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Chelan, WA Real Estate News

By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
By dollar volume, Lake Chelan home sales in July were only 49% of one year ago. By number of homes closed, the drop was 40%. Check out all of the July results and historical numbers back through 2005 at the Lake Chelan Real Estate Home Sales Summary. No waterfront homes closed in July of this year. July is historically one of the months of peak sales for Lake Chelan real estate. The Puget Sound region saw a sharp home sales decrease in June after the expiration of the Home Buyer Tax Credit. Typically, there is a strong correlation between what happens in the Seattle market and the Lake Chelan real estate market. Stay tuned to the Chelan Real Estate Blog for the latest real estate market information for Lake Chelan! PR: wait... I: wait... L: wait... LD: wait... I: wait... wait... Rank: w...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
The Realist value tool is now available at Lake Chelan. Only NWMLS members have access to it. The Northwest MLS (NWMLS) recently added a tool to their members' arsenals in the Realist ValueMap Tool. This tool provides a map and valuation estimation of a home by address, and the estimated value of surrounding homes! So, I was playing with the tool this morning. Since there was a new short-sale on the MLS in Chelan Hills that looks interesting, I put in that address to see what it came up with. MLS number 996840 is at 308 Butte Road in Chelan Hills. On the listing, it is 3 bedrooms and 2 1/2 bathrooms on .22 acre. This property is listed at $289,000. The ValueMap estimated the value of this home at $313,000. It listed it at 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and only 1422 square feet but did have the...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
Want to know how influential a Lake Chelan Realtor and Blogger is on Fast Company's Influence Project to determine 2010's most influential person on the web? Click my link: fcinf.com/v/ctc2 You can find out how influential you are on the web as well by clicking fcinf.com/v/ctc2
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Photographs are the language of real estate marketing. Words just don't express the feel of a home like good photography can. On the other hand, poor photos can convey a message that is detrimental to marketing a home. An out of the area realtor has a fun site called Truly Awful Listing Photos. You can see bad composition, poor subject choice, photos that just should not have been put in the listing, awful lighting and more. We can joke about this and enjoy this site, but keep it in mind when you are looking at someone to list your home. Look at some of their listings on the MLS. Many shots similar to these can be found on our local listings. The listing photos of your home are IMPORTANT! I often utilize professional photographers. For my own pictures, I use a camera with a wide angle l...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
Using undisclosed digital enhancement of listing photos to hide flaws in a home is pure deception. Yet, I’m a fan of virtual staging. Virtual staging involves using digital techniques to show a room with furniture and window coverings that doesn’t have those things. It is to show the possibilities of a room. It is not using photo enhancement technology to hid defects in a room. I’ve written about virtual staging before. It can be a great aid in marketing a home. Used eithically, it can show how furniture can be fit in a room and show the potential for a home that is unfurnished at far less cost than furnishing the home. Its use should always be disclosed. Virtual staging is being confused in the media, and by some unethical real estate agents, with digitally touching up a photograph to ...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
We’re finally getting around to completing our media and game room. Since we started working on our home in 2004, technology has taken some big steps. Frankly, getting this part of the home complete just wasn’t our priority. These days, video is higher definition and is delivered over the internet. Since I’m not current on all of this stuff, we’re turning to the folks in Chelan who make it their business to stay current. I’m going to the place I refer my clients! Ray Dobbs at RayCom Radio Shack in Chelan offers the latest Audio, Video and Computer gear. They will do design drawings, pull the wires, deliver and install the audio and video, and make sure you know how to make it fly when we’re all done. We’ve had the wires in place for some time. It is finally time to get it all going! Let...
