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 …
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 …
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 …
Trapped?
Ever get the feeling that the deck is stacked against you. This Jan 31, 2012 article in the Seattle Times, Page 3, “Freddie Mac bets against struggling homeowners” justifies that feeling. If you’re self-employed, have less than 20% equity in your home, and currently have a mortgage interest rate in excess of 6%, don’t expect relief anytime soon. If you’re a …
Eastside Market Impact of Foreclosed Properties
Reading the Seattle Times Business Section article today, “HOME SALES IN KING COUNTY UP IN 2011; NOT PRICES”, I became curious as to exactly how sales of foreclosed properties are in fact impacting the King County Eastside market areas. I limited my sampling of sales data to quantities that I could handle and concluded that: 1. In various price ranges from …
BOEING/Machinists Deal is Huge!
Folks frequently ask us, “how’s the market?” Our response is generally, “inconsistent, fits & starts, up & down”. When asked what the future holds we have responded, “it depends greatly on the local job market. If we can get an infusion of positive news in that regard, the benefits to the housing market should be felt immediately”. Today’s news that …
2012: Welcome to Al-Qaidastan
One of our greatest concerns regarding Al-Quaida is that they find a way to obtain a nuclear weapon. I submit that perhaps our concerns have been misdirected, as I believe that our gravest threat is that within a few short years, waaay before Iran develops a nuclear weapon, Al-Quaida will obtain a nuclear country i.e., Pakistan. While we have dithered …
Federal Way Sign Ordinance: Not Rocket Science
I’ll be brief: Real estate open house signs are a time honored tradition. The regulation thereof should be simple and straightforward. Her is how I would propose that any municipal and/or county sign ordinance should read. Open house signs shall be no larger than 24″ by 24″; Said signs shall bear the name of the licensed real estate brokerage that …
The More I Learn, The Less I know…..
As if things weren’t strange enough, the subscription service that brought you Monday Morning Coffee for the last few years ceased operations in June. Since then I have been musing as to what to do for the many subscribers that have enjoyed those weekly snippets of wisdom. A dear long time friend and client jarred me back to responsibility last week …