by admin on August 11, 2011
This week my Quarterly Report came back from the printer just in time for all kinds of important economic events! Debt ceiling decisions, credit downgrades and unemployment rate reports all came in after we went to print so I thought I’d share a couple of things in conjunction with my report to round out the information.
Today the Huffington Post reported the US economy added 117,000 jobs in July which is great news that goes right in line with my observations of Q2-2011.
The big news as most of you know is the debt ceiling battle and subsequent credit downgrade. I don’t know about most of you but my head sometimes starts to spin with all this news. Wells Fargo released this fantastic explanation about the issue which helps to explain it in mostly plain English.
All this supports my assertion that long term thinking in all that we do is key. There won’t be any quick resolutions to the problems at hand. Baby steps, perspective and long term thinking is my mantra!
Best Regards,
Domenica
by admin on July 21, 2011
I recently came across a great blog all about credit. After geeking out for an hour or so on her site I decided to share it with you!
Linda Ferarri is a savvy and clear communicator about all things credit. There are blog posts, videos and audio available on her site. Advice about credit myths, credit repair, a myriad of credit related articles and she even wrote a book!
The post that caught my attention was “Credit myths that put your score at risk”. Important information for anyone these days.
Hope you find this information useful. Enjoy your week!
Domenica
Well, according to Aubrey Cohen of the Seattle PI Real Estate Blog, a new report from CoreLogic shows the numbers we hear about real estate prices are dramatically skewed by “distressed” home sales (foreclosures and short sales). Mr. Cohen quotes that prices declined in Seattle 5.8% from May ‘10 – May ‘11 but if you remove the “distressed” home closings from that number it changes to a much less daunting 1.75%!
The reality is that short sales and foreclosure properties sell for less money than other homes. These days many buyers are getting tired of wasting months and months on a short sale. If a seller is in a good equity position they stand out well in the marketplace, often being able to negotiate more strongly on price as well as terms. It’s an interesting dynamic in what most people would consider a “buyers market”.
So “distressed homes” are dragging public perception down for sure. But they don’t have to drag sales prices down overall unless sellers fail to recognize when they are in a strong position. Just another reason to make sure you are working with a great agent who not only knows the market, but also has proven strategies for getting top dollar.
If you are curious about your home’s value don’t hesitate to give me a call. I’m happy to prepare a market analysis to help you understand your current equity position anytime. I always appreciate the opportunity to help, and to catch up with my peeps!
Best Regards,
Domenica
by admin on June 23, 2011
Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) announced the expansion of incentives to encourage sales of HomePath REO properties to owner occupants. Now through October 31, qualified buyers and selling agents can receive financial incentives on sales of HomePath properties, which can be found at www.homepath.com. The incentives are part of Fannie Mae’s commitment to neighborhood stabilization, and are available on sales to buyers who will reside in the home as their primary residence.
“Supporting homeownership and stabilizing neighborhoods are critical to helping the housing market recover,” said Ed Neill, Senior Vice President for Credit Loss Management at Fannie Mae. “Our previous incentives have been effective in securing owner occupants for these properties. By encouraging homebuyers who will make these properties their long-term home, these expanded incentives will help to stabilize communities.”
The expanded incentives offer qualified homebuyers up to 3.5 percent of the final sales price to put towards closing costs. In addition, selling agents representing the owner occupant buyer can now receive a $1,200 bonus. The incentive must be requested in the initial offer. Eligible initial offers must be submitted on or after June 14, 2011 and must close by October 31, 2011. Investor sales are not eligible for the incentive.
HomePath properties offer buyers a wide selection of options, including single-family homes, condominiums, and town houses. HomePath properties may also be eligible for HomePath Mortgage and HomePath Renovation Mortgage financing, which offers homebuyers an opportunity to purchase with as little as 3 percent down…
If this is HomePath is something you are intersted in, please call me and I will send more information your way.
Regards,
Domenica
Windermere Real Estate is proud to partner with Gardner Economics to provide this analysis and commentary on the Western Washington real estate market. This report is designed to support Windermere owners and brokers as they educate buyers and sellers about the realities of the housing market.
I have the benefit of Annual (at minimum) live updates from Matthew Gardner as well as quarterly and periodic reports thanks to my association with Windermere. I am always happy to pass on the great information I receive from this and other resources. If you had a chance to read my quarterly report last month you’ll see that this is a bit more broad and looks at the entire NW region. We hear plenty on the national front, but it’s more important to look at the regional and local real estate market. It’s always good to bring everything we hear nationally into perspective. As the old saying goes… “Real estate is local!”
Click HERE to take a look at the report.
Enjoy your week!
Domenica
I am so pleased to share my first Seattle Real Estate Quarterly Report. Please take a look and let me know what you think. I am very interested in feedback and would love to continually improve the format and the content over the next year.
Inside you’ll find information and synopsis of the first part of this year. As well as graphs and visuals to show you what’s been happening in most Seattle neighborhoods.
Click HERE to download the PDF and watch for a paper version in the mail!
by admin on April 14, 2011
It’s all well and good for buyers that rates are still crazy low and prices have not yet started to climb. But what if you don’t have any money for a down payment? Everyone knows there aren’t any zero down mortgage programs anymore. And the low down payment mortgages have super expensive mortgage insurance tacked on to the monthly payment right?
Well I came across two programs this week from two major (and seemingly stable) banks that might just offer a great boost to qualified buyers who would love to own a home but don’t have a lot of cash.
One program 
is offered by Wells Fargo (many of you know one of my favorite clients is a loan officer at Wells Fargo). So I asked Ryan Carroll to send over some information. Check out his flyer here: Wells Fargo Flyer. He also sent me an interesting loan comparison chart that you can access here: Loan Comparison Flyer.
Merrick H. Tam with Key Bank brought another program to my attention this week. I’ve never worked with Merrick so I can’t vouch for him, but he did take the time to call me and let me know about what seems like a great option for buyers. View his flyer here: Key Bank Flyer.
Please don’t hesitate to give me a call if you are curious about the process of buying and would like to find out if it’s an option for you.
by admin on April 2, 2011
The 2010 Luxury Home Market Report is now available to my clients. 2009 saw sharp declines in the Puget Sound upper end housing market but 2010 showed a marked increase in sales and prices for this segment. The Luxury Home Market Report has all the details including year over year sales, prices and days on market(DOM) etc.
If you would like to discuss the report or have interest in the current market data for any segment of the real estate market please give me a call. I’d love to grab a coffee and talk numbers with you!
by admin on March 18, 2011
In light of the recent and ongoing disaster in Japan I thought it might be time to visit the subject of emergency preparedness. Maintaining and improving our homes is very important. But let’s be honest. How much of a safe haven will your home be if everyone who lives there isn’t safe and prepared when something goes wrong?
Get Started Here!
I’ve been doing a lot of reading and browsing the internet about home emergency preparedness this week. The best site I came across has a setup guide to help create a plan to make sure you are well supplied and prepared in the event of an emergency.
I encourage you to spend some time preparing your home for such an emergency while the issue is close at hand.
And of course I’ve been thinking a lot about how to help. The American Red Cross is always a very good option for donations in situations like these. With the Red Cross’s long history of effective aid and integrity you can’t go wrong. I didn’t come across any local and accessible volunteer opportunities in my searches. Let me know if you hear of any, I might be able to join you.
My heart continues to go out to everyone affected by this catastrophe.
I wish you all peace and safety!
Domenica
Today the Huffington Post reported the US economy added 117,000 jobs in July which is great news that goes right in line with my observations of Q2-2011.
