Category Archives: Industry Talk

Don’t spend your house money on coffee

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Wouldn’t it be great if your bank had an “auto sort” to earmarked categories?

There are a million articles around the web on what the future is going to look like, but every time we get TO the future, it looks a whole lot more like the past than it should.

Picture this…you go to Starbucks and try to buy coffee with your debit card. You order your daily Frappuccino and your debit card is declined.  You quickly grab five bucks out of your wallet and pay for your order with cash.

You call up your bank account on your iPhone and it says you have $853 in your account…BUT, you have NO money for coffee.

People are so much happier when they know they are spending their money on the “right” things. They are happier when they KNOW they are not overextended on certain expenses. I spent last week in Redondo Beach CA with my eldest daughter. She has only been in her “new” apartment for about two months. She asked “do you use gross or net income when determining…” I quickly gave her the formula for determining housing expense based on gross income. I showed her how to strip out overtime and bonus monies to calculate “dependable” gross income.  Miraculously (or not) her rent equalled 23% of her gross income. I said that’s perfect…just right. That should leave you at least 5% of gross toward saving for a house.

I was amazed at how happy she was to know that her rent payment was exactly would it “should” be…in fact, a tad under what it “should” be. You could say I “made her day”. That’s when I got the idea that your bank statement could “make your day” every single month, if it was broken down to earmarked categories.  Imagine a day when you can’t wait to rip open that bank statement, for concrete evidence that you were on target as to your personal financial goals.

One of the “old” lender guidelines for approving a mortgage was seeing that the would be borrower had deposited “the difference” between their current housing payment, and the soon to be approved new housing payment, into their savings account on a regular basis. Rent is $1,300 a month.  Mortgage payment will be $2,200 a month. $2,200 minus $1,300 ($900) was deposited into their savings acount every month for 15 months prior to purchase.  Downpayment of 3.5% of sale price (FHA) = 15 months of housing payment difference.

Let’s break that down.

1) $2,200 a month equals a loan amount of roughly $400,000

2) $2,200 a month equals 28% of $94,000 gross income

3) $3.5% downpayment on a $400,000 house is $14,000

4) Factor in another $8,500 for Closing Costs

Let’s say your bank let you plug in 28% of your gross income to be earmarked for “housing expense”.  Every time you got a raise, you changed your gross income so that the bank statement continued to calculate 28% of your gross income for housing expense, even if your rent didn’t increase.

You make $65,000 a year (2 incomes) when you rent your first apartment for $1,300. 28% of gross is $65,000 divided by 12 times 28% = $1,516.67 a month. You find an apartment for $1,300 a month. The bank STILL allows $1,516.67 a month for ONLY housing payment, and automatically transfers the difference of $216.67 every month to an earmarked housing expense account.

While visiting my daughter we drove through a neighborhood and she said, “I love these little houses with yards”. Contrary to news media reports on housing, there were none, nada, NO houses for sale for blocks and blocks in that neighborhood, so I couldn’t quickly give her an accurate read on price. But given I have worked that area before, I estimated price at $350,000 in today’s market (50% down from peak there), $400,000 tops.

Now she knows exactly what she needs to get the house of her dreams. She knows how much money she has each month to set aside for future housing expense (28% of gross minus rent payment). She knows she can sock away the bonus and overtime money and raise money into an earmarked housing account, because we didn’t use that money to calculate the future housing payment, we only used “dependable” salary income sources.

How great would it be if the ATM card said NO, you can’t buy this coffee with your house money!? 

 Of course for one expense you can do it yourself, but if you could plug in all of your expenses so it said

 “no, you have no money in your gift account – give that person a card”.

 “Hey, you are using 1/5th of your annual electric bill expense this month – shut off some lights when you leave the house”.

How hard can it be to combine a bank account program with an expense program so they operated as one? Maybe some bank has that feature, if they do let us know.  If not, someone should “invent” it.  The bank that says “We help you keep track of, and achieve, every one of your personal financial goals”, might just have the ticket to the bank account of the future.

In the meantime, don’t spend your house money on coffee.

Mortgage Interest is paid “in arrears”

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For Home Buyers: This means the first payment is usually a month later than you expect it to be.

For Home Sellers: This means your mortgage “payoff” is going to be higher than you expect it to be.

This is one of the small issues that often surprises people when they are buyng and selling homes.  Often sellers will think the payoff is wrong, because it is higher than the principal balance on their most recent mortgage payment statement.  Often buyers will be worried about paying rent and a mortgage payment for the month after their close date, and are surprised that the first mortgage payment is a month later.

