Sally Bagshaw’s BIG IDEA in this morning’s edition of the Seattle Times: to house the homeless in tiny new houses to be built in 7 different districts of Seattle is THE worst idea yet. Yes, Seattle has a problem, and it is chronic. As with any illness, repeated attempts to treat symptoms usually offers little relief. Real healing does not occur …
Watch This, Then Tell Me Zillow is a Good Idea.
[“Their stock has been doing very poorly of late, down from $125/share one year ago to about $16.50/share today.”] If this doesn’t scare the heck out of you, nothing will. The unparalleled concentration of wealth is accompanied by: domestic legislative power/influence international and domestic control of financial markets control of information/data distribution Together this represents too much control in the …
There Are No Shortcuts.
I just finished reading an article regarding the latest revelation in discount real estate brokerage, Surefield. A fresh startup initiated by a Redfin refugee (seems to be a lot of those) and some others that are good with computers. Read almost all about Surefield here: http://seattlebubble.com/blog/2014/05/02/alternative-brokerage-spotlight-surefield/ I wrote the following comment on the Seattle Bubble blog in response to the interview: …
Where Are The Listings?….They’re Coming
While buyers have been getting their finances ready to make a move, they have yet to find an acceptable selection of properties in the Greater Seattle area. When they find a good listing they are more often than not (1) late to the party or (2) outbid by an outrageously aggressive cash buyer. This is not normal. While Diana and …
Has The Market Reached A Tipping Point?
Have you ever invested in a stock that was labeled “hot” on the front page of a local newspaper? If you have then you are familiar with the analogy “that ship has sailed”. The local housing market is in a similar state. Local headlines have sellers feeling unrealistically bullish of late, and it’s not just about price. We are beginning …
“They love the home but feel it will go over list price and do not want to get into a bidding war.”
I just received this comment from a showing broker this morning. This is the type of feedback we have received on our listings that causes us to promote some standards by which both sellers and buyers may be treated fairly in this unusually tight market. 4 days is long enough to gather enough offers. To go longer will frustrate more …
City Home Prices Up 18% From A Year Ago…kinda sorta, not really
Perhaps this Seattle Times headline caught your eye yesterday. It was the hot topic everywhere I went. Sorry, but no, your house did not appreciate 18% in twelve months. 95% of the housing stock did not appreciate 10%. Only select pockets experienced appreciation in excess of 4%. Allow me to explain: As is often the case, a lot of folks …
Market Velocity
Market Velocity. What is it? The most important goal of every small builder is to insure that their product will be sold upon completion. The same principles apply to the resale of single family homes. Years ago, when I was representing a half dozen small builders’ speculative [“spec”] new construction projects, I endeavored to help them appreciate the importance of …
It’s Finally Happened
As we predicted here beginning 3 months ago, the Seattle Times has finally caught up with the changes in the local residential real estate market that have been evolving over the last 6 months. This is great news, especially for those that have been “under water” the past few years. However, we predict a caveat accompanies this news: the shortage …
Consider A Pre-Listing Inspection
This is our most trusted competitive weapon of late. We counsel our clients to consider investing in a professional “pre-listing” home inspection as an integral step in preparing their respective properties for the market. Why do we do this? Every buyer is likely to have a professional inspection conducted as part of their purchase and sale agreement, and it makes …