Tag Archives: housing market

Open Houses: Saturday, 6/15 & Sunday, 6/16 2013

Posted on by
Reply

Hello! Happy Friday!! Happy Flag Day! Expect to see more flags that usual out on Mercer Island and consider pausing a moment to remember those who have served in the military.

Happy Father’s Day weekend! Wondering what to do this weekend with dad? Saturday, 6/15 12-Sunset. There is a fun event at the American Car Museum, at  2702 East D St., Tacoma. It is a drive in movie with inflatables, games, and so much more!!! Or check out Emerald Downs on Sunday, 6/16 1-5pm family days begins. Face painting, moonwalk, pony rides and of course horse racing.

We have 5 beautiful Windermere R.E. / Mercer Island listings being held open over the weekend.

Details about the open houses is below. Enjoy!

Mercer Island

$499,000 l 3629 88th Ave SE l 500791 l Kelly Weisfield  l Sunday, 6/16, 1-4PM

$1,498,000 l 7900 Northbrook Lane l 440324 l Bonnie Sanborn l Sunday, 6/16, 1-4PM

$2,280,000 l 7270 W Mercer Way l 444561 l Cherrie Lee l Saturday, 6/15 1-3PM

Kirkland

$300,000 l 14233 81st Ave NE l 502545 l Laura Brodniak l Sunday, 6/16 1-4PM

Seattle

$795,000 l 2533 32nd Ave S l 500754 l Jay Agoado l Sunday, 6/16, 1-4PM

“The Mercer Island Open House List is ready to conveniently print from this blog post!  7 home are available to preview Saturday, June 15th, and 20 will be open Sunday, June 16th. The list prices range from $344,500 to $10,885,000. The prominent features of the homes being held open over the weekend include recent price reductions, new to the market, outdoor entertaining spaces and walk-in pantries.”

Open House List

Continuing Discussion: Our Local Housing Market and Low Inventory

Posted on by
2

The housing market recovery, locally and nationally, and the low inventory in our region are both hot topics of interest. Windermere Blog featured posts on both subjects this week.

Windermere’s president, OB Jacobi, discusses the low inventory in our region in his post Time to Reality Check the Real Estate Market. From the post:

Here are the current inventory levels in key markets along the West Coast, all of which fall below six months of supply and report strong competition among buyers.

· Seattle: 1.4 months

· Portland: 4.2 months

· San Francisco: 1.8 months

· Las Vegas: 3.8 months

· Palm Springs: 2.5 months

Mr. Jacobi discusses what this means to buyer and sellers, along with discussing the impact of current interest rates and its effect on affordability.

Matthew Gardner, principal at Gardner Economics, compiled a report on how our region fared during the 4th Quarter of 2012. He provides analysis of Western Washington’s job market along with the housing market. He, too, touched on our region’s low inventory:

As stated previously, I do worry about the lack of homes for sale. If we do not see a fairly dramatic increase in inventory, I fear that the market will be forced to give some of its recent gains back— albeit temporarily. Because of this fact, and regardless of the solid price growth that we are witnessing, I am still unable to raise my grade above the “C” that I gave it last quarter.

With that being said, Gardner goes on to state in his conclusions:

From a real estate standpoint, it is clear that we are now well removed from the days when home prices were hemorrhaging. Home values have stabilized and a recovery in values is underway. The credit markets have thawed and getting a mortgage is easier now than it has been since the housing “bubble” exploded. Interest rates remain at historic lows, and although I believe that they will rise in 2013, the increase should be modest.

Please take time to read both blog posts. They are full of pertinent data for those interested in our current housing market. To quote OB Jacobi, “It goes without saying that nobody wants to sell at the bottom of the market, yet at the same time, everybody wants to buy at the bottom. Obviously these two scenarios can’t exist at the same time, but I hope the information in this blog shows there are definitely opportunities to be had by both buyers and sellers that are worth considering.”

