The Seattle Times did a nice summary of what the Seattle Real Estate Market has done in the last 5 years last week. When looking at these facts remember to look at the big picture, the value of real estate is constantly changing. We saw a big spike in value in 2007 and people are still comparing their property value to that year.
I do believe things are starting to turn around and get back to normal, whatever that is!
A good real estate market makes for a good financial market. At least that’s what I think when I step back and look at the big picture. You might think differently but let’s take a look at the current real estate market and the effect it has on the economy.
There aren’t as many homes on the market which means homeowners aren’t hiring contractors to fix up the home. People aren’t moving to new homes so rentals of moving trucks or hiring professional movers are down.
A lot of people buy new furniture or accessories when they move into a new place. Because suddenly that couch that was perfect in your old home won’t fit in the new living room so now you need a new one. Without home sales this isn’t happening!
And don’t forget the little purchases that add up to a lot of money. Maybe you need new curtains, some paint, light fixtures, baby proofing if you are in that stage, people spend a lot of money making their new home well home! There’s nothing worse than being in your on house and having not feel like home.
All of this traces back to home sales. When home sales are up, these businesses are busy, when they are down, only the strong survive.
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We keep thinking the real estate market is getting better, and it is, until you start comparing the facts to past years. According to the Seattle Times buyers spent 8.9 billion dollars on houses and condos in King County last year. That’s good, that’s a lot of money, until you see that in 2005 we spent 17.1 billion. That’s right, almost 90% more money was spent 5 years ago.
The prices of homes were about the same in 2010 as they were in 2005 but the difference is fewer homes sold last year. In 2005 roughly 42,000 homes/condos were sold. 2010 saw only 21,000.
Honestly though, it is getting better. We had a HUGE real estate boom that we are comparing ourselves to instead of looking at the bigger picture. Value goes up and down, it’s all about selling high and buying low. The tricky part is the timing of it all.
The value of a home is up to negotiation. Everyone knows that but how much should your offer be? Full price, 5k less than asking price, 10k less than asking price, more? You can make any reasonable offer; just make sure it’s a smart offer. You don’t want someone coming in at the same time with a better offer, one that you would have made, eventually!
This is where having an experienced real estate agent really benefits you. The agent should know the area really well and all the comparable properties for sale in the area so they can fight negotiate for you!
Here are a few things to consider when making your offer according to relocation.com:
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Can you guess which city in the entire world is going to be the favorite city for foreign real estate investments in 2011? A little hint, the number 1 and number 2 slots are in the United States.
According to the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate New York City and Washington DC is where foreign investors want to spend their money. Not only that, but word is these investors want to spend more money in 2011 than they did last year.
That’s good news, wish it was Seattle or at least the West Coast but hey, considering this survey was for the entire planet, I’m glad it was at least in America!
If you are facing foreclosure I’m sure your head is spinning. Maybe you don’t know where to turn for information, what the process is or where to start. Because of this stress we see a lot of people just walk away from their home, not realizing what options they may have had or how this will affect their future.
We tell all our clients to at least make an educated decision, don’t just walk away. See what options you have and then when you know your possibilities make a decision that best suits you and your family.
Fannie Mae just launched a new interactive website called KnowYourOptions.com. This is a great place to start getting information about Foreclosure and the process. If you are in this situation take a look and start learning what options you have. We are always here as a resource as well. It’s a bit overwhelming but in the end knowledge is power!
It seems the harder we try to fix the foreclosure mess, the uglier it becomes?
Recently, several of the nations largest banks suspended all foreclosures to investigate potential paperwork legality issues.
This is not good folks, really not good at all.
Here’s what’s going on:
People aren’t paying their mortgages. They’re underwater, with difficult payments, perhaps unemployed or under employed, or some combination of the above.
The problem is that these situations need to be resolved. Resolution is either foreclosure, short sale, loan modification, or get current on the payments. Most likely one of the first two. Just freezing the process is NOT a solution.
Tomorrow morning these people will still be in trouble. You won’t be sober in the morning.
Twenty-three states have foreclosure laws that require a court case to foreclose on a property. These are the so-called “judicial” states. These laws are designed to “protect” homeowners. In other states, the foreclosure process is much quicker. The people with cash to buy homes are much more likely to buy in states where the deal is less likely to get held up in court – sometimes for years.
As a result, the unintended consequence of heavy foreclosure laws which delay the inevitable, most likely will be a slower recovery.
We’ve seen it many times, when the government artificially props up a system, the system does not have a chance to work. We’ll watch this one closely but we’re not hopeful.
Q. I have heard people use the term Hot Sheet for Seattle real estate. What is it and how come my real estate agent never mentions it?
A. Hot sheet is another one of those “real estate” terms used by Seattle real estate agents to describe a report from the Washington State Multiple Listing Service (MLS) of new or recent activity in the MLS. It normally would show the new real estate for sale, status changes, and price changes since the last hot sheet was viewed. Some just show the previous or current day activity. Continue reading
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If forested cityscapes are your thing, this is your kind of place. Bellevue’s compact downtown bristles with new skyscrapers that seem to hover above Lake Washington — and when the clouds part, mountain views loom.
Real estate isn’t a bargain, but the town’s jobless rate is more than two points below that of the Seattle metro area, thanks to a recent influx of jobs from such employers as Microsoft (which has moved 6,500 positions here), T-Mobile, Verizon, and Expedia. In fact, Bellevue has more jobs than it does residents.
And the population is diverse: Nearly a quarter of residents are Asian, and nearly a third are foreign born.
The town’s high schools consistently land at the top of state rankings. There’s also a ton of arts and entertainment, including a philharmonic orchestra, fine arts museum, botanical garden, youth theater, annual jazz festival, and 74 (!) parks.
Home prices should begin an uneven rebound next year, says a forecast compiled for Businessweek.com by Fiserv and Moody’s Economy.com. Taking into consideration such factors as employment, foreclosure rates, income growth, demographic trends, and construction costs, Moody’s Economy.com and
Brookfield (Wisc.)-based financial services industry information firm Fiserv (FISV) estimate that by 2014, U.S. home prices will be 7.2 percent above 2010 levels, with the strongest growth in the Pacific Northwest.
Stiff says he expects to see home prices bounce up and down near their lows for the next two to three years, especially in the markets that experienced the largest price bubbles.
The most robust market in the forecast is Washington State’s Bremerton-Silverdale area, a quiet naval community across the Puget Sound from Seattle. Home sales and new construction in the area have slowed in 2010, but Fiserv and Moody’s Economy.com expect prices there to shoot up by a total of 44.7 percent over the next four years—9.7 percent annually—the highest forecast among 384 metropolitan statistical areas surveyed nationwide. Price levels have fallen about 21 percent from 2007 peak levels, according to the Fiserv Case-Shiller Indexes.
One factor setting Bremerton-Silverdale apart has been a stronger economy than the rest of the U.S. The unemployment rate in the area is 7.2 percent, compared to 9.5 percent nationally. Bremerton’s military has also helped to sustain employment. The Naval Base Kitsap and the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard provide a lot of local jobs. While the area has a large number of foreclosure and pre-foreclosure homes, the market is less dominated by distressed sales than many other markets.
Washington’s second-strongest market is Tacoma, with a growth rate expected to be 33.1 percent. Prices in the Seattle area are expected to grow 25.5 percent by 2014.
At some point, everything stops falling. Sometimes things hit bottom with a thud and just lie there in a heap. Sometimes they bounce back up at least part of the way. The U.S. housing market is in the latter camp. Remember the old saying, buy low and sell high? Call me if you want to get on board and make some money!
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