http://eastsidehomelink.com/The latest News and Information to expose the housing market in the Eastside of King County, Washington.en-usFri, 06 Mar 2009 13:56:00 GMT10GDRSSFeeds v1.0http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/03/06/the-latest-numbers<div>The NWMLS released the statistics for the month of February. I thought I would share some of them with you. It's not all bad.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <table style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; border-collapse: collapse;" width="529" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" height="202"> <col style="width: 144pt;" width="192"> <col style="width: 83pt;" width="110"> <col style="width: 79pt;" width="105"> <col style="width: 68pt;" width="91"> <tbody> <tr style="height: 19.5pt; font-weight: bold; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 16pt;" height="26"> <td colspan="3" style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; height: 19.5pt; width: 306pt;" width="407" height="26">King County Statistics, Residential</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; width: 68pt;" width="91"><br /> </td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">&nbsp;</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">February 2009</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">Last February</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">Last month</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">New Listings</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">2736</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">3256</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">3149</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Total Active Listings</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">9525</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">9875</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">9006</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Pending Listings</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">1264</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">1609</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">1159</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Closed Listings</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">661</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">1148</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">674</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Average Sold Price</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$473,517 </td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$531,447 </td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$453,118 </td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Median Sold Price</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$375,000 </td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$429,900 </td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$382,500 </td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Average Time on Market</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">87 Days</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">81 Days</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">89 Days</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <div><br /> </div> <div>I'll tell you straight up that the prices are not what interest me the most. Sure, they are critical. However, they are what they are at this point in time. We are all looking to the future for better news. With that in mind, I think the various listing numbers and days on market numbers are of more importance to me. They will determine how the market and prices behave in the future.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>I love that the February new listings are down compared to both last year and last month. This is a time of year that the sellers are looking to get their houses on the market for a sale prior to the summer. Seeing a smaller number of new listings on the market is encouraging from the supply and demand perspective. The total number of listings is higher than last month, but lower than this time last year which is a bit conflicting. However, the number I like the most though is the number of listings that are pending. Not all of these will close in the next 30 days, but it is a great indicator of how many homes may close in the next 30 days. Compare the number of pendings, 1264, to the number of closed units, 661. This is a great direction for the market to be going and reflects the increased activity level I am seeing from my clients day to day. The average time on market has also begun to come down slightly since last month. It is a small change... but I'll take it as it is, again, a good trend.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>I pulled up the same set of numbers for the East of Lake Sammamish area as well.</div> <div> <table style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; border-collapse: collapse;" width="579" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" height="210"> <col style="width: 144pt;" width="192"> <col style="width: 83pt;" width="110"> <col style="width: 79pt;" width="105"> <col style="width: 68pt;" width="91"> <tbody> <tr style="height: 19.5pt; font-family: Verdana; font-weight: bold; font-size: 16pt;" height="26"> <td colspan="4" style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; height: 19.5pt; width: 374pt;" width="498" height="26">East of Lake Sammamish (Area 540), Residential</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">&nbsp;</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">February 2009</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">Last February</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">Last month</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">New Listings</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">192</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">256</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">225</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Total Active Listings</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">774</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">814</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">725</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Pending Listings</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">64</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">134</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">77</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Closed Listings</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">53</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">100</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">40</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Average Sold Price</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$595,630 </td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$637,500 </td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$536,967 </td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Median Sold Price</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$464,701 </td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$597,444 </td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #dbe5f1 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">$495,000 </td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Average Time on Market</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">124 Days</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">79 Days</td> <td style="border: 1px dotted #7f7c75; background: #b8cce4 none repeat scroll 0% 0%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Verdana; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">99 Days</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The trends here at this detail level are pretty consistent with King County as a whole. The exception to me is the number of pending listings. That number is down from both last year and last month and indicates we might see a smaller number of closings next month. Similarly, the average time on market is higher which is not a trend I like at all. <br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Got an area that you would like me to pull the detailed numbers for? Just shoot me an email or give me a call and I'll jump on it.&nbsp;</div> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/03/06/the-latest-numbers" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/03/06/the-latest-numbers#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/03/06/the-latest-numbersFri, 06 Mar 2009 13:56:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/02/05/banks-heal-thyself<div>As my broker will tell you... I can talk. I can talk about almost anything. While he gets on my case about it, there is a positive side to it. I talk to my colleagues daily about what they are seeing in the market. What are the new trends? The hidden gotchas? The daily frustrations? What great houses have they seen lately? What agent made a goofy mistake in entering a listing in the MLS?