Sneak Peek at Mercer Island’s 2012 Year in Review

Posted on by
Reply

How do real estate companies ring in the New Year? For many, it involves the compilation of annual reports detailing the productivity of the housing market during the past year. Windermere Real Estate / Mercer Island is proud to participate in this annual process. We want to provide local homeowners and potential home-buyers with accurate, specific statistics regarding the performance within the Mercer Island real estate market over the past 12 months. Owner Julie Barrows personally compiles the statistics. She spends time carefully analyzing all the data, utilizing her 27 years of local real estate experience, 15 of those years spent right here on Mercer Island, to guide her through this endeavor.

Every year, Julie and Windermere Mercer Island shares this helpful information with the Mercer Island community by mailing out the Year in Review report. While this document is still in the production stage, below are some 2012 stats to whet your appetite:

YIR Sneak peek

Also for you to draw comparisons, below are the number of Single family home sales on Mercer Island for the past 15 years. 2012 had the potential for more home sales, however the low inventory of listings here on Mercer Island stymied many buyers eager to purchase a home.

  • 2012: 297
  • 2011: 261
  • 2010: 220
  • 2009: 173
  • 2008: 188
  • 2007: 301
  • 2006: 329
  • 2005: 369
  • 2004: 384
  • 2003: 339
  • 2002: 289
  • 2001: 245
  • 2000: 287
  • 1999: 372
  • 1998: 330

Windermere Mercer Island also produces a Year in Review for the housing markets in Seattle and on the Eastside. Stay tuned here at Mercer Island Pluse, and on Weekly Property Report, for more details!

The Continuing Discussion of Rent vs Buy

Posted on by
Reply

Trulia released a report today which takes another look at the Rent vs Buy conversation. Trulia analyzed the last 3 months of rental and home purchase data for the 100 largest US metro areas. Trulia concluded that with the current home price averages, low fixed interest rate and how much rent prices have increased in the past year, it’s cheaper to buy than rent is all 100 metros— under certain conditions. In 96 of the 100 areas examined, it’s still cheaper to buy even with the least desirable scenario Trulia used for their calculations.

There was certain criteria Trulia included in their analysis:

1) Trulia looked at both rentals and homes for sale listed on their site for June, July and August 2012. They then calculated how much the rental homes would probably sell for, and conversely they estimated how much homes for sale would rent for. The goal of calculating this data was for Trulia to be able to create a “direct apples-to-apples comparison.”

2) Trulia calculated the total cost of both renting a home and owning a home over a 7 year period, including the consideration of tying up your money in a down payment.

3) Trulia then analyzed different scenarios regarding the costs of renting versus buying. They changed up the mortgage rate, the income tax bracket for tax deductions, and time period of renting/owning the home.

In all 100 metros, it was cheaper to rent than buy under the best case scenario Trulia used in their calculations (20% down payment, 30-year fixed mortgage rate at 3.5%, buyer at 25% federal tax bracket and owning the home for at least 7 years). The report discusses how influential each of these elements were in determining the cost percentage between renting versus buying. For example, when Trulia compared the data of locking in at a 4.5% fixed mortgage, not itemizing your tax return and only staying in the home for 5 years, buying was actually more expensive than renting in 4 of the metro areas!

So, if buying a home is a much better deal for all these areas– why aren’t more people purchasing homes? The down payment is the largest hurdle for home buyers, according to the Trulia report. If buying a home is a goal of yours, speaking with a real estate broker will give you a better idea of how to deal with the down payment hurdle. The real estate broker can help answer the questions you have on how to make your dream of owning a home a reality.

You can read the full Trulia report here. The report is accompanied by an interactive infographic based on the data Trulia calculated for each of the largest US metro areas.

Another way to view our office listings

Posted on by
Reply

Here at Windermere R.E. / Mercer Island, we’ve been working on a creative way to feature our current office listings. On Youtube, we have started a channel called WindermereMI. Several of our listing videos are now available to view on our Youtube channel.

Please check back often, as we will be adding new video content on a regular basis. We’d love to hear your feedback as well. What is your opinion of the WindermereMI channel, and the videos themselves?

Interest Rates Climb For Third Consecutive Week– Compare Mortgage Payments

Posted on by
1

The Thursday, August 16th, press release from Freddie Mac revealed the 3rd straight week of rate increases for both 15 and 30 year mortgages. The 15 year, fixed rate mortgage ended the week at 2.88%; the 30 year, fixed rate mortgage finished the week at 3.62%.

