Selling a home can be quite a task in todays real estate market.  With short sale negotiations, picky buyers and seemingly endless competition from other homes, it's easy to lose steam in the sales process. Please don't forget, as a sellers agent, you are on the offensive team!  Now is the time to turn it on! I only bring this up to share with you an approach you may not have thought of, and you might not think is appropriate at all. When buyers agents show your home or listing, do you send them an offer in writing from the Seller? In real estate transactions, "mutual consent" or "mutual acceptance" of a purchase and sale agreement is achieved through the process of offer and acceptance.  Generally, the offer is made by the buyer to the seller.  Also, it is common for a counter offer fr... 11/05/2009

If your looking for Bank Owned Properties in Issaquah WA below is the market report for October 2009.  Active: 5  Pending: 0  Sold: 2  Other: 0  Total: 7    Bedrooms  Bathrooms         Sqft  List Price  Selling Price  DOM  Minimum  0   2.50   1,620   $329,900   $721,000   2   Average  4   3.61   4,293   $709,628   $798,500   24   Median  4   3.50   4,260   $735,000   $798,500   10   Maximum  5   5.50   6,900   $893,475   $876,000   56   Total Dollar Value           $1,597,000      Average DOM Breakdown and Average % of List Price received on Solds by Market time:    0-30 Days   31-60 Days   61-90 Days   91-120 Days   120+ Days   No. of Listings   2    0    0    0    0   Breakdown %  100.00    0.00    0.00    0.00    0.00   Avg SP % LP  102.06    0.00    0.00    0.00    0.00 Some of the ... 11/05/2009

11/04/2009

One of my favorite things to do on a fall day in Issaquah is to visit the Fish Hatchery!    Residents of Issaquah WA know all to well that Salmon Days Kick off the October celebration of the annual pilgrimage for salmon returning home to spawn on the Issaquah Creek.    Today the the sun was out, but it was still pretty windy!  What a great day to walk around downtown Issaquah WA.  From the fish hatchery you can visit the Issquah Library, Issaquah Brewhouse, Art by Fire and many more downtown shops! So if you find yourself with nothing to do and your near Downtown Issaquah WA check out the hatchery and enjoy what Downtown Issaquah has to offer. 10/24/2009

Interesting Tool for remodeling upgrades and values.  I ran across this tool via Zillow.com and so far am impressed.  We have a very nice listing with great clients, wonderful feedback but no offers.  See here.  According to Zillow we are priced a little high, but the comps they are using haven't been updated and our listing has.  It has new kitchen, baths, carpet & paint inside along with the roof and landscaping are all new or were done within the past couple of years.  The location is good, but perhaps a bit off the beaten path.  8 months ago, another home on the same street sold, without any upgrades for $25,000 less than our current list price, and we are so much nicer.  I took a look at Zillow to see how the listing looked on their website and noticed the Zestimate was $15,000 bel... 10/14/2009

Walk Score... What about a Hike Score? Issaquah Washington is a suburb east of Seattle known for its Fish Hatchery, Salmon Days Celebration, Boehm's Chocolates and Costco Headquarters.  Downtown Issaquah is part early 1900's.  Along historic Front St., a dairy may be the first thing you see with a large mural painted on it, store fronts reminiscent of days gone by, The Village Theater with professional musicals and full blown productions, Fischer meats, and many other small retailers.  Down Gilman Boulevard lies Gilman Village, a group of the original homes once lived in by loggers and settlers new to the area converted into a quaint group of businesses and restaurants.  Beautifully preserved, these buildings are fun to check out even if you are not interested in the variety of merchand... 10/08/2009

This Saturday Salmon Days 2009 kicks off it's 40th Salmon Days Grand Parade.  This year will be a great event with over 250 Artists, 40+ food vendors, Field of Fun and Live Entertainment. The Grand Parade starts at 10am on Saturday October 3rd. The route travels donw Gilman Blvd from Front Street to 12th Ave. Be Green and take your bike to Salmon Days! Nestled at the Hatchery is a special place for those who love to cycle. Last year, Salmon Days again offered a bike corral! This allowed our attendees to peddle past the traffic and park their bike while they enjoyed the Festival. The Bike Corral's Ohfishal Spawnsors are REI and Banner Bank. Festival Parking and Shuttles 3 Convenient Shuttle Stops to make your travel fast, efficient and affordable! You can drive or bike to free parking lo... 10/07/2009