</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Anything.</div> <div><br /> </div> <div>I also sit on the Windermere Standards of Practice board where we, you guessed it, talk. We talk primarily about how to make ourselves and Windermere better agents and better brokerages. About six to eight months ago the question of short sales, bank owned properties, and foreclosures was almost a non-issue. At that time, very few (if any) of the agents on that board were specifically targeting distressed homes in the business practices. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>However, there has been a change in the market and, not surprisingly, in my conversations. Both in&nbsp; my day to day chats with colleagues and on the Standards of Practice board the conversation has definitely changed to how to deal with these properties. What that really means is that we have a conversation on how to deal with the banks that hold the loan.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>You see, the sad part of this is that the owners of these properties are no longer making the decisions about selling their own properties anymore. The banks are making the decision... sort of. Check this story out. <span style="font-size: 8pt;">(The complete CNNMoney.com article can be found <a style="color: #0000ff;" target="_blank" href="http://money.cnn.com/2009/02/03/real_estate/foreclosures_dominate_housing_market/index.htm">here</a>.)</span></div> <blockquote> <div> <p>One example of how price declines can doom a short sale occurred recently in Phoenix. Curtis Johnson, a real estate broker there, worked with a health care worker whose hours were being cut and who could no longer afford her mortgage. She fell behind and decided to sell.</p> <p>Johnson was able to find a buyer willing to pay $183,000, and got an approval from the lender. The owner confidently moved out, got a new place and started a new life. But the lender folded and the mortgage went to a new servicer, who took six weeks to approve the deal.</p> <p>"Unfortunately, the buyers who were approved were no longer interested because the real estate market had dropped significantly," Johnson said. "They wrote a new offer, considerably lower then the first, and it was time to start over."</p> <p>Two more offers eventually fell through before a new buyer was found and the owner's bank approved the price, this time at $163,000. On the day of that closing, however, the parties discovered that the buyer's lender had run out of funds and dropped out of the deal. The home went to foreclosure auction before another sale could be arranged.</p> <p>The house is now on the market for $139,900.</p> <p>"[The house is] listed for less than what would have been received had the bank been willing to work with us, and still has not yet sold," Johnson said.</p> </div> </blockquote> <div>I have heard so many versions of this story from my colleagues. It seems most agents have now experienced this story personally in one way or another. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>This is a big issue. Really big. I understand that the banks are trying to make good business decisions and get the most money they can for each bad loan. I also understand that many of the banks don't actually own the loan they are just servicing the loan and answer to investors. But, while the banks are running around not making the critical decisions the number of homes on the market continues to grow... pushing the prices down... and the cycle continues to spiral out of control.<br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>There are actually buyers out there. So, it seems to me breaking this cycle has to start with the banks. They have got to make the critical decision in a timely manner, say overnight, or in 48 hours. No more than you would allow for a non-distressed homeowner to respond to a purchase offer. If the banks can sell these houses and get them off the market, we'll begin to see more buyers enter the market with confidence that the house they are writing an offer on will actually be sold to them and not hung up in red tape for months on end. <br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Just imagine what would happen to home prices and the economy if we had more houses going off the market than coming on the market... <br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>&nbsp;Banks, heal thyself!</strong></div> <div><br /> </div><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/02/05/banks-heal-thyself" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/02/05/banks-heal-thyself#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/02/05/banks-heal-thyselfThu, 05 Feb 2009 10:01:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/02/04/some-good-news<div>I promised some good news after my last complete downer posting. Today, I am here to deliver. This news isn't even what I had in mind back then... but this is good stuff.<br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a style="color: #0000ff;" target="_blank" href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28994648/">This article</a> is a breath of fresh air:<br /> </div> <blockquote> <div>An index that tracks signed contracts to purchase existing homes rebounded in December, as buyers snapped up properties at deep discounts, especially in the South and Midwest.It was the second positive sign in the past two weeks for the troubled U.S. housing market, and may indicate that a bottom is forming - at least for home sales.&nbsp; <br /> </div> </blockquote> <div>In specific, the index of pending home sales released by the National Association of Realtors gained 6.3% from 82.5 in November to 87.7 in December. Additionally, the 87.7 reading represents a 2.1% increase from December 2007. That's right... by this measure, December of 2008 was better than December of 2007.<br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The index does point out that the greatest rebound is happening in the South and Midwest while the Northeast and the West are still seeing modest declines. That doesn't surprise me too much. The Northwest typically lags the national market trends. We were a little late to see the effects of the down turn and I suspect we'll be a little behind a rebound.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a target="_blank" href=" http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/KingCoPriceChange.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/KingCoPriceChange.jpg" vspace="5" width="300" align="right" height="217" hspace="5" /></a>To look at what is going on locally, I put together these graphs from our MLS data. (Click on the image for a larger version.) This first one is the Median Price Change from the previous year in single family homes from King County. All those blue bars in the positive territory were the sweet years. Prices going up by large percentages year after year. In November of 2007 we saw it dip into negative territory representing the first loss in value from the previous year. The losses have piled up and increased through 2008. This graph only goes through December of 2008. The January 2009 data has not been released yet... but that didn't stop me from getting it myself. For all of King County it looks like prices will be down about 10.9% percent compared to January 2008. Not great news. But it is in line with what we have been seeing.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a target="_blank" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/EastsidePriceChange.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/EastsidePriceChange.jpg" vspace="5" width="300" align="left" height="217" hspace="5" /></a>Things look better to me over on the Eastside. As compared to King County as a whole, the highs on the Eastside have been higher and the lows have not been as low. That's all good news. The Eastside also shows a more defined trend of the prices working their way out of the negative territory that they have been in recently. So, how does the Eastside look in January? Not as bad... the official numbers have only been released through December. However, I show that the Eastside numbers are down about 6.7% from last year. Again, I think this shows that there is a trend towards the prices bottoming out.&nbsp; We aren't there yet... but there is light at the end of the tunnel!</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Next up... Banks need to help themselves!<br /> </div><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/02/04/some-good-news" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/02/04/some-good-news#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/02/04/some-good-newsWed, 04 Feb 2009 13:02:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/26/weekly-financial-outlookLooks like this week will bring a lot of economic news. <a style="color: #0000ff;" target="_blank" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM%201-26-09%20Ward_D.pdf">Here's</a> Doug Ward's overview.