislature.
For more information about home inspections contact us today.
By Dian Hymer, Monday, March 4, 2013.Inman News®
At some point, you may find that your home doesn't work well for you anymore. You may need more space or a reconfiguration of the floor plan. The decision to remodel or move can be relatively easy in some cases and difficult in others.
In one example, homeowners in Berkeley, Calif., needed more space for their growing family. They looked at more expensive houses to buy instead of facing the hassle of renovating. They discovered that they couldn't afford to buy a larger home in a prime location. But they could afford to add enough space to their home to make it work for them. Luckily, their home was already in their preferred location.
Since they owned one of the smaller homes in the neighborhood, they could afford to invest in an expansion without overimproving for the neighborhood. They intended to stay in the home indefinitely.
Another couple with children, living in an Oakland, Calif., neighborhood they liked, talked to an architect about redesigning the space in their home to make it more user-friendly for their family. The plan didn't give them exactly what they wanted. However, it would be an improvement over the existing floor plan, but at great expense.
If you are considering moving or improving, give us a call, we can help you determine what may work best for you!
![sanctuary[1]](http://www.broadviewseattle.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/sanctuary1.jpg "13047 Greenwood Ave. N")
13047 Greenwood Ave. N
Seattle, WA 98133
206-364-2510
Luther Memorial Church are once again offering free garden plots on a first come, first served basis to anyone interested in a space to garden! There are no strings attached (unless beans are growing up ‘em)….we are just trying to be good neighbors! The soil has been fertilized (sermon jokes are appropriate here), we have free garden tools for your use, and you can water from our rain barrels.
For more information, visit our website atwww.luthermemorialseattle.
For more information about the Seattle Broadview neighborhood and why is such a great place to live, call.
Real estate has taken a hard hit along with the economy the past couple of years, with varying inventory and interest rates fluctuating often. This past quarter has shown an improvement in low interest rates as well as inventory. As sales rise, prices rise along with them, opening up the opportunity for growth in real estate.
Lower inventory rates are better for the market. When the market was struggling, there were too many houses for the level of demand. Now that the inventory rate is lowering, more people are purchasing real estate which will cause an increase in home pricing, but only modestly. Lower inventory also pushes people to widen their budget and expand their home search to new areas they weren’t considering before. 51% of buyers started looking in other areas because of the lower inventory, and 34% of buyers said they were willing to increase their budgets.
Inventory levels haven’t been as low as they were for February since 1985, with the average days on the market up slightly. There have been more property closings in February than in the previous month. Purchasing a home is a bargain compared to renting because houses are roughly 30% below their peak prices.
Interest rates are lower, with a national average of 3.53%. As the economy grows, interest rates will stabilize. Lower interest rates help new home buyers and bad credit owners get the money they need and be able to afford the payments on the real estate property. Borrowing costs are down 20% and mortgage rates are at an all-time low. As the year progresses, interest rates are expected to stay low with the inventory levels.
With lower interest rates and lower inventory, now is the time to jump into real estate and buy. This year will continue to make improvements in the real estate market, with more buyers and lower inventory to make prices rise moderately.
About the Author:
Florida Realty Group is pleased to bring you this informative article. They primarily specialize in luxury homes, condominiums and townhomes located throughout south Florida. Florida Realty focuses largely in Fort Lauderdale Real Estate and Coral Springs Real Estate areas.
If you are considering buying or selling a Seattle area home, give us a call, we would love to talk with you today.
Looking for a neighborhood preschool that engages your child, keeps you involved, and supports families? Then check out Broadview Co-op Preschool! We are currently enrolling for the 2013-2014 school year for children who are age 1 to 4 by August 31st, 2013.
Join us for a fun Open House on Saturday, March 9th, 2013, from 10:00 AM to Noon. Children are welcome! You’ll have a chance to meet Teacher Charlotte and take a tour of our classroom. We’ll have engaging activities for the children and refreshments for all.
At Broadview Co-op, you join your child in our classroom one day a week in class, serving as a teacher assistant. Your child has the opportunity to learn in a classroom setting while developing social skills and a positive self-concept by interacting with peers and adults. Parents have the opportunity of seeing their child learn in a classroom setting while learning about child development and tackling parenting issues with the support of our professional parent educators from North Seattle Community College.
Our amazing preschool teachers deliver high-quality early child education through age-appropriate, play-based learning. We have a large inventory of learning materials in our brightly lit classroom, and a private outdoor play space that includes a climbing structure, riding toys, sandbox, and large motor skill area for running and riding trikes.
We are located at:
Grace Lutheran Church
11051 Phinney Ave N
Seattle, WA 98133
(The southeast corner of Greenwood Avenue North and 112th Street NW.)