"Tony, you really earned our respect.  You even found someone to show us around when we could only come up on a weekend you were out of town.  You always returned by emails and calls promptly.  I really liked the fact that you read into what we were looking for in a home.  You knew the areas well and even gave pointers about the commute times I could face for work.  I appreciate all that you did and would refer you to a friend or family member in the future.  Thank you for everything!!!" Jennifer & Jeff Killingsworth   It was a pleasure helping Jeff and Jennifer! They relocated to the Seattle area from Southern California for her business. I helped them buy a great Issaquah home, which I know they will enjoy for many years to come! Here is a photo:     Posted By:Tony MeierEastside & Sea... 10/05/2009

It's a beautiful crisp sunny day here in Washington...we're heading out to Salmon Days in Issaquah: Welcome to Issaquah Salmon Days as we celebrate 40 years of Great Returns. As the salmon are returning to our lakes, streams and the downtown hatchery, witness their valiant journey up the Issaquah Creek. http://salmondays.org/                 Vendors, socializing...FUN 10/04/2009

Economic vitality is a key component of a city's health.  As real estate professionals, we have a vested interest in helping to build and maintain the the health and economic vitality of the towns and City's where we live and work.  In Issaquah, Washington, the Chamber of Commerce is working with its members to encourage the involvement and participation of the business community to help ensure the long term economic vitality of the Issaquah community.  A strong business community serves the community by providing jobs, a critical tax base, needed services and products for a community and a needed perspective for a city on how to achieve its desired vision for the community's long term plan.  The City of Issaquah, Washington is working to progress economic vitality in the community to s... 06/06/2009

This is it.  This is the weekend for the annual Tastin N Racin, limited hydro races on Lake Sammamish, Issaquah, WA. For the third year Realty Executives of Issaquah has supported this event and will have a booth at the event. This year the weather promises to be great.  We have been experiencing "summer" weather in the PNW - heat in the high 80's and NO RAIN.  (Sorry Activerain)  Realty Executives of Issaquah has been a participant in this event for the past two years and in those years the weather has been cold and damp.  Not this year, the forecasters promise sun and the high 70's.  Who Hoo! Visit our booth and learn the latest benefits for first time homebuyers.  Hear how you can still get zero down loans with NO PMI.  Realty Executives of Issaquah is working with the Washington Sta... 06/04/2009

Issaquah real estate is on sale!  This historic little burrough is well located adjacent to the thriving City of Bellevue and is a welcome respite for the City weary. As a result of Issaquah's proximity to Bellevue, Issaquah real estate tends to lag Bellevue in terms of valuations.  For most of us, that is good news.  Issaquah real estate is affordable and underrated.  Ready for its recovery, Issaquah real estate is poised for an upturn. With interest rates so low and tax credits for first time home buyers, this may well be the opportunity to build your wealth in real estate.  Now is the time to buy Issaquah real estate!  If you are interested in learning more about Issaquah real estate, please contact me for more information or visit my website at www.coldwellbankerbain.com/pamelahughes. 05/07/2009

Are you living through a short sale?  Representing the Seller?  It takes a ton of patience and skill to weather the endurance race mistakenly called a "short sale".  There is nothing short about it. My experience began with a listing that was inherited from a agent who had promised a Seller to perform a discounted commission - sale.  The house was beautiful in a rural neighborhood and at the time it was worth the $700,000 it was listed for.  The Seller was upside down with a negative amortization loan and no job.  It was either sell the house or give it back in a foreclosure.  Desparate moves resulted in a major price discount to create offers.  The price reduction resulted in a solid offer for $655,000 and began the path to the short sale. My inexperience in this situation began the fr... 04/15/2009

A local organization called Seattle Tilth is having a workshop this coming weekend in Issaquah to teach the public how to raise and keep chickens, they call it "City Chickens".  I love the idea of it because then you can have fresh eggs, composting material for your gardens, and chickens naturally want to eat all manner of bugs and slugs.  Thankfully, the majority of bugs they eat (and slugs) are non-beneficial to a garden so it's a great way to organically treat a yard for pests.  For years I have grown organic vegetables so when I saw that most municipalities will allow up to 3 chickens, even in the city, I thought this could be a great way to expand that practice.  Plus, Michael eats eggs all the time for breakfast.  I loved the idea of having more local food sources for us and our n... 03/12/2009