<P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/26/weekly-financial-outlook" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/26/weekly-financial-outlook#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/26/weekly-financial-outlookMon, 26 Jan 2009 07:40:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/23/factsand-not-facts<div>The bad news is coming in waves again. It all started with the banks, local and national. But, now it is making its way into every other industry in the area.Yesterday, it was <a style="color: #0000ff;" target="_blank" href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/microsoft/2008661458_microsoft23.html">this news</a> about a layoff at Microsoft. Today, it was <a style="color: #0000ff;" target="_blank" href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008663708_webstarbucks23.html">this news</a> about a layoff at Starbucks. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>No numbers have been posted for how many at Starbucks are set to lose their jobs. Over at Microsoft it looks like they have released 872 people locally and 1400 people overall. There are approximately 41,500 local employees and 96,000 worldwide for Microsoft.Those are hard numbers. Facts. <br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>For each and everyone of those folks (and I know several) my heart goes out to you.<br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>What does this do to the local real estate market? On the surface, I don't think it does much. Inevitably there will a few more houses to hit the market in the near future. Some will be in secure financial positions as they sell their house. Some will not be. They will be in danger of&nbsp; foreclosures or short sales. They will be walking away from their dream home, their friends and neighbors, and more.<br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>But if you dig a little deeper, not to minimize the harm to those 872 families, I think there will be a bigger psychological hit to our market. Microsoft announced that there are a further 3600 jobs (not sure how many of them will be local) that will be eliminated in the next 18 months. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Overnight, not only did we lose those local jobs, but now we have an additional 3600 families that are now wondering if their job will disappear in the next 18 months. Anyone that was thinking of taking advantage of the relatively low prices and buying a home... suddenly is not very motivated to do so. No one wants to buy a house that will become a financial anchor around their necks in 18 months. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The few buyers that were out there just hunkered down a little more! That isn't a fact I can measure in hard numbers, but I think it will be just as true in the near future.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>There is good news... more on that next time...<br /> </div><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/23/factsand-not-facts" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/23/factsand-not-facts#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/23/factsand-not-factsFri, 23 Jan 2009 15:30:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/16/when-was-the-last-time<div>...you heard from your Real Estate Agent?</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>No, really. I don't mean the flyers, postcards, or even the occasional email you may get from your agent. I mean, when was the last time you sat down to lunch with him or her? Or when was the last time they came to your doorstep and chatted with you? <br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>I have to admit, I am not good at that myself. Although I am a very social person it just isn't in my nature to actually go to someone's doorstep and chat for 5 minutes.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>That being said, over the last week or two I have been making the rounds of all of my clients from last year. I have personally met face to face with and talked with each and every one of them. I have heard about new business ventures, dysfunctional Home Owner Associations, the joy of living in the new house, everything has come out one way or another. <br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>I vow to be in touch, face to face, with my clients more regularly! <br /> </div><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/16/when-was-the-last-time" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/16/when-was-the-last-time#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/16/when-was-the-last-timeFri, 16 Jan 2009 14:31:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/12/weekly-financial-outlookI'd like to get back in the swing of posting a Doug Ward's weekly look ahead at the financial news to expect. To find the latest report, please click <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM 1-12-09 Ward_D.pdf">here</a>.<P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/12/weekly-financial-outlook" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/12/weekly-financial-outlook#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/12/weekly-financial-outlookMon, 12 Jan 2009 10:33:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/11/more-stats-more-graphs<div>As long as I was knee deep in some statistics I went ahead and generated some more graphs to get a good look at what was going on. Please click on the images for larger, more readable versions.<br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/kingCoAve2008.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/kingCoAve2008.jpg" vspace="5" width="300" align="right" height="217" hspace="5" /></a></div> <div>I have to say, this first graph really surprised me. This is a graph of the average prices of Active (For Sale) homes, in blue, as well as Sold homes, in red, for all of King County.&nbsp; The difference between the For Sale average and the Sold average is not what is surprising. That is typical. What surprises me is that while the average sold price decreased or remained flat from June 2008 on, the average asking price for homes still on the market increased! </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The For Sale Price is simply the Sellers belief of what they think their house is worth. It is one sided. The Sold prices are an exact representation of what the Buyer and the Seller have agreed is the value of their home. During the last several months we have seen major banks failing, car companies fighting for their survival, and talk of recession not seen since the Great Depression of the 20's and 30's. While all that bad news is hitting the airwaves, Sellers collectively have increased their asking price! It makes no sense to me. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>There is a similar trend in the <a target="_blank" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/kingCoAve2007.jpg">2007 graph</a>. Arguably, it is a bit of a seasonal trend. But I don't think that makes up for all the effects of the bad news that we have had this year.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a target="_blank" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/540Ave2008.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/540Ave2008.jpg" vspace="5" width="300" align="left" height="217" hspace="5" /></a>The same graph for 2008 for the East of Lake Sammamish area shows a similar trend in the Seller's asking price (blue). They have trended upwards since May. While the sold prices (red) were largely down for the period, they did jump upwards in November and December. Yes, the <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/540Ave2007.jpg">2007 graph</a> shows a similar trend.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>So how to explain this? It is possible that the average asking price is going up not because there are new high end houses coming on the market but because all the lower priced houses are going off the market. This would result in the average asking price going up, which it does. But, it would also result in the average sold price going down, which it isn't. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/2008-statistics/">median prices</a> have also been increasing slightly over the last few month so I am left with&nbsp; positive thoughts. Buyers are seeing the value in the houses and bank rates have improved. Buyers, if ever slowly, are back in the market. However, I am open to other ideas. I think this winter and spring will be very telling one way or another.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/KingCoInventory.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/KingCoInventory.jpg" vspace="5" width="300" align="right" height="217" hspace="5" /></a><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/540Inventory.