Your Advocate in Real Estate for SW Washington State

Residential Real Estate Services with Passion, Integrity, Knowledge

Maple Valley Fixer — Soooo Serene!

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Looking for serenity and quiet? The hooting of an owl serenaded us while taking these house photos! Backed by the Cedar River Watershed and edged by an empty lot, this home is perfectly sited for a peaceful retreat after a long day!

The current owner is a mason and her skillful tile work is evident throughout the house and yard. You’ll need to finish up much of the home. As an example, the master bedroom remodel was started years ago, but circumstances didn’t allow completion. The home needs flooring, windows, furnace or wall heaters, kitchen cabinets & counters, trimwork, and more.

But when done, in addition to your lovely home, you’ll have a huge back patio perfect for entertaining, a circular driveway, lovely lush plantings, and the space to park all your toys. No homeowner association here!

Click Here to see the Virtual Tour

Baseball & Babies, It Just Doesn’t Get Any Cuter!

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For the last month or so I’ve been assisting a wonderful couple find a new home. As we’ve gotten to know each other, I was delighted to find that not only are they the parents of darling little Noah, they were huge Ken Griffey, Jr. fans. In fact, the first time I chatted with them prior to their move to Washington, Dad was absolutely certain that four-month old Noah already knew how to play catch!

As the proud grandma of our own little Tyler, just one month ahead of Noah, I decided it was time to get baseball hats for the both of them, which lead to a pair of tickets for my relocated clients. The hats were HUGE on both of the boys, but little Noah loved the game!

Certified Short Sale and Foreclosure Resource

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I recently completed requirements by the National Association of Realtors to receive certification as a Short Sale and Foreclosure Resource, although I’ve been assisting buyers and sellers of these types of properties since 2004.

Taking the certification class was a fascinating experience – of the group of approximately 50 agents present, fewer than 30% of the agents had ever handled either the buyer or seller side of a short sale property! Wow, where have they been and how on earth are they still in business?

When questioned about where they work, well over half of the agents at the class focused on the east and northeast sides of King County – i.e., Bellevue, Redmond, Issaquah, Sammamish, etc., where short sale and bank owned properties aren’t as prevalent as they are in my practice areas. (Briefly, a short sale property is identified in our MLS as one where a property’s sale price is less than its outstanding indebtedness and some sort of negotiation, concession and/or approval is needed by the lien holder(s) before a sale can be completed.)

These types of transactions – for BOTH Sellers and Buyers – require considerably more experience and expert handling than do “regular” purchases and sales (whatever those are – I’ve almost forgotten!). From our informal classroom survey, it’s possible than over 70% of agents in our area have never handled a short sale or bank-owned property!!

Therefore, when you find yourself in need of help – or know someone who does – buying or selling short sale or foreclosure properties, call an experienced agent! I can be reached by phone at 206.300.8421 or by e-mail at gabrielle@gabriellenemes.com.

Amazing View and Fantastic Home — All in One!

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This unique Northwest home has so many things to offer!

The main living area with kitchen, dining room (centrally located by the kitchen and living room), and living room is open and spacious — perfect for family & friend gatherings. There are two bedrooms on the main level and one full bath. Upstairs is a fabulous master suite, while the lower level offers a large family room, 1/2 bath and huge bonus room. There is a two-car garage plus two-car carport, wonderful yard, and view like no other.

Call to see this home today!

Listing courtesy Geri Wehry of RE/MAX Select R.E.

Price Reduced! — I need a little work … but

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There’s GREAT potential here. A little TLC and you’ll have a wonderful home. Vaulted ceilings in living room, skylight over the stairs. Downstairs rec-room, plus a 1/2 bath. Big lot on greenbelt, plus HUGE 4-car tandum garage!

listing included courtesy of Dawn Rushton, RE/MAX Select R.E.

Want to Sell Your House Fast?

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Drop the price!

The first two months of sales data in the greater Auburn, Washington tell the story perfectly — Want or Need to Sell Your Home Fast? — Drop The Price! Or at least price it within the range of those houses that are actually selling:

Granted, this little chart only shows three months of home sale activity in the greater Auburn area, but it clearly reflects that homes sell faster when they are nearer the lower end of the pricing spectrum.