Basically all “mortgage interest is paid in arrears” means is that your March 1 payment, pays February’s interest on your loan.  Your April 1 payment pays your March interest.

For a buyer, if your closing is February 26th, your first mortgage payment is due on April 1st, and that will include all of the interest for the month of March. (February’s interest per day from closing to month end is paid AT closing)

For a seller, if your closing is Feburary 26th and your principal balance is $362,000 and your monthly payment is $2,800 including taxes and insurance, your payoff may be more like $363,500.

I was preparing some numbers for a client with a March close, and decided to post this for anyone having similar questions.

2009 $8,000 "1st time" buyer credit

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IMPORTANT UPDATE!  Bill signed on 2/17/2009.

Original post below:

Back in October, I wrote this post about the repayment feature of the 2008 $7,500 1st time buyer “credit”, including this link to more information as to who qualifies, and the terms of the “credit”.

Yesterday on Twitter I noticed Ryan Hukill’s post referencing Kenneth Harney’s article suggesting that:

“… Congress might be on the verge of transforming it into a true tax credit — one that never has to be paid back…” for purchases made on or after 1/1/2009.

I personally don’t see how changing the repayment terms for people who bought houses last year can be part of a “stimulus” package.   Posting this so that people who are eligible for the credit are aware that there may be a change in the repayment feature. (update: Apparently Obama agreed with me, as there does not appear to be a change in the repayment feature for homes bought from 4/9/08 through 12/31/08 and the 2008 $7,500 Loan/Credit.)

"Over-priced" Houses That Don't Sell

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As I wander through the various message boards, I often read about people’s frustration regarding “over-priced houses that can’t possibly sell”.  To a buyer who likes the house, and is waiting for the price to be within reason, this can be very frustrating.

What they fail to understand is that every house that is for sale, is not necessarily going to be sold by the current owner. 

1) Divorce – Often in a divorce, one of the spouses is offered an option to buy out the other spouse.  In a market like this one, sometimes the agreed upon price must be tested.  Say the spouse who is leaving wants the buyout price to be $600,000. Let’s say they bought it for $400,000 and put $100,000 worth of improvements into it.   They put it on market for $$599,000 and keep reducing the price to $519,000.  Then it goes off market (this is a real case) and it never comes back on market.

Meanwhile, a buyer has been watching it, who wanted to buy it for $485,000.  He’s been watching it for 7 months.  He feels “used” and frustrated that it went off market before it hit an asking price of $499,950 .

Once the value was proven to be $400,000 plus $100,000 at best, the two spouses agree on the “buyout” amount, and one of them gets to stay in it.  It was only ON MARKET to prove to one of the spouses that the price of $600,000 was unrealistic.

2) Passive Aggressive – saying YES and meaning NO.  Husband and wife have a fight and the wife calls an agent to list the house, planning to get a divorce when the house sells.  Husband signs the listing paperwork at a price at which he knows it won’t sell.  He appears to be cooperating with the sale, and blames the market for the wife’s failed plans 🙂  They make up at some point, take the house off the market, and live “happily” ever after…until the next fight.

3) “Mom, you HAVE TO move” – Well meaning children tell Mom she’s too old to live in that big house all by herself.  She’s tired of hearing it, and agrees to put the house up for sale.  High price and awkward showing instructions.  “Can only be shown with listing agent present’ or “Can only be shown on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and not on weekends”.

Sometimes these homes are on market from April through October, every year, year after year, with the price increasing every year.  Kids wonder why Mom’s house won’t sell, but they stop bugging her about her need to sell it.

4) Short Sale – Bank approves a sale price of $450,000.  House sits on market at $450,000.  No offers.  Owner can’t lower it below what bank has indicated they will take.  Bank won’t reduce the amount they will take, because they have an appraisal at $450,000.  House sits on market until someone buys it at foreclosure.  Some owners keep reducing it every couple of weeks, but mls says they can’t offer it at a “fake” price not ratified by the Bank…big Catch 22.

So when you look at the inventory of homes for sale, understand that they will not all be reduced to a price at which they will sell.  Often you will not get the real story about the seller’s motivation.

2009 is the Brightest Year

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Last night was “Chinese New Year” and unlike 2008, which was “a blind” year, 2009 is “a bright year”.  Now before you get all excited about this Year of the Ox, let me explain what “bright” means.

Remember the movie “Wait Until Dark”? The fear and damage caused to the blind woman, when simply being touched with a scarf, by her “torturer” in her darkness?  It wasn’t WHAT he was doing…it was that she couldn’t see it coming…couldn’t see who and what it was.  That was 2008.