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/540Inventory.jpg" vspace="5" width="300" align="right" height="217" hspace="5" /></a></div> <div>Two last graphs to show you. Months of inventory is a great indicator. Imagine if you have 100 homes on the market and you sell 20 of them this month, it indicates that it will take 5 months to sell all the remaining inventory assuming no new houses come on the market. the year 2008, in red, has seen significantly higher months of inventory as compared to 2007, in blue. Buying activity typically picks up in late winter and spring. So, again, the next few months will be very telling on where our market is going long term. There are no real surprises here. 2008 clearly shows longer inventory times compared to 2007. Likewise, the East of Lake Sammamish area tracks very nicely within the larger King County area.&nbsp;</div> <div><br /> </div> <div>Again, if you have specific statistics that you would like to see or statistics on a smaller area... just your neighborhood for example, please let me know.&nbsp; </div><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/11/more-stats-more-graphs" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/11/more-stats-more-graphs#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/11/more-stats-more-graphsSun, 11 Jan 2009 11:11:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/2008-statistics<div><a target="_blank" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/KingCoActivity.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/KingCoActivity.jpg" vspace="5" width="400" align="right" height="291" hspace="5" /></a>I thought I would start off the new year with a review of what the last year looked like. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The graph to to the right is the "For Sale" and "Sold" activity for the last two years on a month to month basis. Click on it to see a larger image. I like this view as it allows you to see the change from year to year (different color lines) as well as from month to month (each individual color). The blue line (2008) and the green line (2007) represent the single family homes on the market in King County. The purple (2007) and red (2008) lines represent how many homes have sold in King County. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>It is no surprise that the 2008 inventory (blue) is higher than the 2007 inventory. But, I was a little surprised to see how closely the last few months of 2008 have matched up to the last few months of 2007. Similarly, the numbers of homes sold (purple and red) for the last several months of 2007 and 2008 also match up nicely. The change just isn't as dramatic as the news media would have you believe.<br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a target="_blank" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/KingCoMedPrice.jpg"><img src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/KingCoMedPrice.jpg" alt="" vspace="5" width="400" align="left" height="290" hspace="5" /></a>Since I know what we really want to see is how the median prices performed over the last two years in King County. I created this graph for you as well. The 2007 prices are represented by the blue line and the 2008 prices are represented by the red line. Again, click on the graph for a larger image. The median represents the middle point of sales. Half the sales are above in price and half are below in price. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>It's interesting to me again that there are a few months where they match up quite closely again. This time, however, it was many months ago at the beginning of the year. More important tome is that the median price has actually trended up, ever so slightly, the last 2 months. December of 2008 is still down compared to 2007, but, it will be very interesting to see how the first few months of this year perform. <br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a target="_blank" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/540Activity.jpg"><img alt="" src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/540Activity.jpg" vspace="5" width="400" align="right" height="290" hspace="5" /></a>King County is a big, diverse place. So, I duplicated the information on the area known as "East of Lake Sammamish". It covers from Lake Sammamish out to the east border of King County and, thus, represents a smaller area of King County that more accurately tracks our plateau neighborhoods. Please, click on the picture for a larger image. <br /> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>As you might expect this graph shows the East of Lake Sammamish neighborhoods followed closely on the trends of the larger King County. While the 2008 numbers are below the 2007 numbers, active listings were down the last few months and solds were up slightly. Both positive trends.</div> <div>&nbsp; <div><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/540MedPrice.jpg"><img src="http://www.eastsidehomelink.com/images/540medprice.jpg" alt="" width="400" align="left" height="290" hspace="5" /></a> </div> <div>Median prices on the East of Lake Sammamish area follow the larger King County trends but are a bit more variable. Prices have trended up again for the last two months and are very similar to where they were at this same time in 2008.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The slight uptick in pricing and matchup of prices are very interesting to me. Perhaps they signal that the market is coming to a point of stability. I don't know and, frankly, I think anyone that does claim to know is on very thin ice. There are just too many uncertainties in the economy out there right now to jump to conclusions.</div> <div><br /> </div> <div>Got any other statistics you would like to see? Curious how your house compares to the averages? Give me a call, 425.785.9217, or send me an <a href="&#109;&#97;&#105;&#108;&#116;&#111;&#58;&#99;&#108;&#111;&#101;&#108;&#105;&#103;&#101;&#114;&#64;&#119;&#105;&#110;&#100;&#101;&#114;&#109;&#101;&#114;&#101;&#46;&#99;&#111;&#109;">email</a> and we can work it out. </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div style="font-size: 10pt;">Note, the graphs are based on NWMLS data deemed to be accurate. Errors may exist but this represents the most up to date information available. <br /> </div> </div> <div> </div><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/2008-statistics" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/2008-statistics#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/2008-statisticsFri, 09 Jan 2009 16:08:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/9-months-ouchWow. A few bank collapses here, a few there, a $750 billion bailout, troubled big three car companies... my how time flies. Nine months since my last post. Unforgivable! I vow to be more consistent this year!<P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/9-months-ouch" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/9-months-ouch#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2009/01/09/9-months-ouchFri, 09 Jan 2009 12:52:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/18/new-listingI am very pleased to announce my latest listing in Copper Hill Square. It is an absolutely wonderful townhouse style <a href="http://www.eastsidehomelink.com/28065234">condo unit</a> in Duvall. <br /> <br /> The unit has vaulted ceilings and a loft. It has territorial views from the master bedroom, designer paint colors. Upgrades include a fan unit for the gas burning fireplace that is sufficient to heat the entire unit and a programmable thermostat to turn the fireplace on and off! The beauty of that arrangement is that the gas is paid for by the home ownership association! <br /> <br /> The complex backs to a shopping center with excellent amenities. The view is of the beautiful Snoqualmie Valley and the commute from Duvall is approximately 15 minutes to Redmond and Microsoft. There are 2 reserved parking spaces deeded with the unit.<br /> <br /> All this for less than $200,000 makes this a great opportunity for the first time home buyer or someone looking for an investment home to rent out. <br /> <br /> Please click <a href="http://www.eastsidehomelink.com/28065234">here</a> to see the details.<br /> <br /> If you would like a private showing please <a href="&#109;&#97;&#105;&#108;&#116;&#111;&#58;&#99;&#108;&#111;&#101;&#108;&#105;&#103;&#101;&#114;&#64;&#119;&#105;&#110;&#100;&#101;&#114;&#109;&#101;&#114;&#101;&#46;&#99;&#111;&#109;">email me</a> or call me, (425)785-9217.<br /> <br /> -Chris<br /><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/18/new-listing" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/18/new-listing#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/18/new-listingFri, 18 Apr 2008 16:53:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/06/dont-just-compare-to-last-yearYesterday the Seattle Times ran an <a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2004329266_homesales05.html">article</a> on local area home sales based on the March statistics from the Northwest MLS. <br /> <br /> The story headline proclaims that home sales volumes are down dramatically while the prices are holding. That is true when compared to last year. But, I think by now that everyone knows that this year is not last year. We know we are slower since last year. I think that it is equally important to look at how the month of March compares to the month of February.<br /> <br /> So, here are the February and March figures for Single Family Residences in King County.