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For the last several years, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has been requiring mitigation for dock construction that normally consists of dumping old apple tree root balls in the lake. The sailing association has been working with other land owners to point out the dangers to swimmers and boaters of this practice. Further, research with renowned biologists suggests that this mitigation actually favors predator fish, not what they are supposed to be protecting. And, docks appear to be helpful to fish. One of the proposals to solve this issue is a Fee-In-Lieu program where property owners can pay into a fund for off-site mitigation projects. It is currently open for public comment. Here are the details: Interested parties are hereby notified that the U.S. Army Corps of Engi...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
Sure, there is fiber, DSL, satellite, cable and even cellular broadband service available in the Lake Chelan Valley. Even so, I had a question over the internet this weekend from a person who wanted to live in the area in a spot that wasn't served by fiber, DSL or cable. Cellular and satellite were too slow for what they needed. They wanted to know if there were any other options. There is another option! Rabbit Meadows Technology offers a wi-fi style of broadband that is available in many areas around Lake Chelan. It is offered in many places without fiber, cable or DSL. It be ordered to be faster than cellular or satellite. What's not to like? If you have questions on how to make a home at Lake Chelan meet your needs, let me know!
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That's right. Everyone thought it was booming in 2006 and 2007. So far this year, sales are very much like those years. The Lake Chelan Residential Real Estate Sales Summary is out through April and it has historical information back to 2005. Check it out. The nice thing about the current market is that there is actually inventory available for interested buyers. That's a big difference from the "boom" years. The market is also much more balanced between buyers and sellers. Look at the numbers for April: April 2010 had 13 residential sales compared to 5 in 2009. The average sale price inched up a bit, from $267,800 in 2009 to $269,242 in 2010. The sales price as a percentage of list price increased a whopping 11 points, from 85.9% tp 96.78% for April 2010. Total sales for April were abo...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
Yes, there is truly a variety of things to do at Lake Chelan. For those interested in the shooting sports, there is a gun club at Lake Chelan north of the airport on Washington Creek Road called the North Cascades Sportsman's Club. It is equipped with a complete rifle, pistol and black powder range with shooting berms to 400 yards and nine covered shooting stations. There is an archery range with multiple shooting positions. The club operates three traps and one skeet field. All are generously lighted for night shooting. Costs to join the club are very reasonable, at the cost of a single membership being $40 and the cost of a family membership only $50 a year. The range also offers public hours for non-members on Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM (or until activities end) for...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
A good measure of the strength of the real estate market is when people become comfortable investing in it again. I don't mean investing in forclosed homes on hopes of flipping them on an upswing, but investing in new projects that bring new homes and properties onto the market. When that market stabilizes, the real estate market will have recovered. There are enticing properties out there for investors. I wrote about Saska Hills where an investor can have finished, fully serviced city lots for around $42 thousand per lot. That is pricing that wasn't heard of a few years ago and could hardly be duplicated with today's permitting and application fees. That should be compelling, right? On another blog, I wrote about a project application that was issued by Chelan County on a project I hav...
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Over the last few days there have been two noteworthy Lake Chelan waterfront home sales. These sales are noteworthy because they represent some of the great deals that are happening on Lake Chelan waterfront. The first home is a 2300 s.f. plus home with 4 bedrooms and 3 bathroomw. It has a beautiful waterfront with a dock, lawn and bulkhead. The lot is mostly level and makes the lake super accessible. It is located near Minneapolis Beach on South Lakeshore Road. This home is in nice condition. The new owners purchased this gem for only $935,000! It was originally priced at $1,295,000. The second home is located near Tsillan Cellars and includes 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom manufactured home and stand alone 4 car garage. It also has a beautiful, accessible waterfront and outdoor patio area. The...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
I have clients who ask me how they can find a good contractor in the Lake Chelan area. There are resources for those of you who wish to do your research. The North Central Home Builders Association is a good place to start. They even have a consumer resources page that assists folks in finding builders, re modelers and financing for their projects. Another good thing to do is to talk to people! In the current market, many builders have time available in their schedules. That has not always been the case. Some contractors haven’t been able to keep their crews together during this slower time. In other words today they may have better, or worse, crews than they were when they built that home in their portfolio. Check in with the Labor and Industries web site. They have a whole section on ...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
The City of Chelan is hosting its first Sustainability Steering Committee meeting on January 27, 2010 at 4pm at City Hall. Sustainability is generally defined as meeting the needs of this generation without compromising the needs of future generations. The Sustainability Element and Action Plan will guide the City in fostering sustainability and a sustainable community. The City's Comprehensive Plan is a legal document that the City Council has adopted to guide the future physical development of the community. It is used by the Council, the City's Planning Commission, private firms, individuals, and City staff when making decisions about land use development or changes, capital improvements, and changes to development regulations and related growth management legislation. The Comprehens...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
From the International Builders' Show and PF Waterworks, a drain trap that is claimed will never clog. The drain's shape produces turbulence that propels debris through the pipes. The drain is made of clear plastic, so anything that does get lodged in it can be seen. A dial provides a way to dislodge objects that get stuck. That's innovation.