If you are contemplating a home purchase, taking advantage of today’s lower interest rates can save you quite a bit of money over the life of the loan. Also, the monthly mortgage payment is so much more affordable.

Jennifer Burton, of Windermere Mortgage Services, put together payment comparison charts to compare the monthly payments for homes between $200,000 and $900,000 at 3.5%, 4.5% and 5.5% interest rates. It’s pretty amazing to take a look at the jump in the monthly mortgage payment as the interest rate climbs! If you would like to print the payment comparison charts to look at them closer, click here for homes priced between $200,000 and $600,000; for homes priced between $600,000 and $900,000, click here.

The economy is showing signs of modest growth, which in turn has caused the interest rates for fixed-rate mortgages to rise a little. The following quote is attributed to Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist, Freddie Mac,

“The latest economic indicators point toward low inflation but gradually stronger economic activity which placed further upward pressure on long-term Treasury yields and, in turn, fixed mortgage rates. For example, inflation remains in check with 12-month growth in the core consumer price index falling for a second month to 2.1 percent in July. At the same time, industrial production rose 0.6 percent in July compared to a 0.1 percent increase in June and retail sales jumped 0.8 percent in July from a 0.7 percent decline in June.”

According to local economist, Matthew Gardner, the housing market in Western Washington is seeing some home price stability, however the inventory of homes available is still very low. It’s noteworthy, however, to read how the greater Seattle area has been witnessing continued job growth, and how Gardner also notes that increased consumer confidence is evident with the modest economic growth in the retail sector. If listing your home for sale has been on your mind, maybe now is the time to speak with a real estate broker, to discuss how the small inventory has effected the selling process in King County. Request from real estate broker your broker a market analysis of your home. This document will help the two of you discuss what options you have as a seller, and if it makes sense to list your home now.

Now it’s your turn. What are your thoughts about the recent increases in fixed mortgage rates? Has it changed any plans you had to buy or sell a home?

The Gardner Report for Western Washington’s 1st Quarter 2012– Both Positive and Realistic

Posted on by
Reply

Windermere Real Estate is proud to partner with Gardner Economics to create an analysis of the Western Washington real estate market for the first quarter of 2012.

Matthew Gardner, principal at Gardner Economics, stated that “location” is the most appropriate theme for this first quarter analysis. Depending on the location in Western Washington, the signs of recovery for both the job market and real estate market varied. However, to quote Gardner, “…we have come out of the free fall and are starting up the long road to recovery on both the job front as well as in our real estate markets.” Between March 2011 and March 2012, 54,230 jobs were added in the counties examined for the report. That is a 2.58% growth rate, exceeding the growth rate of Washington State as a whole and the United States average.

While not all the counties experienced job growth — 9 of the counties examined did, while 7 experienced a decline to their employment base — compared to this time last year the statistics show definite improvement. The 3 counties which saw the most employment growth were Snohomish, King and Whatcom. The growth rate we’re seeing in our regional employment base right now is not a rate that Gardner sees as sustainable, so he chose to give the current employment situation in Western Washington a “B-” grade. This is up some from his last assessment, and is at a grade level Gardner sees as maintainable with our current economic trends.

The sales of existing homes in Western Washington saw a growth of 13.7 percent when compared to the first quarter of 2011. The counties which experienced the biggest gain were Mason, San Juan, Snohomish , Pierce, and King. When examining sale price numbers for the region, it appears that there was a 4.5% decline in price over the 1st quarter of 2011. However, the mercurial stats from San Juan County greatly skewed the data. Remove those numbers from the aggregate and home prices in Western Washington actually rose by 2.9% year-over-year.

Short sales and foreclosures are still a formidable force in the market, and their presence has been keeping home prices lower. While it’s difficult to continue to deal with these distressed properties, Gardner discusses how it’s part and parcel of the process of recovery.