<br /> <br /> <table style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; border-collapse: collapse; width: 346pt;" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="460"> <col style="width: 121pt;" width="161"> <col style="width: 74pt;" span="2" width="98"> <col style="width: 77pt;" width="103"> <tbody> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 50%; height: 15pt; width: 121pt; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20" width="161"><span>&nbsp;</span></td> <td class="xl65" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 74pt; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" width="98">February</td> <td class="xl65" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 74pt; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" width="98">March</td> <td class="xl65" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #c0504d none repeat scroll 0% 50%; width: 77pt; font-size: 11pt; color: white; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" width="103">% Change</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #e6b9b8 none repeat scroll 0% 50%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Number of Homes Sold</td> <td class="xl67" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #e6b9b8 none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">1148</td> <td class="xl67" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #e6b9b8 none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">1503</td> <td class="xl68" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #e6b9b8 none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">30.92%</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #f2dddc none repeat scroll 0% 50%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Average Price</td> <td class="xl66" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #f2dddc none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><span>&nbsp;</span>$<span>&nbsp; </span>531,448.00 </td> <td class="xl66" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #f2dddc none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><span>&nbsp;</span>$<span>&nbsp; </span>539,733.00 </td> <td class="xl68" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #f2dddc none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">1.56%</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #e6b9b8 none repeat scroll 0% 50%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Median Price<span>&nbsp;</span></td> <td class="xl66" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #e6b9b8 none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><span>&nbsp;</span>$<span>&nbsp; </span>429,900.00 </td> <td class="xl66" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #e6b9b8 none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><span>&nbsp;</span>$<span>&nbsp; </span>439,900.00 </td> <td class="xl68" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #e6b9b8 none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">2.33%</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15pt;" height="20"> <td style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #f2dddc none repeat scroll 0% 50%; height: 15pt; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" height="20">Average Time on Market</td> <td class="xl67" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #f2dddc none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">81</td> <td class="xl67" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #f2dddc none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">78</td> <td class="xl68" style="border: 1px dashed #7f7c75; background: #f2dddc none repeat scroll 0% 50%; font-size: 11pt; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; font-family: Calibri; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">-3.70%</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <br /> It is a slight case of comparing apples to oranges to compare two different months to each other. Real estate is a cyclical market and clearly some months do better than others. But, I just think to be fair that we should understand how the market has changed not just from last year but from last month. <br /> <br /> With that in mind, this chart is all good news. Home sales are up 30%. Average home prices are up 1.5%. Median&nbsp; prices (half the houses are above and half are below) are up 2.3%. Time on market is down 3.7%. That is a good month to month change any time of year.<br /> <br /> Personally, I think the increase in the volume is the most important news here. I am less concerned with the selling prices. The selling price will always vary. But to see the volumes pick up again is a good thing. t will prevent our unsold inventory from climbing too high. It will keep the prices from falling too far. And, it shows hope and an understanding that despite the bad news the media outlets focus on that people will always need a house to live in and that now is a great time to buy one!<br /> <br /> -Chris<br /> <br /><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/06/dont-just-compare-to-last-year" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/06/dont-just-compare-to-last-year#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/06/dont-just-compare-to-last-yearSun, 06 Apr 2008 14:49:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/06/weekly-financial-outlook<p> For Doug's outlook on the financial week, please click <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM 4-7-08 Ward_D.pdf">here</a>.</p> <p>Doug Ward, <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">Sr. Loan Officer, usbancorp Mortgage Advisers, LLC, can be contacted at 425 885-9544</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">-Chris</span></p><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/06/weekly-financial-outlook" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/06/weekly-financial-outlook#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/04/06/weekly-financial-outlookSun, 06 Apr 2008 10:57:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/30/weekly-financial-outlook<p>Courtesy of Doug Ward, <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM%203-31-08%20Ward_D.pdf">here</a> is this week's financial outlook.</p> <p>Tops in Doug's report is the past news of the week that while prices are down, the inventory is also down.<br /> </p> <p>I was having the exact same conversation just yesterday with some clients. Between the two of these items which is most important? To me the decreasing inventory is the critical item every time. <br /> </p> <p>Sure, we all want the investment we have made in our homes to pay off and it seems like increasing prices is the way to achieve that. But, prices can only go so far, so fast before the market needs a breather. Push them too far, too fast and there will be a backlash. Buyers stop buying and the inventory goes up. When the inventory goes up the prices will inevitably go down. That is what many parts of the country are experiencing. Some worse than others. Thank fully we here in the Northwest are not being hit as hard as many parts of the country.<br /> </p> <p>But there is no need for me to summarize Doug's news. Please check it out for yourself <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM%203-31-08%20Ward_D.pdf">here</a>.<br /> </p> <p>Doug Ward, <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">Sr. Loan Officer, usbancorp Mortgage Advisers, LLC, can be contacted at 425 885-9544</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">-Chris<br /> </span></p><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/30/weekly-financial-outlook" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/30/weekly-financial-outlook#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/30/weekly-financial-outlookSun, 30 Mar 2008 11:47:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/27/bellevue-1-place-to-live-and-start-a-company<p>A few months ago my wife and I made an appointment with a financial planner in Bellevue. The meeting didn't go well. The planner and ourselves were just on two completely different pages. If I was thinking "black" he said "white." When we expected a "no" we got a "yes." It was this way for 1 hour before we excused ourselves and got on with our day.</p> <p>The biggest point of contention was whether we should invest any of our savings in the real estate market. I see a positive future for it. He didn't. As we left my wife and I were discussing all that we had heard from the planner trying to give him some credit and take something good away from the meeting... but we struggled to find points of agreement in what he said. <br /> </p> <p>Part of what contributed to my frustration in everything negative he had to say about the market was that as we drove out of Bellevue I counted no less than 14 of those huge building construction cranes towering over Bellevue. And those were just the ones that I could see from the highway. <br /> </p> <p>I just can't believe that a city and metropolitan area that is adding that much office space is in for a long term decline in the housing market. Sure, every market (stocks, commodities, etc.) has ups and downs. But, a city growing that much and adding that much office space has to house the people working in those buildings somewhere.