Registration for the 2013-2014 school year is Saturday, March 16th, at happening at North Seattle Community College or directly through a Parent Coordinator at Broadview Co-op Preschool.
Come discover why families love Broadview Co-op Preschool. For more information, please call (206) 363-6744 or visit tinyurl.com/broadviewco-op.
The real estate market is alive and well! The multiple offers we are seeing on so many listings is proof of that. With resurgence in our market comes a rapid decline in inventory. One of my clients recently reported that they had over 50 groups in their open house and that they expected over 10 offers on this property. I am hearing this kind of scenario all day long.
Multiple offers are now as common as foreclosures and short sales used to be.
So what does this mean for buyers and sellers? Should sellers line up to sell to take advantage of this? Should buyers sit at home and wait until the crowds die down? That entirely depends on the motivation of both the buyer and seller and their particular reason for buying or selling.
Typically in a low inventory market this means that a seller will sell their home for more AND a buyer will pay more. Does this mean then that a buyer shouldn’t be buying right now? ABSOLUTELY NOT! With the current interest rates hovering around an all-time low it is absolutely still a fantastic time to buy real estate. And while most buyers might cringe at the price they may have to pay if competing in a multiple offer situation, they could possible cringe more if they waited to buy and interest rates went up.
In a market like we have now both buyers and sellers have to look very closely at the pros and cons of being in the market now. A seller might ask why would they want to list now if the inventory is so low. Doesn’t that mean house prices would go up because of the lack of inventory? While this seems like a good assumption there are many variables that make that kind of speculating just that … speculation. Nobody knows for sure what the interest rates are going to do tomorrow, so sellers and buyers need to look at their particular situations very carefully.
If a seller needs to sell but they want to hold off in the event inventory gets any lower they may also be holding off long enough to see an increase in interest rates which could cause the buyer pool to diminish. The question becomes whether or not that seller wants to speculate or if they want to be in the market as it is today. A “sure thing” today may not get sellers a speculated increase tomorrow. Perhaps the stars will align tomorrow, but today’s market it is a sure thing. Sellers and buyers must look at an analysis of what it looks like to buy or sell today and what it could look like to buy or sell in the future – looking at how differing market conditions (such as changing interest rates and inventory) might affect the market for that property.
Buyers need to know that we are still at an all-time high affordability rate and we have historically low interest rates. While they may be paying higher than they wanted if they have to compete in a multiple offer situation, what they save with the low interest rate will quickly make up for that over time.
Sellers need to know that while the market seems to be in their favor right now it does not mean that this is going to last forever … or things could improve even more. The decision to sell needs to be about more than just speculation and playing the market.
Ultimately both buyers and sellers are winning right now in what appears to be the perfect storm for both buyers and sellers. As an agent giving advice, present the facts about the market now and help paint a picture of a future with a number of scenarios so buyers and sellers can check their tolerance for risk and make a decision.
If you are feeling overwhelmed by today's real estate market, give us a call and let us help remove the stress you may be feeling right now.
By: Tom Kelly, MyNorthwest.com
Local real estate agents are reporting that the market has officially swung to the sellers' side with demand for homes far outpacing supply.
While closed sales in February jumped more than 9 percent from a year ago and median sales prices are up 13 percent, low inventories are hampering activity, according to new figures from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
"In my 37 years working in the real estate industry, I have never seen inventory this low," said Diedre Haines, regional managing broker for Coldwell Bank Bain-Snohomish County and a member of the Northwest MLS board of directors.
According to the NWMLS, the median price for single family homes (excluding condos) was $255,000, up about 11.4 percent from the year-ago figure of $229,000. Homes in King County commanded a median price of $365,000, rising from $308,125 for a year-over-year gain of about 18.5 percent.
Condo prices jumped 22.7 percent area wide (from $150,000 to $184,000) and more than 31 percent in King County, which accounted for nearly two-thirds of the transactions. Condos that sold last month in King County had a median selling price of $210,000; a year ago it was $159,950.
The number of active listings system-wide is down 29 percent from a year ago, with three counties reporting even more contraction: Snohomish County (-47.7 percent); King County (-45.3 percent); and Clark County (-44.7 percent).
Compounding the shortage is the fact that about one-fourth of the MLS inventory is classified as "distressed," meaning they are short sales or bank-owned. Such homes are sometimes in need of significant repairs or have prolonged transaction times, which may make them less desirable.
"The market is struggling to provide enough inventory for anxious buyers seeking to take advantage of low interest rates," said Dick Beeson, principal managing broker of RE/MAX Professionals in Tacoma. Also, he said, considering 25 percent of the selection is distressed, "It leaves some buyers with tough choices."
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