Windermere Woodinville Blog

Noticed how many papers you have to fill out to do most anything?

Have you bought a new car and ended signing enough paper to burn a wet mule?

How about all the paper in a home purchase transaction?  You can see the Redwood forests disappearing.

Even going to the doctor ends with lots of paperwork.  How many privacy act disclosures do we need?

Do we every read all this stuff? 

Nope.  Most of us sign without reading.

We are burying ourselves in paper for no good purpose.

Can we get control of the paperwork overload?

There is the U.S. Government Reduction in Paperwork Act.  Itself, this Act runs hundreds of pages.

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Seattle Times – June 23

“Nationwide home sales may have finally hit bottom, new data shows, but a host of thorny problems are hindering any recovery.

“Home sellers are still competing against a growing number of bargain-priced foreclosures, buyers are paying higher mortgage rates and new rules for property appraisers are delaying or scuttling many deals.”

A related problems comes with using REO (bank owned sales) as comparable properties in appraisal work.  The REO property is offered at a reduced price that tends to drag down the value and estimates on private re-sales.  Why are REO’s lower?  Because the banks try to lay off all costs on the buyer, including excise tax and unpaid property taxes.  And, of course, the bank owned properties are always “as is.”

Appraisers should take this into account when using REO properties as comps.  Their prices are skewed low because the buyers pick up so much of the cost to get into them.

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King County Statistics
(Care of Commonwealth Title)

Residential sales volume for May 2009 increased 16% from April 2009

Existing home transactions sold increased 15% in May 2009 from April 2009

Snohomish County Statistics
(Care of Commonwealth Title)

New single family homes units sold in May 2009 are up 30% from April 2009

Attached unit sales up 31% in May 2009 from April 2009

Snohomish is one of the few counties where sales are better in May over April and better than May of last year.

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What a fantastic State is our native Washington.

  The Inland Empire stands in stark and beautiful contrast to the West Side.

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Inventory shrinking, sales rising, prices stabilizing in some NWMLS areas

“NWMLS, Kirkland, WA, June 4, 2009. Waiting longer to buy a home is not likely to pay off, according to NWMLS director Kathy Estey after reviewing reports summarizing May activity. Estey pointed to shrinking inventory, double-digit increases in the number of pending sales, solid open house activity, and signs of stabilizing prices as indicators of an improving market.”

Thanks for considering our blog.  And thank you Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

Return of the Balanced Market Based on Months Supply of Inventory Analysis

We start with May 2008 for King and Snohomish Counties – a green Buyer’s market

We look at February 2009 for King and Snohomish – still a Buyer’s market but more yellow (balanced).

We look at May 2009 – balanced market returns and the “red” (Seller’s market) emerges in Seattle areas.

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Never loses its timely message on how to live.

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• Windermere will join forces with the Washington Association of Realtors and the Seattle-King County Realtors in the first ever state-wide open house weekend, June 27th and 28th. 
• From Sequim to Spokane to Walla Walla to Bellingham and everywhere in between  agents throughout the state will get on board and have an open houses the same weekend of June 27th and 28th.

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