</p> <p>Now, many months later, despite the immediate downturn in prices, I think I will be vindicated. <br /> </p> <p>Why? To the planner's credit, prices in real estate are down slightly.&nbsp; But, long term I think they will do well. In addition to the above mentioned growth of the Bellevue (and the Eastside as a whole), Bellevue was just rated as the number one place to live and start a new company by FORTUNE Small Business. This market will continue to grow.<br /> </p> <p>Go ahead, check out the news article on all the cities chosen <span style="color: #0000ff;"><a href="http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2008/fsb/0803/gallery.best_places_to_launch.fsb/index.html?section=money_realestate">here</a> </span>and the complete article on Bellevue <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/18/smbusiness/bellevue_washington.fsb/index.htm"><span style="color: #0000ff;"><a href="http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/18/smbusiness/bellevue_washington.fsb/index.htm">here</a></span></a>.</p> <p>-Chris<br /> </p><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/27/bellevue-1-place-to-live-and-start-a-company" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/27/bellevue-1-place-to-live-and-start-a-company#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/27/bellevue-1-place-to-live-and-start-a-companyThu, 27 Mar 2008 09:45:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/24/same-story-different-spin<p>I'm a bit of a news junkie.<br /> </p> <p>I read the newspaper in the morning and troll a few websites during the day for different articles. Like many others, more and more of my news comes from online these days. Frequently, I'll see the exact same article on multiple sites and I know that they just picked it up off of some newswire. Other times you see the same idea, but slightly different details.</p> <p>Today, I stumbled into a great example of this. </p> <p>I shouldn't be surprised, but I&nbsp; am.<br /> </p> <p>Check out the lead paragraph of this <a href="http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080324/D8VJRT1O0.html">article</a> "After falling for six straight months, sales of existing homes posted an unexpected increase in February which may have reflected more aggressive price cutting by sellers in some parts of the country, a real estate group reported." <span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span id="article"><font face="Verdana,Sans-serif"><font color="black" size="2"></font></font></span></span></span></span><span id="article"><font face="Verdana,Sans-serif"><font color="black" size="2"></font></font></span></span><span id="article"><font face="Verdana,Sans-serif"><font color="black" size="2"></font></font></span></span><span id="article"><font face="Verdana,Sans-serif"><font color="black" size="2"></font></font></span></p> <p>Now, check out the lead paragraph of this <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/24/news/economy/existing_home_sales/index.htm?cnn=yes">article</a> "A record plunge in prices of existing homes produced only a modest increase in sales in February, according to the latest reading on the battered housing market by an industry trade group released Monday." </p> <p>It's the same information with a completely different intent. The first paragraph, courtesy of Martin Crutsinger and the AP at Excite.com, tells a positive story. The second paragraph, courtesy of David Goldman at CNNMoney.com, is all about panic, fear and doom. <br /> </p> <p>Why the difference? Well, you can be sure one sells better than the other. <br /> </p> <p>It also goes to a belief&nbsp; and continual frustration of mine that the media talks us into these problems. They don't do it&nbsp; on purpose. I don't go for conspiracies. But, I do think that with the first hint of one piece of bad news they all jump on it and pretty soon we have a confidence problem that feeds on itself. <br /> <br /> I like to see the positive int he first story. It reinforces so many positives. The biggest of which is that this is a great time to buy. If you are thinking about a new house, getting out of a rental to owning your own home, moving up, or otherwise looking to buy... this is the time to do it.</p> <p>-Chris<br /> </p><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/24/same-story-different-spin" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/24/same-story-different-spin#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/24/same-story-different-spinTue, 25 Mar 2008 08:36:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/24/weekly-financial-outlookWhat to look for in the financial news in the week ahead.<br /> <br /> Please click <a></a><a href=" http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM 3-24-08 Ward_D.pdf">here.</a><a href=" http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM 3-24-08 Ward_D.pdf"></a><br /> <br /> Courtesy of Doug Ward<br /> <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">Sr. Loan Officer<br /> usbancorp Mortgage Advisers, LLC<br /> 425 885-9544</span><br /><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/24/weekly-financial-outlook" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/24/weekly-financial-outlook#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/24/weekly-financial-outlookMon, 24 Mar 2008 15:52:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/21/how-frustrating-is-this<p>I have buyers in this market... and the banks are throwing up roadblocks every where we look.<br /> </p> <p> We have a completely different real estate market from a year ago. Nationally we have seen the near collapse of major banks, like Bear Stearns, related to their real estate investing, the Fed reducing rates and changing the rules about which banks can borrow money from them, conforming loan limits have risen sharply. <span>&nbsp;</span>Locally, we have seen some of the same. Market times and inventory are increasing and sales prices are softening. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Yet, for the first time, just recently, I have seen the skittishness of the banks locally. I have clients due to close on the purchase of their home imminently. The appraisal came in on time and on value, the inspection was fine for a house of its age, the loan to value ratio is outstanding at about 65% (35% down payment), the loan documents were all in place or so we thought. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The day loan documents were due to the escrow office I started getting phone calls from the listing agent who, in turn, had gotten a phone call from the appraiser. The appraiser was asking about water in the crawl space (there was none), major electrical issues (a few minor ones), and in general throwing up red flags all over place. <br /> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Surely the underwriters started this whole chain of phone calls, but why? Just nervous? Cautiousness? Were there real problems with the loan? I don't think so. But,<o:p> </o:p>inventories are on the rise, prices are sagging, banks are hesitating to lend, the few buyers that are out there suddenly cant buy, which leads to increasing inventories and a vicious spiral down.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>In a market ripe for buyers to come out of the woodworks and snatch up some great deals, the banks are making it harder for them to do exactly that. I understand their free lending ways contributed to the crunch we are in right now. But if we ever want to break out of this spiral it will have to start with the banks providing funding to the buyers.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Was it just coincidence that this all happened the day<span style="color: red;"> <span style="color: red;"><span style="color: red;"><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/Strict Lending Standards.pdf"></a><a style="color: Blue;" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/Strict Lending Standards.pdf">this article</a></span><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/Strict Lending Standards.pdf"></a> </span></span>hit the news wires?<br /> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">-Chris</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /> </p><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/21/how-frustrating-is-this" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/21/how-frustrating-is-this#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/03/21/how-frustrating-is-thisFri, 21 Mar 2008 13:44:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/01/21/im-back<strong><span style="font-size: 12pt;">This week's Financial update from Doug Ward</span></strong><br /> <span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="color: #000000;"> Information courtesy of Doug Ward<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">, Sr. Loan Officer, usbancorp Mortgage Advisers, LLC,425 885-9544</span><br /> <br /> With the rough start to the markets that we have seen so far in 2008 it seems like this upcoming week's market news is a good place to start.