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Need a neighborhood expert for real estate? I’ve got you covered!

Need a neighborhood expert for real estate? I’ve got you covered!

Although I specialize in West Seattle real estate, I help clients buy and sell properties all around the Greater Seattle area: as far north as Everett, as far south as Tacoma, and on the Eastside as well. 

To ensure that I can provide you with expertise concerning neighborhoods outside of West Seattle, I have gathered a network of brokers who specialize in outlying areas such as Federal Way, Bellevue and Maple Valley, to mention just a few. I have carefully vetted each broker in terms of skill, experience and professionalism, so I am working only with the cream of the crop, and so are you!

So, if you, or someone you know wants to check out neighborhoods in:

Kirkland

Bellevue  

Newcastle                 

Issaquah

Bothell                       

Kenmore 

Covington                 

Mercer Island

Ballard

Fremont  

Magnolia 

Bainbridge Island

Queen Anne             

Des Moines               

Burien                       

Maple Valley

Tukwila   

SeaTac                       

Kent                          

Auburn

Renton                      

Puyallup 

Tacoma   

Federal Way

Have I forgotten any? You get the idea.

As I said, if you need hometown expertise when buying or selling real estate in the Pacific Northwest, I’ve got you covered.

Want more information and resources concerning your home and real estate? Visit my agent website: www.SingleMindedRealEstate.com

How’s the Seattle Market in December 2016?

How’s the Seattle Market in December 2016?

We are still firmly situated in a sellers’ market. New (appropriately priced) listings typically sell in less than two weeks. Many receive multiple offers that push the price above asking.

That being said, we are seeing a surprising number of homes stay on the market long enough to require price reductions. Why?

Although it is partly a seasonal phenomenon, the most common reason is that sellers listen to the wrong advice. Friends, neighbors, relatives, co-workers — all think they know what price you should ask for your home. This often results in overpricing, which eventually leads to a price reduction.

That’s why it’s important to hire and work with an experienced Realtor® who will do careful research and provide you with an educated evaluation of your home’s current market value. Better yet, consult two or more Realtors® until you find one you trust and who gives you confidence in your pricing decision.

Posted December 4, 2016

 

Winter “Do’s & Don’ts” for Homeowners

Winter “Do’s & Don’ts” for Homeowners

For all the perks of home ownership, property maintenance is a never-ending job, and each season brings its own list of special chores. Here are a few winter tasks to keep in mind.

DO: Invest in outdoor faucet protectors. Many styles cost less than $2  and are easy to install. Without these covers, cold air can enter your pipes and cause them to burst at the most inconvenient times (not that there is even a convenient time for a pipe to burst). Better yet, wrap any exposed pipes with foam plumbing insulation — also cheap & easy to do.

DON’T… forget to clean out your gutters. Yes, it’s a nasty job and it’s no fun to do, but if your gutters are so full that rain water cascades over them instead of flowing through them, the water is likely to reach your foundation and will eventually cause some serious, expensive damage.
DO: Play detective. Investigate the nooks, crannies, cracks and crevices where cold air can sneak into your house, robbing you of the warm you crave on winter days. The most common offenders are window sills, baseboards, fireplaces and dryer vents. Once you find the culprits, buy a tube of caulk and seal them off.

DON’T… forego a fireplace inspection. A dirty flu won’t just irritate Santa, it may cause a fire you didn’t intend.

DO: Schedule a furnace inspection. Servicing your furnace is NOT a DIY project. Most furnaces have a life expectancy of about 15 years. Failing to service it regularly can reduce that life span by 5 years!
(This next one may surprise you.)

DON’T… level your fridge. Refrigerators have adjustable feet to allow for uneven floors, but you should adjust them so the front feet are slightly higher than the hind feet. That way, the door will never be left open accidentally; it will close itself.

DO:  Invest in a programmable thermostat — or pledge to use the one you already have. Why heat your home when you’re not there?

Want more information and resources concerning your home and real estate? Visit my agent website: www.SingleMindedRealEstate.com

 

Multiple offers from a home seller’s POV

Multiple offers from a home seller’s POV

If you haven’t sold your home recently, you might be interested to hear a bit about what that experience is like in the current Seattle market.

Once a home has been prepped for sale — which takes very little work in such a strong seller’s market — the agent and homeowner agree on a list price based on sales of comparable properties. This is easier said than done when homes are selling so quickly at ever-escalating prices.

