Entries from February 2008
I have been looking forward to taking my son to the Western Washington University Planetarium this week. Thursday Feb 28 6:00PM & 7:30PM they will be having a public showing.
They will be telling the story of Orion, always one of my favorite of the night sky as it brings in lots of the other constellations into it’s story.
Western’s planetarium has a state-of-the-art projector, called Mediaglobe, it can show more than 6,000 stars and space objects instantaneously. It also has a full-color digital projection system and Dolby Surround Sound. What an incredible resource we have right here in Bellingham that is not very well known. Check out the Planetariums website at http://www.wwu.edu/depts/skywise/ for some interesting links about the night sky, and another great resource for the community, Public Night Sky Observingusing WWU’s 12 inch telescope, most Wednesday nights when the sky is clear at 7pm or twilight which ever is later.
Thank you WWU Physics & Astronomy Department.
Photo Courtesy of Flickr.com by Dan Hershman
Categories: Uncategorized
Absorption rate is average number of homes sold per month over a particular period of time. The months to sell is a reflection of the absorbtion rate, how long it will take to sell the current inventory at the said absortion rate.
This is a very interesting way to look at the market, as of today:
Average List Price $477,172 Days on the market 118
Median List Price $364,950 Days on the market 89
|
Price Range
|
Active Listings
|
Monthly Absorbtion Rate
|
Pending Past week
|
Months to sell Current Inventory
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Up to $200,000
|
16
|
5.3
|
0
|
3.0
|
|
200,000-300,000
|
160
|
40.4
|
5
|
4.0
|
|
300,000-400,000
|
126
|
29.8
|
3
|
4.2
|
|
400,000-500,000
|
89
|
13.3
|
2
|
6.7
|
|
500,000-600,000
|
43
|
5.5
|
0
|
7.8
|
|
600,000-700,000
|
31
|
2.8
|
0
|
11.7
|
|
700,000-800,000
|
22
|
2.4
|
0
|
9.2
|
|
800,000-900,000
|
16
|
1.9
|
0
|
8.4
|
|
900,000-1,000,000
|
8
|
.8
|
0
|
10.0
|
|
1,000,000-2,000,000
|
22
|
1.4
|
0
|
15.7
|
|
2,000,000+
|
6
|
.25
|
0
|
24.0
|
|
Totals
|
538
|
102
|
10
|
5.3
|
Categories: Uncategorized
Bellingham’s RE Storeis a treasure for those do-it-yourselfer’s around town. Since 1993 the RE Store has made used building materials available to anyone looking to save a few dollars and include some charm from the past into their building projects.
If you are looking for doors or windows, cabinets or sinks, hinges or doorknobs, paint or just about anything related to the building process, stop by to see what kind of treasures you can find.
I shopped at the RE Store often when I was building my own home years ago and got some great treasures there.
The store not only makes materials available to builders and homeowners but it helps save money on disposal costs and helps reducing waste and saving resources all while helping the local economy by creating jobs and generating local tax dollars, A true winning situation for all involved.
They have a crew that can salvage materials from homes that are being torn down and save a lot of material that would otherwise be destroyed and taken to the dump. I know ion the past they have even helped demolish some old schools and gotten some beautiful old material out of them. They also recycle electronics for a small fee and make sure they get handled in a responsible manner. They can help save beautiful old plants that might normally get destroyed in the demolition of an old home as well. They accept donations of materials to be recycled in the community.
They also sponsor workshops on working with used building materials, green building, & energy efficiency, They also have a store in Seattle.
Categories: Uncategorized
Boulevard Park is slated to have a new pavillion, stage, bandstandporch. The park has a great summer concert series which for years has been using a temporary stage that has to be put up and taken down each time it is needed.
The Porch as it is being called will be made of materials that will be naturally beautiful and long lasting: recycled timbers, crafted stone, and hand-forged iron work, among others.
The porch will be a memorial to Mark Witter’s life in craft and music. He was resident of the Columbia neighborhood, coach & friend to many, a blues musician who
performed in Bellingham, and an important figure in the timber frame community who died recently unexpectedly. Inspired by Mark’s life, Cascade Joinery, a timber framing company where Mark worked, has proposed to the project suitable for musical performances, weddings, and other ceremonies that bring
the community together.
There will be fundraiser to help pay for The Porch at Boulevard Park on Sunday Feb 24 at the UpFront Theatre,
If you are interested in anything else going on in Bellingham, visit my website for Bellingham Real Estate
Categories: Uncategorized
I recently sold a Bank owned foreclosure property.