<br /> <br /> Announcements due this week: <ul> <li><span style="color: #3300ff;"> </span><br /> </li> <li>Tuesday, State Street Investor Confidence, Moderately Important. Investors will show less confidence on subprime mortgage and recession concerns.<br /> </li> <li>Wednesday, Mortgage Applications, Important. Refinance and purchase activity continue to rise on lower rates and lower home prices.<br /> </li> <li>Thursday, Existing Home Sales (December), Important. Sales are expected to hit a multiyear low, but lower rates and lower home prices could suggest a bottom is near.</li> </ul> <ul> <li><br /> </li> </ul> See Doug's entire</span></span></span> newsletter <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM%201-21-08.pdf">here</a>.<br /> <br /> Chris</span><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/01/21/im-back" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/01/21/im-back#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2008/01/21/im-backMon, 21 Jan 2008 14:13:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/15/the-week-ahead<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>The Financial Week Ahead,</strong></span> <br /> Information courtesy of Doug Ward<span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">, Sr. Loan Officer, usbancorp Mortgage Advisers, LLC,425 885-9544</span><br /> <br /> Announcements due this week:<br /> <ul> <li>Monday, Empire Sate Manufacturing Survey, no consensus estimate<br /> </li> <li>Tuesday, Housing Market Index, Important... don't expect a rally from multi year lows<br /> </li> <li>Wednesday, MBA Mortgage Applications, Important. Expect a continue to the down trend.<br /> </li> <li>Wednesday, Consumer Price Index, Very important, Could be higher than expected<br /> </li> <li>Wednesday,&nbsp; Housing starts,&nbsp; Expected to post another multi year low</li> <li>Wednesday, Beige Book, Credit markets looking for more signs of moderating inflation</li> </ul> Looks like Wednesday is the big day in a week of lots of housing reports!<br /> <br /> See Doug's entire <a title="Mortgage Matters" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM 10-15-07 Ward_D.pdf">newsletter</a>.<br /> <br /> Chris<br /><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/15/the-week-ahead" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/15/the-week-ahead#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/15/the-week-aheadMon, 15 Oct 2007 12:35:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/10/wednesday-interest-rates<strong></strong><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">Doug Ward, Sr. Loan Officer, usbancorp Mortgage Advisers, LLC,425 885-9544<br /> <br /> </span> <table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2" width="500"> <tbody> <tr> <td><strong>Loan Program<br /> </strong></td> <td align="center" valign="top"><strong>Rate<br /> </strong></td> <td align="center"><strong>&nbsp;Fee</strong></td> </tr> <tr> <td>30 Year Fixed (Conforming)<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">6.375%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.250 <br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>Fixed Jumbo <br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">7.625%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000 <br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>15 Year Fixed (Conforming) <br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">6.250%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000<br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top">Second<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">9.000%<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">0.000<br /> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /> </span><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/10/wednesday-interest-rates" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/10/wednesday-interest-rates#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/10/wednesday-interest-ratesWed, 10 Oct 2007 11:05:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/02/just-when-i-think-i-have-it-figured-outReally. I thought I had really come to terms with the market. It seems like things are slowing down. It seems like houses sell for less than asking price. It seems like the holidays are almost on us. It seems like all the buyers have crawled into their dens to hibernate until spring time.<br /> <br /> So it seems. <br /> <br /> But just when I think I have that all figured out I see two houses selling immediately upon listing. I can't be certain until they actually close, but I suspect one sold at above asking price as well.<br /> <br /> So, that begs the question. Is this a good time to sell? When is the best time of year to sell? We are two months away from Thanksgiving... we don't have to sell now... should we list our house now or wait until after the new year?<br /> <br /> Chances are you have either asked yourself this same question or heard it asked of you in one form or another. The answer is that it is always a good time to buy and sell. Really. <br /> <br /> It is true that if you look at the sales activity across an entire year there are highs and lows of activity.&nbsp; Late Winter and early Spring see the activity picking up. Summer sees a slight fall off. Early Fall frequently sees a resurgence in activity. But never does it drop off to 0 transactions. <br /> <br /> Buyers may expect to get a good deal going into the holidays and conversely Sellers may have to give up a little on price to complete the sale. As a Seller be realistic. Now is not the time to stretch for the top of the market pricing. But, from the Seller's perspective it could cost just as much or more to hold on to the house until late Winter and early Spring during "Real Estate Season". <br /> <br /> If you need to sell now, sell it. There are buyers out there as my example of two quick sales has shown and if you put together a deal... fantastic! Both Buyer and Seller come out ahead. The Seller needed to sell, the Buyer needed to buy. Perfect. <br /> <br /> <strong><span style="font-size: 12pt;">24 Hour Market Watch</span></strong><br /> The NWMLS system shows a "24 Hour Market Watch." It simply shows how many properties have been Listed, gone Pending, Sold, etc. There is no better instant indicator of what is happening with the market. For several months now I have seen the number of houses going on the market (New Listings and Back on Market) outnumber the houses going off the market (Contingent, Pending, Expired, Cancelled) by almost 2 to 1.<br /> <br /> The last few days the houses going off the market are outnumbering the houses coming on the market.<br /> <br /> I am just going to store that information away for a few weeks to see if there is a long term change in the market other than the normal annual cycles happening.<br /> <br /> <strong><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Tuesday's Interest Rates</span></strong><br /> <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">Doug Ward, Sr. Loan Officer, usbancorp Mortgage Advisers, LLC,425 885-9544<br /> <br /> </span> <table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2" width="500"> <tbody> <tr> <td><strong>Loan Program<br /> </strong></td> <td align="center" valign="top"><strong>Rate<br /> </strong></td> <td align="center"><strong>&nbsp;Fee</strong></td> </tr> <tr> <td>30 Year Fixed (Conforming)<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">6.375%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000 <br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>Fixed Jumbo <br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">7.500%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000 <br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>15 Year Fixed (Conforming) <br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">6.250%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000<br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top">Second<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">9.000%<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">0.000<br /> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /> <strong>The Financial Week Ahead,</strong></span> Information courtesy of Doug Ward <br /> Announcements due this week:<br /> <ul> <li>Monday, Institute of Supply Management Index, Expected to see numbers supporting low inflation in manufacturing.<a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20970287/"></a><br /> </li> <li>Tuesday, Pending Home Sales, Expected to see a slight increase in August after July's drop.<br /> </li> <li>Wednesday, MBA Mortgage Applications. Expected to see that rising long term rates are slowing refinance activity.<br /> </li> <li>Friday, Employment Situation, Very Important, Expected higher unemployment and lower job growth may indicate future lower interest rates.<br /> </li> <li>Friday, Consumer Credit, Expected changes are within historical ranges and should have very little effect on rates.