If the agent and seller anticipate multiple offers, they often set an offer review date. That date is usually 5-7 days after the home goes on the market. This strategy typically nets a higher sale price for the seller than if they accept the first offer that comes in.

Appropriately priced homes in West Seattle currently receive anywhere from 3 to 15 offers that meet or exceed the list price and are not contingent on inspection. I.e., buyers have either pre-inspected the property or waived inspection. This essentially results in “As Is” sales.

It is not unusual to receive all-cash offers and/or offers with down payments of 30-50%.

The agent then prepares an analysis of all the offers to determine which are the strongest.You may be surprised to hear that the highest offer price doesn’t always constitute the strongest offer.

Each agent goes about this analysis in their own way. My process consists of creating a spreadsheet showing a side-by-side comparison of the offers on 24 separate criteria!  

A “strong” offer is one that has the best chance of closing quickly and without incident. For instance, if there is a loan involved, the lender should have a good track record for closing on time. The chosen offer will typically have a combination of a high purchase price, reliable financing, and a contract with few, if any, contingencies (i.e. “outs” for the buyer).

The seller also wants to ensure that the buyer will go through with the purchase even if the house does not appraise for the full amount of the offer price. This means that the buyer has the financial means to pay the difference between the appraised value and the offer price, in cash.

Once buyers and sellers have reached Mutual Acceptance — and disappointed the 2 to 14 other buyers — the sale will usually close in 30-45 days when a loan is involved, or as quickly as one week for an all cash sale.

After that, the seller often gets to experience the process in reverse, which is why many homeowners are reluctant to sell.

Any questions? Comments?

If you are ready to buy or sell, give me a call at 206-708-9800

Posted 4/1/16

A bubble or a balloon?

A bubble or a balloon?

As home prices continue to escalate at a mind-boggling rate, the big question among real estate professionals these days is whether or not this constitutes another bubble. Leading economists seem united in their response that it is not. Their reasoning has to do with governmental safe guards that have been put in place to further regulate the banking industry. “Liar loans” (i.e. loans based on non-verifiable resources/assets) are a thing of the past, they say, so only people who can actually pay their mortgages are getting loans. Furthermore, the irrefutable law of supply and demand will keep prices on the rise.

As average home buyers get priced out of Seattle’s core, they are trading increased commuting times for lower housing costs by purchasing homes north and south of Seattle. However, it seems obvious that this is not a sustainable solution either. We will eventually reach a tipping point where the trade-off no longer makes sense.

Getting back to the question of whether or not we are heading for another housing bubble, perhaps a better analogy is a balloon. Although a balloon can certainly burst, it has an obvious and controllable source of inflation. If you stop adding air, it simply stops getting bigger. Buyers do not have unlimited amounts of money to spend on home purchases. Once the bidding warriors run out of money, prices will have to stabilize.

While competition for a limited supply of homes will undoubtedly keep prices high, at some point, the rate of increase will have to decelerate and market value will become easier to determine. This may be a long way off, however.

The good news is that the balloon scenario is unlikely to result in the recessionary drop in home values we saw in 2007. Rather than seeing their equity disappear, homeowners will simply see much more modest and reasonable gains.

Once again, real estate proves to be a solid investment over time.

I welcome your questions and comments.

Posted November 2, 2015

How hot is the Seattle real estate market?

How hot is the Seattle real estate market?

"Old" house
Sold in 4 days.
Sold in 5 days.

 

Here’s a story that will illustrate how quickly homes sell in the Seattle area right now.

My clients, N & E, called me on January 6th to discuss the possibility of selling their North Beacon Hill home in order to buy a new one that better met their changing needs.

After identifying and completing some minor tasks needed to get their home ready for market, they listed it with me on Thursday, Feb. 13th.

By Sunday, Feb. 16th, we had 5 offers; each buyer had invested in a pre-inspection so they could submit their offers without a inspection contingencies. The next day, N & E (digitally) signed one of the offers while they were vacationing in Hawaii! When they got back to town the following Sunday, we went house shopping for them.

That night, we found their perfect home. It had only been on the market for 2 days. The next day we wrote an offer…and so did 2 other prospective buyers. Happily, we won out and the sale closed on March 21st.

If you’re counting, that’s 13 days from putting their house on the market to signing an offer on their new house, and just 27 days from listing their old home to closing on their new home.

Give me a call if you’d like to discuss your options. 206-708-9800.

Posted by Alice Kuder on April 16, 2014