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Here is a report on homes that sold, on Lake Chelan only, with waterfront for 2009.  This report doesn't include Columbia River waterfront homes, homes in the area on other lakes nor condominium marina slips. Here are the homes that sold in 2009 that are on Lake Chelan.  I removed things like sales of marina slips and Columbia River waterfront homes and homes that sold on other area lakes.  These are only Lake Chelan waterfront sales for 2009: Address City Price Lot 30  Emerson Acres Rd Manson $455,000.00 141  Sunset Place Manson $810,000.00 15882  S Lakeshore Rd Chelan $899,000.00 3685  Chelan Blvd Manson $1,000,000.00 230  South Lakeshore Chelan $1,600,000.00 3124  A SR 150 Manson $1,950,000.00 NNA  Key Lane Chelan $2,700,000.00 240-246  S Lakeshore Rd Chelan $3,500,000.00 For a bit m...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
The Knight Foundation and the Gallup organization undertook a study to figure out why people become attached to their community and how it can impact a community.  The poll was conducted in 26 communities and involved asking 28,000 people from all over the US how they feel about their communities. The study found that a community's social offerings, physical beauty and openess to new and different people are the most important aspects of creating love for the community with its residents.  Those factors outweigh the economy in their ranking of what is important. Would you have guessed that aesthetics were ranked higher than public safetyor highways or freeways?  Vibrant social cores, dense areas where diverse groups can socialize and interact that are fun and vibrant are more important ...
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While the real estate market at Lake Chelan is getting warmer, there are still outside influences that can impact us.  Actually, with so much of our market driven by outside buyers, we are beholden to what is happening in the world around us when it comes to Lake Chelan Real Estate. If you have business to get done in real estate, buying or selling your Lake Chelan home or property, I think now is a good time to get it done.  If you check the history of this blog you will see that is not a statement I make lightly.  Also, when I say you have business to get done, I don't mean in the next five years, I mean in the next year or less. From the link in the first paragraph, you can see that we are seeing relatively healthy sales volumes right now.  It is not clear that the trend will continu...
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
There is a relatively new web site available from Eastern Washington University called Chelan Douglas Trends.  This site provides information on trends in people & Population, Culture & Leisure, Economic Vitality, Education, Environment, Health, Housing, Public Safety and Transportation in Chelan and Douglas Counties.  The information is easily sorted, graphically presented and additional help or data is just a mouse click away.  Check out your perceptions of the area against the data and see what you think.
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By Al Lorenz
(Criterion Properties)
Here are the sales of Lake Chelan commercial real estate for 2009.  There were two sales on the MLS in the Lake Chelan area: 116 E. JohnsonChelan, WA A multi-tenant retail facility of about 1780 square feet on a .10 acre lot.Sales Price:   $267,000Original Price: $359,000Days on Market: 370 229 E. Woodin AvenueChelan, WA Restaurant space formally called the Bonfire Grill.  This was a bank owned sale of the property on .19 acres in Chelan's Historic Downtown district.Sales Price: $355,000Original Price: $399,000Days on Market: 66 As far as 2009 commercial sales at Lake Chelan that are on the MLS, that's all folks!  There was reported to be a sale of land to the hospital district at Apple Blossom Center that was not on the Chelan MLS.
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