</li> </ul> See Doug's entire <a title="Mortgage Matters" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM 10-1-07 Ward_D.pdf">newsletter</a>.<br /> <br /><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/02/just-when-i-think-i-have-it-figured-out" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/02/just-when-i-think-i-have-it-figured-out#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/10/02/just-when-i-think-i-have-it-figured-outTue, 02 Oct 2007 17:24:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/25/a-weeks-news-in-one-shot<strong><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Tuesday's Interest Rates</span></strong><br /> <span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: &quot;Arial&quot;,&quot;sans-serif&quot;;">Doug Ward, Sr. Loan Officer, usbancorp Mortgage Advisers, LLC,425 885-9544<br /> <br /> </span> <table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2" width="500"> <tbody> <tr> <td><strong>Loan Program<br /> </strong></td> <td align="center" valign="top"><strong>Rate<br /> </strong></td> <td align="center"><strong>&nbsp;Fee</strong></td> </tr> <tr> <td>30 Year Fixed (Conforming)<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">6.375%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000 <br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>Fixed Jumbo <br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">7.375%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000 <br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>15 Year Fixed (Conforming) <br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">6.250%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000<br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top">Second<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">9.000%<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">0.000<br /> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /> <strong>The Financial Week Ahead,</strong></span> Information courtesy of Doug Ward <br /> Announcements due this week:<br /> <ul> <li>Tuesday numbers are being released on the nation's August home sales. <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20970287/">MSN August Homes Sales Report</a><br /> </li> <li>Wednesday the MBA Mortgage Applications will be released</li> <li>Thursday the second quarter GDP will be released. Expectations are at 3.9% annualized growth. 3.0% and above shows a good strong economy.</li> <li>Thursday, New Home Sales (August). Price cuts and buyer perks are not expected to show any effects yet.</li> <li>Friday, Construction Spending (August). Critical as the housing slowdown is weighing heavily on the construction industry.</li> </ul> See Doug's entire <a title="Mortgage Matters" href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/MM 9-24-07 Ward_D.pdf">newsletter</a>.<br /> <br /> <strong><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>It is important to remember...</strong></span></strong><br /> This information is all about the national market. Of course Redmond, Kirkland, Sammamish, and the rest of King county are all a part of the national market but real estate is a regional market and what we are seeing regionally is healthy. Slower than one year ago?&nbsp; You bet! And good thing too!&nbsp; The wonderful appreciation we have been seeing here for the last few years is not healthy over a really long term.<br /> <br /> So what are we seeing here? So glad you asked. Check out this Market Activity chart for the Eastside of King County for the last year. Click on the image for a larger view.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/docs/market activity 092407.pdf"><img src="http://eastsidehomelink.com/images/market_activity_092407.jpg" alt="" align="left" width="580" /></a><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> The blue is the number of houses that are currently listed for sale, the inventory. The red is the number of houses that are currently under contract, pending, and will close in the near future. You can clearly see that late last year and early this year the listings and the pendings moved along similar paths. But in June that began to change.<br /> <br /> In June the active listings continued to rise while the pendings began to fall off. That trend has continued right up to this week. It is not unusual at all for the pendings to fall off in June. Real estate is a cyclical market and we see this happen year after year. Typically the pendings take a swing back to the upside starting in the early fall before falling away for the holidays. What we are seeing this year though is that the pendings are not picking back up as we move into early fall. <br /> <br /> You can see that we have more houses on the market and less houses under contract. The direct effect is that sellers are taking longer to sell their homes and buyers have a larger inventory to choose from.<br /> <br /> How will it play out in the long run? I won't make predictions about what that means for the future. I prefer to compare what we are seeing right now with what we saw at the same time last year. We'll have to wait and see. But it is clear this is not the same market we were in last year!<br /> <br /> -Chris<br /> <br /><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/25/a-weeks-news-in-one-shot" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/25/a-weeks-news-in-one-shot#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/25/a-weeks-news-in-one-shotTue, 25 Sep 2007 22:14:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/18/foreclosures-jump-but-not-so-much-here<br /> Today's the day... the day the Fed may or may not reduce the short term interest rate. There is certainly plenty of speculation ahead of the meeting as to what they will do. But, the news of the day so far may actually be the sharp rise in foreclosures in the month of August.<br /> <br /> Nationwide foreclosures jumped 36% month over month. Defaults and delinquencies have more than doubled from last year. Unfortunately this may not be the worst of it. October is expected to be the peak so stay tuned for that. <br /> <br /> Regionally, the Mid-West and the Sunbelt are faring the worst. Nevada led all states with the highest rate of foreclosures. Others near the top were California, Florida, Georgia, Arizona, Colorado and Texas. See the entire article <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2007/09/17/real_estate/August_foreclosures_way_up/index.htm?cnn=yes">here</a>. <br /> <br /> Where is Washington? No where near the top. <br /> <br /> Likewise, nationwide median home prices fell for the quarter ended June 30 by 1.5%. There was good news in the report. Of the 149 regions tracked 97 showed increases in price. The Northeast region showed a small gain, the West a slight drop, the South and the Midwest larger drops. See the complete article <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/16/real_estate/home_prices_fall_again/index.htm?postversion=2007081610">here</a>.<br /> <br /> How about Washington? Remember my post on Sunday? Locally our prices continue to defy national downward trends and rise. <br /> <br /> My point again, despite the slightly meandering tone the market has taken, we are in a very healthy market here in Washington! <br /> <br /> -Chris<br /><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/18/foreclosures-jump-but-not-so-much-here" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/18/foreclosures-jump-but-not-so-much-here#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/18/foreclosures-jump-but-not-so-much-hereTue, 18 Sep 2007 09:57:00 GMThttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/17/monday-interest-ratesThe latest interest rates as reported by Doug Ward.<br /> <br /> <table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2" width="500"> <tbody> <tr> <td><strong>&nbsp;Loan Program<br /> </strong></td> <td align="center" valign="top"><strong>Rate<br /> </strong></td> <td align="center"><strong>&nbsp;Fee</strong></td> </tr> <tr> <td>30 Year Fixed (Conforming)<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">6.375%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000 <br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>Fixed Jumbo <br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">7.375%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000 <br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>15 Year Fixed (Conforming) <br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">6.250%<br /> </td> <td align="center">0.000<br /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top">Second<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">9.000%<br /> </td> <td align="center" valign="top">0.000<br /> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <br /> -Chris<br /><P><a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/17/monday-interest-rates" target="_blank">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/17/monday-interest-rates#comments" target="_blank">Comments</a></P>Chris Loeligerhttp://eastsidehomelink.com/blog/2007/09/17/monday-interest-ratesMon, 17 Sep 2007 12:18:00 GMT