Here you can see that the average home listing price is above $300,000, but the average price for home sales that actually closed (i.e., made it all the way to the exchange of keys!) was in the low-mid $200,000 range. It’s further telling that homes in those upper dollar amounts for Auburn, stay on the market longer than those than ultimately are priced in the lower $200’s — 100+ days compared to 58 days and 82 days.

It’s important to remember that “Solds” are a result of homes that went Pending 30-60 days prior.

So ……

Compare the number of days for houses that went pending in December to those that closed in February. For houses that sold in December, one would need to compare the days on market for those that went pending in October or November.

And I’m thinking that the closed prices in March will be higher too! Look at the pending $$ for February! (Yeah, I know, I get excited about these things ……………..)

Bank Rejected our Offer, Then Auctioned

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Sometimes the decisions of banks make absolutely no sense in the short sale world. The bank rejected a solid offer on this house, then auctioned it for significantly less money. Go figure.

With almost 2000 square feet, you’ll love this rambler home with step-up bonus room in Timber Hills! Walk through the front door to the living, dining, kitchen, family, and laundry rooms, plus three bedrooms.  In the master suite are an extra-long closet and recently updated ¾ bath with tile floor & walk-in shower.

Just four steps up and above the garage, is a huge 440 square foot bonus room, which could also be a very generous 4th bedroom with two deep walk-in closets. Don’t miss the pull-down attic stairs in the hallway leading to additional storage space! The home’s lower level is entirely comprised of an extra-deep double-door garage with openers, workbenches, shelves and storage.

Sliders just off the dining room lead to the fenced back yard, wonderful large deck with built-in benches, and patio. With minor repairs & new carpets, this home will be perfect for years of living. Offered as a short-sale property and priced to sell!

Welcome to Real Estate!

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While driving between appointments a couple days ago, I called my daughter to check up on grandbaby Tyler. The car and traffic was quiet and it was a nice break in an otherwise hectic day. After learning about the latest baby accomplishments, inevitably we drifted into what my day had been like and what I was up to at the moment. To me, it was just another day … going to a vacant listing to meet with a plumber after water was found all over the kitchen floor.

I was struck by her comment “Mom, you’re always out there taking care of other people’s houses. I can’t believe you do that. It seems like they should be doing this stuff themselves.” My response was “Welcome to Real Estate!”

Thinking back, my open-ended job description has changed significantly over the last two-three years. Is this a result of the “economy?” A result of my own changing standards and desire to be of help to folks? Or just laziness by allowing myself to get sucked-into agree to tasks that maybe could be delegated. Hmmmmmmm

Certainly my business profile has changed:

  • Most of the homes I list and market are vacant. Used to be they were almost never empty!
  • The majority of my listings are the result of financial distress on the part of their owners.
  • The majority of the Buyers I assist have never owned a home before.
  • Most of the Buyers are young, just starting out in their real estate ownership lives.
  • A significant chunk of my business (almost 40%) comes from internet exposure.
  • Nothing is fast — not the marketing time of a listing, nor the “finding a house and closing the sale” time with a Buyer.

So what does that mean to the actual “practice” of real estate?

Well, it means that my job description continues to evolve. Buyers don’t jump as fast at a great house — we have to see lots of houses. And then once a house is identified, an offer is accepted, inspections are negotiated and completed, the whole nightmare of completing all of the financing tasks comes into play. Let’s see, over the last half-dozen Buyer clients I’ve had to:

  • Run to a Buyer relative’s home to pick up copies of bank statements and send them to the loan officer. Why me? Well, the Buyers got called away on a family emergency and somebody had to do this now!
  • Go to the local IRS office to try to get copies of tax returns when an underwriter demanded real copies at the last minute.
  • Attended a oh dear! super fun septic inspection in the pouring rain only to find out that the pump didn’t work.
  • Negotiated payment for the septic repair over a period of a week and ran it around to all of the various parties because, gee, we were already a week past closing and the bank was threatening to pull our short sale approval.
  • And on and on ……….

Sellers generally need help. They need hand-holding. Some of them are desperate. Most are anxious:

  • I spent the better part of a day mucking out a garage and yard. Why? Well, it needed to be done and the Seller was totally unable.
  • Met repair people at vacant listings!
  • Helped move extra furniture out of the house and into storage because … well, I have a truck available and these two single gals had no idea what I meant when I said “pack!”
  • Supervised the cleaning of gutters
  • Picked up replacement locks and had them changed out.
  • Bought food for an abandoned fish pond and cleaned it out.
  • Above all, I’ve listened and listened and listened to their anxieties.

