You hit that nail on the HEAD! Absolutely! People do not want to spend the little time we have sunny here in Seattle, doing yard maintenance. The best houses are bigger lots, but low maintenance, backs to greenbelt. Anything with low maintnenance and PRIVACY.

No one likes to live in a “fishbowl” feeling like everyone is staring at them. That’s why I’m not crazy about a lot of the houses in Lakemont. Nice interiors, but as they get older you just feel like the world is going to wave at you when you wake up in the morning. And who wants to shut all the blinds when the sun finally comes out to have privacy here in Seattle?

I had a celebration drink at a signing. I think I’m being a little loose with my fingers. I better “step away from the keyboard”

Another reason is this: the MLS has inventory today of homes that are just terrible. The layout of the house is so unappealing that no matter what you upgrade thats not going to fix it.

Then comes the very interesting question: I saw this 30+ yr old house in bridle trails area with large lower level area (family at 4 steps lower though than main house) with some upgrades – minimal though. Nice large lot of 9000sqft abouts. That was listed in mid 500’s for a sqft area under 2000. Next I see newer homes built by a very popular mid range builder built in 2003 with smaller yard 3500 to 4200 sqft with internal sqft area of 2200-ish, nice layout etc for early 600’s and I dont get it. What on earth would some one pay mid 500’s for!!!! But beileve me both sold. The latter flew off in a week, and the former took 3 months I am wondering if there is this whole generation of folks out there who says heck I work so hard each week dont even talk to me about mowing the lawn Perhaps yard space isnt as important to some zonies?

For me, area on both levels is very important. I value decent size bedrooms, windows with west and south facing for light, closet space as much as I value living and dining area. Ofcourse family and kitchen areas are super important. The odds of my using my living area is less compared to bedrooms or bonus rooms (media room sort) upstairs. See my point? In old homes I find the lower level to be large, and upper level to be dingy at best!

A group of friends checked out some new construction homes which practically have a backyard or rather patio opening to 520, tri level chalet style homes build by a really good builder with good finishing. Pricing for 2200 to 2600 sqft homes is in early 600’s upwards. And they are apparently selling. I can think of 2 reasons: lousy traffic, and the lack of “good” homes in inventory.

I just went through this for months over in Seattle in the $350,000 to $420,000 range. Problem was that the insanely overpriced houses were selling at insame prices AND the ones priced right were bidding UP to insane prices.

My clients were like, OMG!! Who paid THAT for THAT POS?!?! But truth is, they did and do, and that hurts the rest of us trying to do something that has a basis in reality.

But both of my clients managed to find their “the one” properties. Completely different buyer profiles and type of house, but both got really good places for them at the right prices for them. One at just under $370,000 (that was the really tough one) and one for $450,000.

One of my problems is I won’t take two clients at once who want the same type of housing in the same area for the same price. Cuts down on my “doable” volume. I don’t know how an agent can have three buyers who all want the same thing in the same place? Do they ring a dinner bell and say “come and get it” and have them compete with each other? Doesn’t seem right to me, but I’ve seen lots doing that over the last 17 years.

I’m looking really hard too, but I’m seeing weakness where I expected weakness. I saw one short sale in the one place I wouldn’t let my buyer’s touch with a ten foot pole since it was built. They screwed up “the permeable surface”, can’t imagine how they got the develpment approved like that in the first place, and the townhomes were leaking from under the units up.

So I’ve seen one of those not being able to sell for what they guy paid for it, but is that a “market problem” or simply “stupid is as stupid does” shouldn’t have bought that in the first place.

My problem Sandy, is this. I post stats when I feel they are relevant. But reality is, when I see 112 for sale in the price range…I see MAYBE 2 worth buying. The people who buy the other 110…I don’t worry about them. There are a group of agents who see the same 2 I see, and then there are the remaining agents who see and sell the other 110.

Real Estate has ALWAYS been that way. Some of the 110 end up in “the radar” and some sell at the wrong price by some agent who, I don’t know, let’s call it “doesn’t know any better”.