In the ancient culture  of Chinese New Year, the  “eyes” of the year are on February 4th. The dates that encompass each year are determined by the cycles of the moon. Some years, like 2008 have NO February 4th, and so are blind years.  Others have only foresight, with February 4th in the beginning, but not at  the end.  Some years have only hindsight, with February 4th at the end of the year, but not at the beginning.

2009, which started last night at the first new moon of 2009, has two February 4ths, giving us “the brightest” of years, with both foresight AND hindsight.   The year begins on 1/26 and ends on 2/13 this year, so 2/4 comes around twice. Bright doesn’t mean GOOD, it means if you don’t see it coming…and if you look back at the end of the year and “wish you had” done things differently…then you were choosing to bury your head in the sand, and you refused to see the handwriting on the wall.

  1. Thinking about flipping a house?  Think again.
  2. Thinking low priced home sales all around you, are not going to affect your property’s value? Think again.
  3. Think the real estate market is going to come back to the point where all people with a real estate license can make a decent living?  Think again.
  4. Think Obama is going to turn this market around by the 2nd Quarter? Think again.
  5. Think throwing good money after bad is going to save the economy? Think again.

If you bought a property in July of 2007…bite the bullet – or stay in it.  Wishing the market is going to get back there soon, is not going to make it happen.

In a “bright” year, you know what to expect and you base your actions accordingly.

  1. Try to get a loan mod, ONLY if you can afford the resultant new payments.
  2. If you see no hope of your income getting back up to anywhere near where it was when you bought the house; let it go to foreclosure, wave goodbye, and reduce your expenses.
  3. If you are a move up buyer, understand the house you buy is also down in price, and reduce the sale price on the one you are selling accordingly.
  4. If you are afraid of losing your job, stop buying toys you don’t need to have, and put 3-6 months of expenses in the bank, just in case.
  5. Recognize that Obama as President means we have the Leadership to help us do what WE need to do…not an Il Salvatore with a magic wand.

It’s a bright year…use it wisely.

Can you price your house at land plus structure?

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Larry asks: ” Isn’t it too simple a model to look at the sale price of a property by looking at the square feet of the structure? A property around Seattle, correct me if I’m wrong, has about half of its value in the land, and half in the structure. If real estate appreciates or depreciates. it’s the land that goes up and down, not the structure, right? I understand that $/sqf is an index that varies with property value, but this doesn’t seem to reflect the reality that it’s the land value that’s going up and down, which has only a loose relationship to house square footage.  Or is it just not workable to try to do a more complex calculation? My concern is that when you have an unusual situation with a large lot, and 2/3 of the value is in the land, this method will give erroneous results.”

Let’s deal with this sentence first and get it out of the way “A property around Seattle, correct me if I’m wrong, has about half of its value in the land, and half in the structure.”  No, not true.  One can not even begin to generalize, but a good rule of thumb for builders is that the new house will sell for 3X the lot value.  But that is ONLY if the lot was worth buying in the first place.

If your land has value separately from the structure, then your structure often doesn’t have any value. When your structure has value with the land on a combined basis, then the (extra) land can usually only add 10% more to that value unless the lot can be split into two or more lots.

If a builder might want the land, then yes, the value of the land is part of the valuation process.  If a builder wouldn’t want the land, then no, the land does not “value out” except as “an extra”.

Let’s take a regular neighborhood where the only buyers are those who are buying homes, and not builders who want the lot.  How can you tell?  Every house on the street is the same age, is a good clue.  No builder has ever bought a house torn it down and put a new home on that street, usually means no builder wants to do that. If a house burned down, well then of course the lot would have a value.  But if no one is interested in tearing the house down and putting a different house on it, then you don’t value the property by valuing the land first and then the structure. Most homes on the Eastside (housing developments) fall into that category, and any street in Seattle or Kirkland or Bellevue, considered to be a bad investment for new construction, falls into that category as well.

When no one would build a new house on the lot, you value a property based on comps alone, and the value of the land becomes irrelevant.  Most times the homes are on lots of about the same size.  A bigger lot vs. a smaller lot becomes “an extra”.  Sometimes extras add value and sometimes they don’t.  Too large of a lot often is viewed by potential buyers as “too much maintenance” and can actually detract from the value.  Often corner lots fall into the “more maintenance” category.  In these neighborhoods the large lot only values out IF it is SUBDIVIDABLE.  If the person buying it can turn the lot into two lots and put another house on that second lot and sell it, then yes, the extra land would be a factor in determining the asking price or offer price.