Now WHY should an agent bother with this? My response is always … because it has to be done. Somebody has to do this. To serve my clients well, the house needs to be sold/bought, they need help to be on their way to their next step in life, to be their ear, sometimes to encourage, sometimes to nag. To serve my clients, I am their trusted advisor, their “do-er,” the one to whom they look when there are snags along the way … and sometimes even after the transaction closes.

It all comes down to service. Real Estate is a service business.

Welcome to Real Estate!

Watch Your Credit Score If You Do a Loan Modification!

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This morning I was startled to read an article in RIS Media, an information service that scans the news services and gathers articles impacting real estate — for homeowners, buyers and for agents — reporting that Credit Scores are being reduced as much as 100 points for successful Loan Modifications!

Loan Modifications are one avenue that troubled homeowners can take when income levels drop or expenses skyrocket due to unexpected bills such as medical costs. There are a number of different combinations and types of loan modifications available, although I understand that very few loan modifications have actually been successful.

I try to keep an eye out for success stories and, indeed, I know of ONE family that was successful in their quest for lower monthly payments due to a layoff. It took months, lots of frustration, but ultimately they were able to drop their interest rate from the upper “sixes” to about 3%. I’ve talked with a number of potential clients … and now clients … also about their pursuit of loan modifications so that they were able to remain in their homes. These folks just weren’t able to push a loan mod through and finally gave up and listed their homes for sale. A couple actually decided to let the house go back to the bank through foreclosure.

So sad.

RIS reports that homeowners that ARE successful in negotiating a loan modification through private lenders are now finding credit score reductions up to 100 points! That’s certainly causes a significant impact on the homeowner’s ability to obtain future credit at a reasonable rate. Just imagine having a credit score of 750, successfully negotiating a loan modification on your home loan so that you can stay in your house … then finding yourself in a position where you must purchase a new car. Under the scenario RIS reports, your credit score could now be 650 — a real hinderence in obtaining a car loan with a reasonable interest rate!

According to the RIS report, the federal loan modification programs, Making Home Affordable and Home Affordable Modification Program, do not reduce credit scores as the transaction is reported to the credit agencies as a “loan modified under a federal plan” as of Nov. 1. However, if you modify your home loan through a private bank or other lender, your credit score could be impacted significantly.

Click Here to read the entire article … then pay attention: Watch Your Credit Score if You Do a Loan Modification!

 

Get Paid $6,500 to Buy a Home!

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Repeat or Move-Up Home Buyer — Get Paid $6,500 to Buy a Home!!

Repeat or Move-Up Home Buyer Tax Credit Eligibility Requirements:
  • Buyers must have owned and lived in their previous home for five consecutive years out of the last eight years and purchase a replacement primary home.
  • The tax credit is equal to 10 percent of the home’s purchase price up to a maximum of $6,500.  Applies to homes priced at $800,000 or less.
  • The tax credit is available for homes purchased after November 6, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010.  In cases where a binding sales contract is signed by April 30, 2010, the home purchase qualifies for the tax credit provided the sale is completed (closed) by June 30, 2010.
  • Single taxpayers with incomes up to $125,000 and married couples with incomes up to $225,000 qualify for the full tax credit.
Top 5 Reasons it is a Great Time for Repeat and/or Move-Up Buyers To Purchase a Home:
  1. You are buying a home today that doesn’t have inflated equity
  2. You don’t have to sell your current home to qualify for the Tax Credit (although you would need to qualify for both house payments, if applicable)
  3. You have sellers willing to pay your closing costs and possibly buy-down already great interest rates
  4. You are in the first true “Buyers” Market in nearly 8 years and have the largest selection of homes in 15 years
  5. The current downturn in house pricing as well as low interest rates could allow you to buy homes in neighborhoods that were out of reach two years ago
With rates at an all time low, inventory at an all time high, and a $6,500 tax credit…it’s a GREAT time to buy another home!  Call or email me today to take the first step!
Thanks to Michelle Coolidge of Cobalt Mortgage for this information!