“Getting through this inventory is a process, and it can be a painful one. That said, it is an important part of any recovery. We know that the percentage of “all cash” sales are far higher than we have ever seen, which indicates to me that investors are now buying, and this will likely help in depleting this inventory.” ~Matthew Gardner

Gardner again stresses location when discussing recovery. Depending on how close the county is to economic centers, and how much growth home sales saw in yesteryear, will impact how quickly counties will see more of an increase in home prices. And while recovery signs are positive in so many local markets, Gardner rates Western Washington’s real estate market at a “C” grade this quarter. The low inventory, in his opinion, greatly affects the health of the market and he does not see an improvement of his assessment until there is a larger inventory of homes available for sale.

The take away from Gardner’s 1st quarter report of Western Washington is we have come a long way to climb out of the hole the recession left in our job and real estate markets, however we still have work to be done. Gardner states “We are not out of the woods yet, but the forecast is a positive one.” Please take some time to read the full report on Neighborly News. It’s well worth your time– his analysis is insightful and he shares several graphs to illustrate his points.

“Overall, I am still looking to 2012 as the year that we emerge from the recession and, in our own inimitable Washingtonian manner, stride forward in the belief that the way ahead is a good one. (After all, who else wears shorts when it’s 50 degrees outside?)” ~Matthew Gardner

To Stage or Not To Stage: Where Do Pets Fit In When Listing a Home?

Posted on by
Reply

During the chaos of readying a home to list, ideas on how to handle the family pet can be sparse. The prevalent real estate advice regarding pets is to do whatever it takes to make the listed home appear pet free. Standard staging of a pet household includes squirreling away a pet’s toys, comfort items and food dishes, plus hiding litter boxes. Measures to neutralize pet odors like more frequent bathing, bed washing and daily vacuuming will be the norm for sellers with pets.The rigor of having a show-ready home 24/7, and create the appearance of being pet-free, is nerve-racking for people. Imagine how these disruptive circumstances are for our pets— their schedules are thrown off, they may have to be carted out of the home for long periods of time, or endure the presence of strangers while family members are away from the home. The whole experience can be extremely frustrating for all involved.

While concessions need to be made while a home is on the market, are there perhaps options to the standard advice to make the home appear completely pet-free? Let’s think about this conundrum– a better strategy may be to embrace the pet and come up with a pet-specific staging plan for the listing. Styled, Staged and Sold Blog Author Melissa Dittman Tracey did just that when she sold her last home. In the blog post Can You Stage the Household Dog?, she discussed how she came up with a pet-friendly staging plan. Tracey included a pet specific talking point sign at the home’s entrance which included a welcome message, a photo of the dogs, what their names were and their secure location in the home. Tracey also made sure the dogs were in an out-of-the-way room, situated behind a pet gate, and included another talking point sign by the door of that room. She even dressed up her smaller breed dogs in matching sweaters in case viewers wanted to peek into the room– for some pooches this may be taking things a bit far, but it’s definitely a whimsical touch.

Windermere Mercer Island Agents have successfully used talking point signs to address pets in a listing. I’ve been very impressed with the creative thought processes that went into the signage and how their use helps set the mood for showings. If the neighborhood contains note-worthy trails or parks, an attractive hook near the exit with a fresh, new leash hung from it would be fun. A talking point card highlighting the convenient walk-ability of the neighborhood would be a nice touch.

If the pet is quite loud, or very scared of new people, an outdoor run may be in order. Sellers who consider putting in a run need to take a good look at their yard to see if they can place the run so buyers can still view the home’s outdoor spaces safely. Plus, they need to consider the weather conditions in the region and crunch the numbers– can the seller install a run that fits in with the aesthetics of the home for less than the cost of doggie day care? With cats, who tend to abhor being crated to go for a drive, creating an outdoor space may the perfect solution because they require a smaller structure which could easily be tucked under cover or in an unused corner of the garage. The Stanford Cat Network has created a list of cat enclosure products and plan options based on space, along with photos and inspiration for the DIY crowd.

Even if it makes the most sense to create a staging strategy inclusive of pets, pet odors can’t be ignored. A big Buyer Turn-off is a home that is smelly. Make sure all of the pet’s bedding is brand new and easy to wash. Depending on the size of the pet, a piece of furniture which camouflages the pet bed is handy. The bedding is out of sight, and if washed frequently it will be out of mind as well! In homes with cats, concealing the litter box is imperative, in addition to a meticulous scooping routine. Creating a litter box screen within a cabinet or chest is a pretty clever solution.