It was one of those that have their own many page addendum to the contract which was longer than the contract. It had the typical clause of $100 a day charge to the buyer if the contract went past the original closing date. It also had a clause stating that the seller can cancel the contract at any time for any reason and the buyer would get their earnest money back. I don’t like this clause but they wouldn’t remove it, it puts the buyer at risk of spending money on inspections and appraisals and then having them seller’s turn around and cancel the contract without reimbursing the buyer’s for these costs.
It was a good deal to the buyer was willing to take a chance. We went through and had inspection and found a lot of things wrong, the seller’s addendum also had an “as is” clause, once again the buyer was willing to carry on. Next came the appraisal, this is where things started to get a little sticky. The appraiser called for a new roof, and a few of the minor repairs. The listing agent took care of the minor repairs, the seller wasn’t going to put a new roof on the house.
The listing agent and I came to an agreement with buyer’s consent, that the buyer would pay for a new roof, and the seller was even willing to reduce the purchase price by the costs of the roof. The only problem now was the clause that the seller can cancel any time, we tried to get them to take that clause of the contract at this point to protect the buyer’s investment of the cost of a new roof. They wouldn’t do it. The listing agent said the seller’s lawyers would not let them delete that clause from contract. We were now at an impasse.
After a few days the seller finally agreed to pay for a new roof. This was now early December and we were fast approaching the closing date. The seller’s agreed to extend the closing at no cost to the buyer. Since the weather was pretty crummy in December and roofing company couldn’t get their crew out there until January, we got another no cost extension.
The good news is the finally closed on the home, it had a new roof and no penalties to the buyer.
Foreclosures aren’t always easy, but they can work out, and they can be a great deal. 
Categories: Uncategorized
Absorption rate is average number of homes sold per month over a particular period of time. The months to sell is a reflection of the absorbtion rate, how long it will take to sell the current inventory at the said absortion rate.
This is a very interesting way to look at the market, as of today:
Average List Price $473,789 Days on the market 118
Median List Price $360,000 Days on the market 94
|
Price Range
|
Active Listings
|
Monthly Absorbtion Rate
|
Pending Past week
|
Months to sell Current Inventory
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Up to $200,000
|
14
|
5.3
|
1
|
2.6
|
|
200,000-300,000
|
164
|
40.4
|
10
|
4.0
|
|
300,000-400,000
|
126
|
29.8
|
2
|
4.2
|
|
400,000-500,000
|
86
|
13.3
|
3
|
6.5
|
|
500,000-600,000
|
39
|
5.5
|
0
|
7.1
|
|
600,000-700,000
|
29
|
2.8
|
0
|
10.3
|
|
700,000-800,000
|
23
|
2.4
|
0
|
9.6
|
|
800,000-900,000
|
17
|
1.9
|
0
|
9.5
|
|
900,000-1,000,000
|
6
|
.8
|
0
|
7.5
|
|
1,000,000-2,000,000
|
21
|
1.4
|
1
|
15.0
|
|
2,000,000+
|
6
|
.25
|
0
|
24.0
|
|
Totals
|
530
|
102
|
17
|
5.2
|
Categories: Uncategorized
Absorption rate is average number of homes sold per month over a particular period of time. The months to sell is a reflection of the absorbtion rate, how long it will take to sell the current inventory at the said absortion rate.
This is a very interesting way to look at the market, as of today:
Average List Price $474,948 Days on the market 117
Median List Price $360,000 Days on the market 94
|
Price Range
|
Active Listings
|
Monthly Absorbtion Rate
|
Pending Past week
|
Months to sell Current Inventory
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Up to $200,000
|
13
|
5.3
|
1
|
2.5
|
|
200,000-300,000
|
168
|
40.4
|
4
|
4.2
|
|
300,000-400,000
|
128
|
29.8
|
2
|
4.2
|
|
400,000-500,000
|
82
|
13.3
|
3
|
6.2
|
|
500,000-600,000
|
37
|
5.5
|
1
|
6.7
|
|
600,000-700,000
|
29
|
2.8
|
1
|
10.3
|
|
700,000-800,000
|
21
|
2.4
|
0
|
8.8
|
|
800,000-900,000
|
18
|
1.9
|
0
|
9.5
|
|
900,000-1,000,000
|
7
|
.8
|
0
|
8.8
|
|
1,000,000-2,000,000
|
22
|
1.4
|
0
|
15.7
|
|
2,000,000+
|
6
|
.25
|
0
|
24.0
|
|
Totals
|
530
|
102
|
12
|
5.2
|
Categories: Uncategorized
The following is a quick analysis of the Whatcom County real estate market by Michael Eisenberg of Fairhaven Realty.