So to expect “the market” overall to be good or bad really makes no sense to me. 1% of the properties are worth buying in any market and 99% of them either need to get there…or not.

Does that make any sense to you? So it is my job to find “the one” and not rely on general market conditions to verify or improve value. I need to find the one “of value” in the first place.

But given all the scary talk, I do try to figure out what the heck they are talking about and test if it’s true from time to time.

What’s been hard in determining where the market is headed is a bunch, and many, sellers pricing too high. Insanely high. Making it look like the price reductions are a sign that the market is heading south, when they just were getting back to reality.

The Bothell buyer works at Boeing-Everett. I don’t do Bothell for Microsoft Employees BUT if you truly are in the $500,000 or so range…wouldn’t North Juanita/Finn Hill and going across Willows Road do it??

What is your actual price range? If it is $500,000 max, I’d go for townhome and then be real picky about current value and future value.

There are some nice things with a little yard for $350,000 to $375,000. If you are single, why stretch up for trash to reach single family at it’s lowest possible point, which has appreciated beyond reason? Go the other way…lower price…get nice townhome with yard.

That’s a generalization, because I don’t know you. But don’t overlook the option. Broaden your options and look at both, before you make an investment. You can always say no after you see it, but don’t rule it out based on “theory”.

I hear you ENTIRELY regarding traffic. The only reason I wouldnt consider bothell is because of the traffic. I refuse to spend 40 + mins one way coming from Bothell to the east side for work. Frankly, the traffic is so bad I prefer a house in the east side even if I have to make compromises including yard space. Traffic stress is an absolute NO for me.

Thanks for the clarification. I didn’t do the Stats for end of March, because March went into April. Real Estate doesn’t always “calculate” on a strict monthly basis in value trends, in fact almost never does. I will post them after April closings and then average March and April. This often happens where Spring Break and vacations interrupt the flow of sales for a one to two week period.

“single family under $500,000″ doesn’t really ” compute any more than “condo under $200,000″. The market has jumped past that point, except for single family in Kingsgate, which I don’t use in my stats on an evenly weighted basis with Finn Hill side of Kirkland.

I can tell you that “in the Zone” decent single family is riding the $575,000 to $625,000 fence. Properties that should be selling for $575,000 are selling for $600,000. So yes, I am seeing my predictions taking place.

Will know better by end of April, and even more when “The IT House in the Zone” gets bid out…or not.

I can’t tell you where that is at the moment, as it is “in play” and I have one of the buyers. But I can tell you that there were so many buyers there yesterday that the agents never got to lock the door behind them, as another agent showing it arrived, and it was a steady stream of buyers with agents all day.

So the answer is yes, I am seeing the trends going in the direction I forecasted.

BUT I am seeing buyers looking for MORE VALUE for their money at the same time. So its going a little differently. One in Three are getting bid out to way over where they should be selling, and two are being passed by. If the passed by ones sell in April…I will be able to calculate the average increase. House one up 35%, house two up 25% and house three up 15% is likely where it will fall, the average being where I predicted.

Hope that helps you for now. I have more closing this week than I have ever had in one week, so that is another sign that things are moving as I predicted. One is in Seattle, one is in Issaquah and the other is no Bothell and none are in “the Zone”. On two we “took a pass” on “in the Zone” because the value wasn’t there for us. But there are still enough “Zonies” who are pushing on those prices.

I’m seeing a slight weakness in Redmond. Still trying to figure out where that is coming from. Redmond is a tough one to call as it is always a “mixed bag” were portions of it act like “the Zone” and portions do not. It has to do with traffic flow and roads that are a b.tch to get to work on. So housing that requires you to use those roads suffers and housing that gets you to Microsoft faster and with less congestion, do better.

Plus, the seven in my “sights” were asking INSANE amounts of annual appreciation, like 50%!! Hopefully nobody bought those. They were Condo/Townhome in the $300,000 to $400,000 range. Be careful of affordable housing, as being able to afford it has become a price pusher, and pushing price way outside of reality, in some cases.