Man, it is tough out there...I just closed the hardest transaction (listing) ever.  I had a willing and motivated seller and we dropped the sale price by $100K to make the market.  Bang! Two offers in as many days.  We snagged a qualified Buyer and set for a 30 day close. Then came the inspection.  Sometimes the inspection just has to be the defining moment in the sale  Water in the crawl space and mice in the attic...ridge caps on the roof and a difficult Jacuzzi tub.  Sounds simple enough, but not so fast.  How about those failed window seals (4) and that defective water heater? Finally, we defined what would be perfection in this home and it looks like $7K would cover it.  The Seller says "we will do it all".  (whataguy).  The handyman fills the Jacuzzi to check it out and when he is... 01/05/2009

During the month of December 2008, REO in King County sold for an average 86.95% of the banks foreclosure amount or previous loan amount. Which banks closed with the biggest losses on individual properties? Here's the top 5 "Biggest Losers" of the month. #1. Jp Morgan Chase Bank Na (A WAMU asset) @ ..................................39.33%#2. Saxon Mortgage Services Inc sold a home for ..................................56.31%#3. Lasalle Bank National Association (A First Franklin asst) @ .................61.64%#4. Citigroup Mtg Series 2006-Amc1  (An Argent Mortgage asset) @ .........66.01%#5. First Franklin Mtg 2007-1 sold one of their homes for ........................66.83% Who were the biggest sellers of the month? #1. Countrywide with ...............8 units, ...................averag... 01/04/2009

     Issaquah, WA home sale statistics -Residential            2- Bedrooms          3 Bedrooms          4 Bedrooms          5+ Bedrooms          All Bedrooms          Active     #Units 20 152 190 56 418       Average List Price $705,716 $612,469 $867,486 $1,646,452 $871,372       Average Market Time 98 101 93 134 102       Average Square Feet 1304 2163 3239 4937 2983            All Off Market     #Units 3 36 35 5 79            Pending     #Units 1 13 14 5 33       Average List Price $735,000 $488,779 $573,839 $807,956 $580,686       Average Market Time 2 85 56 98 72       Average Square Feet 0 2126 2606 4243 2586            Sold     #Units 2 23 21 0 46       Dollar Value $729,000 $10,922,980 $11,710,270 $0 $23,362,250       Average List Price $396,975 $488,979 $573,601 $0 $523,611     ... 09/08/2008

If you are considering a real estate investment, or representing somebody who is, one way to analyze a deal is to be mindful of the exit.  With that in mind, I wanted to bring to light the market as buyers see it today.  They are no longer buying in to visions of what they couldmake a home look like and seem to have eased up on the 'do-it-yourself' mentality that was so prevalent during the last couple years. Not only have many people now experienced 'do-it-yourself' and found it's not for them, Buyers also have so many homes to choose from that there is no need to do work if they don't want to.  Honestly, who really wants to do repairs if they can just move right into the same house down the street?  Sure, the fixer might have a bit lower price, but they can probably haggle that differ... 07/07/2008

June 2008 -  Issaquah Residential   2- Bedrooms 3 Bedrooms 4 Bedrooms 5+ Bedrooms All Bedrooms   Active #Units 15 159 182 64 420   Average List Price $690,079 $611,859 $858,141 $1,443,330 $848,075   Average Market Time 92 82 95 100 91   Average Square Feet 1605 2165 3328 4717 3038     All Off Market #Units 4 30 45 6 85     Pending #Units 2 13 16 2 33   Average List Price $414,900 $485,179 $635,373 $586,500 $559,882   Average Market Time 60 45 69 19 56   Average Square Feet 1673 1899 2626 2715 2287     Sold #Units 2 17 29 4 52   Dollar Value $747,900 $8,773,291 $20,318,889 $5,000,500 $34,840,580   Average List Price $384,950 $526,247 $721,636 $1,345,988 $692,837   Average Sold Price $373,950 $516,076 $700,651 $1,250,125 $670,011   Average Market Time 73 121 98 168 110   Average Square F... 07/01/2008

NWMLS 500 May-08 May-07 %Change Median Prices $699,475 $689,075 1.50% Inventory 589 398 48% Pending 68 116 -41.40%   NWMLS Area 500 includes South Bellevue, Newcastle,Issaquah through North Bend directly below I-90.  Overall Area 500 has 41 weeks of inventory.  Inventory is slowly building in this area as we see absorption rates growing.  All price ranges are Buyers advantaged markets with the exception of $300k-$400k and the price range of $900k - $1mil, which are Balanced markets. Compiled from but not published or verified by NWMLS. 06/13/2008