- There are currently 1391 homes for sale.
- Homes are priced from $30,000 – $4,799,000
- Average Asking Price is $433,788
- Median Asking Price is $339,500
- Average Days on Market are 120 days (or about 4 months)
- 44 Homes went Pending this week
- 128 Homes sold last in January
- Average Listing Price $336,924
- Average Sold Price $321,007
- Average Days on the Market 102
- Median Listing Price $274,450
- Median Sold Price $269,950
- Median Days on Market 72
Buyers: Interest rates are still low making now is a good time to get in the market. There are plenty of homes to choose from and lots have been on the market a long time so there are some motivated sellers out there who need to sell their homes.
Sellers: There is still a lot of competition right now and if you don’t want your home to sit on the market without an offer here are a few bits of advise:
- The most important thing you can do is price your home right, have your real estate agent do a CMA and price your home aggressively, that is in the lower range of similar homes if you want a quick sale
- Hava a pre-inspection done to your home and fix any problems
- Give your home curb appeal
- Offer a Home Warranty if it is an older home
- Get rid of clutter, start clearing out your things, even if you have to put them in storage.
- Think about staging your home, get advise from a staging professional or at least your agent.
If you would like some info about Whatcom County real estate or living in Whatcom County visit my website at BellinghamProperty.com or give me a call.
Categories: Uncategorized
Lynden Real Estate Market Report for January, 2008
The following is a quick analysis of the Lynden real estate market by Michael Eisenberg of Fairhaven Realty.
- There are currently 127homes for sale.
- Homes are priced from $124,900 – $1,790,000
- Average Asking Price is $423,376
- Median Asking Price is $337,500
- Average Days on Market are 125 days (or about 3 months)
- 6 Homes went Pending this week
- 9 Homes sold last in January
- Average Listing Price $349,105
- Average Sold Price $339,883
- Average Days on the Market 155
- Median Listing Price $309,900
- Median Sold Price $317,900
- Median Days on Market 142
Buyers: Interest rates are still low making now is a good time to get in the market. There are plenty of homes to choose from and lots have been on the market a long time so there are some motivated sellers out there who need to sell their homes.
Sellers: There is still a lot of competition right now and if you don’t want your home to sit on the market without an offer here are a few bits of advise:
- The most important thing you can do is price your home right, have your real estate agent do a CMA and price your home aggressively, that is in the lower range of similar homes if you want a quick sale
- Hava a pre-inspection done to your home and fix any problems
- Give your home curb appeal
- Offer a Home Warranty if it is an older home
- Get rid of clutter, start clearing out your things, even if you have to put them in storage.
- Think about staging your home, get advise from a staging professional or at least your agent.
If you would like some info about Lynden real estate or living in Lynden visit my website at BellinghamProperty.com or give me a call.
Categories: Uncategorized
The following is a quick analysis of the Blaine real estate market by Michael Eisenberg of Fairhaven Realty.
- There are currently 240 homes for sale.
- Homes are priced from $87,950 – $3,500,000
- Average Asking Price is $506,039
- Median Asking Price is $339,700
- Average Days on Market are 140 days (or about 4 1/2 months)
- 7 Homes went Pending this week
- 15 Homes sold in January
- Average Listing Price $308,923
- Average Sold Price $286,070
- Average Days on the Market 58
- Median Listing Price $235,000
- Median Sold Price $230,000
- Median Days on Market 38
As you can easily see there is quite a large discrepancy between the average price for a home presently on the market a $506,039 and the average sold price last month of $286,070. It looks like the $3,500,000 home is skewing that average price quite a bit.
Buyers: Interest rates are still low making now is a good time to get in the market. There are plenty of homes to choose from and lots have been on the market a long time so there are some motivated sellers out there who need to sell their homes.
Sellers: There is still a lot of competition right now and if you don’t want your home to sit on the market without an offer here are a few bits of advise:
- The most important thing you can do is price your home right, have your real estate agent do a CMA and price your home aggressively, that is in the lower range of similar homes if you want a quick sale
- Hava a pre-inspection done to your home and fix any problems
- Give your home curb appeal
- Offer a Home Warranty if it is an older home
- Get rid of clutter, start clearing out your things, even if you have to put them in storage.
- Think about staging your home, get advise from a staging professional or at least your agent.
If you would like some info about Blaine real estate or living in Blaine visit my website at BellinghamProperty.com or give me a call.
Categories: Uncategorized