The bottom line for this life situation is maintaining a warm, secure, safe environment for both pets and visiting buyers when the home is on the market.  It’s comforting to know there are more options available for households with pets to achieve the goal of a closed transaction.  Now it’s your turn– how have you handled the pet conundrum in a home for sale?  We’d love to hear from all sides of equation– agents, sellers and buyers. Please leave your comments in the comment section below.

How To Price Your Home To Sell

Posted on by
Reply

Over at Neighborly News, there is a terrific, new blog post discussing how to price your home to sell. Please click the link and read the post in its entirety— but to give you a taste of the information I’ll highlight the major points below.

1. Overpricing a home is risky. Largest exposure window for the home is first 2-4 weeks on the market. Overpricing can eliminate strongest prospective buyers for your home and may induce a negative feeling with buyers, and their agents, when the price is lowered weeks later.

2. An overpriced listing languishes on the market, costing you, the seller, in lost time (plans have to be put on hold) and money (mortgage, taxes, maintenance). Quality of life can be effected by having to maintain a “show-ready” home 24/7.

3. Working with a real estate professional nets sellers an average of $25,000 more per home sale than “For Sale By Owner” sales, according to a study done by National Association of REALTORS®.

4. Your real estate agent will do research for you to help determine the best price for your home in your neighborhood, including a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA). A CMA is a report analyzing comparable houses in the community that are currently for sale, that have recently sold and were listed for sale but did not sell. The CMA includes pertinent details about the comparable homes, including the number of bedrooms and baths, square footage and any special features. Included are the listing prices and sale prices for each comparable home in the report. The CMA also discusses the Days on Market (DOM) for each home– this is an important feature of the report. The DOM tells you the number of days it took to sell the home once it was listed.

5. Analyzing special features of your home, and comparing them to what are buyer hot buttons in your market, is another service your agent will give you. If your home contains some of the hot button features, that may affect how your home should be priced.

6. Current market conditions– the real estate professional you work with will explain what those conditions are for your local market. An analysis of the current market conditions for your locality should include the inventory of homes on the market, the rate homes are selling, if prices are trending up or down and what the current economic conditions are.

Setting your home’s list price is one of the most critical steps in the overall selling process. By working with a real estate agent, you will have access to your agent’s industry experience and market knowledge. Armed with these important tools, the achievement of your goals, and desired home sale outcome, have an increased chance of success.

From HUD: Upcoming Increases to Mortgage Insurance Premiums

Posted on by
Reply

Today the HUD announced changes to the premium structure for FHA-insured single family residential mortgages.  According to the press release, “FHA will increase its annual mortgage insurance premium (MIP) by 0.10 percent for loans under $625,500 and by 0.35 percent for loans above that amount.  Upfront premiums (UFMIP) will also increase by 0.75 percent.”

The premium increases will be rolled out in the next few months.  Starting April 1st 9th, 2012, all FHA-insured loans will see the 0.10% increase in MIP.  Loans over $625,000 will be assessed an extra 0.25% increase in MIP starting June 1st 11th, 2012, to reach the total 0.35% increase.

The increase in UFMIP will bring this charge from 1% of the base loan amount to 1.75% starting April 1st 9th, 2012.  This change will amount to approximately $5 a month increase to borrowers, on average. The FHA will still allow borrowers to roll this charge in with their mortgages.

The HUD press release about these upcoming premium increases can be read here. What are your thoughts about these increases? Do you think the increases will achieve the goal the FHA has set out for these monies– to contribute to the ongoing stability of its Mutual Mortgage Insurance (MMI) Fund?

EDIT: On March 6th HUD released Mortgagee Letter 12-4 which contains the exact roll out dates of the MIP and UFMIP for new FHA borrowers. The press release sited in this blog post used the language “on or after …” when indicating the projected roll out dates. I’ve updated the text above to reflect the actual roll out dates contained within Mortagee Letter 12-4.