Before we leave this category of “no” you don’t separate the land when determining an asking or offer price, let’s talk about land as “an extra”.  The best rule of thumb for “extras” is they can’t in total equal more than 10% of the value of the property without the extras.  Say you have a house that comps out at $650,000.  You can’t get more than $65,000 more for that house because of extras, or $715,000.  Beyond that it just has too many extras.  Extras include, tennis courts, pools, extra land beyond the norm for the neighborhood, and to some extent new kitchens, new baths and any “added value” unless many in the neighborhood homes have also added these things and the comps have grown as a result.  If no one in the neighborhood has done ANY improvements since 1968, you can’t get double the price of everyone else’s house because you remodeled your house and have a pool and a bigger lot, etc.  That ONLY applies in areas where land is not separated from the structure in order to do a valuation.

So for all of the above, simple methods of price per square foot and adding and subtracting for some things here and there is the only method that works.

Let’s move on to where Larry is correct.

Larry, when the land does matter…then often it is ALL that matters, and the structure does not.

When it’s not all about square footage or value of structure, it often shifts to all about the land.

Example:  I had a buyer client who bought a 4-plex at 7th and Market in Ballard.  When he sold it two and a half years later (a year ago) the value of the 4-plex was roughly $720,000.  I listed the property at $850,000 because IF the buyer wanted to tear down the 4-plex and build townhomes, the value of the land was worth more than the value of the 4-Plex with the land under it.  It sold for $855,000 and five townhomes are being built on it as we speak.  People called who wanted to buy a 4-plex and it didn’t “pencil out” and a lot of agents thought I was nuts 🙂

When the value of the land exceeds the value of the home plus land, then the structure is “free”. This is true where builders are building and only WHEN builders are building.  If builders stop building for five years because the market is soft, then the value will go down to whatever an owner occupant will pay for it, and whomever buys it can live in it and sell it when the builders come back out looking for lots to build on.  We are entering a market like that and to some extent have been in that market for 10 months or so in some areas and in some locations.

So to answer your question, the reason it is or is not done the way you suggest is not because the “calculation is too complex”, it’s because it’s unnecessary.  A buyer isn’t going to pay you 3X the value of the neighbor’s lot plus the value of your structure, because the lot is 2/3rds bigger, unless it is subdividable into THREE lots. If it can only be subdivided into two lots, then they may pay you the value of your house based on comps and price per square foot, plus a portion of the value of the extra lot, not triple, even though it is 3X bigger. And if it can only be one lot, they may not want it at all, because it is too much maintenance and that can reduce the value overall.

The highest value of a lot is usually where the value of the structure is about nil AND a new house built on that lot will sell.  If you live on a street with no newer houses, if no one has ever wanted to build a new house on your street, the houses could end up at no value if no one wants to buy it as is and no builder wants to build on the lot.  Then it becomes your home for life…or a perpetual rental property 🙂

A woman approached me this Sunday.  She asked me what her property was worth.  The house was tiny and worth about $300,000 with a huge yard.  The lot was worth $300,000 without the house.  When I told her the lot was worth $300,000 she started talking about the house.  No!  You can’t add the value of the house to the value of the land.  No one is paying $300,000 for a big yard. They will only pay $300,000 if they are going to tear the house down.  Someone may buy it and live in it, but they will get the house for free if they do.  Maybe you can get $350,000 for it.  A $50,000 house is dirt cheap and someone may pay an extra $50,000 over lot value and live in the house.  But you can’t value the house at price per square foot and add it to the value of the lot.

You can sell it to a builder for lot value, or you can try to find an owner occupant who is willing to pay a little more than the builder will pay for the lot.  Those are your options.

Larry, my guess is your land is treated as “an extra” and adds 10% to the value IF a buyer views it as an extra vs. a shortcoming.  Today most people don’t want to spend all of their free time mowing the yard.  And you can only get 10% more for ALL extras on a combined basis. So if your house is already worth 10% more than your neighbor’s homes because you added a new kitchen…then the extra land is not of value as your exceeded you cap for “extras”.

Sunday Night Stats – King County

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I started working on some June YOY stats over on my blog, but I think I’m going to give it a few more days to make sure all of the June closings are posted before making any comparisons over here besides the regular stats.  It is a holiday weekend, and I’m sure more than the normal amount of June 30 closings may be posted next week.

So far it looks like June 2008 residential sales in King County were 44% less than last year and 56% less than the high as to volume, and prices are slightly down both on a price per square foot basis and median sale price,  Condos also down a little over 50% as to volume both from last year and from the high, but while median price per square foot is down, median prices are up as is the median size of condos sold in June.  Instead of spending less, condo buyers are opting for getting more square footage at that lower price per square foot, and spending more to get the larger units.  Likely a move toward being able to hold longer.

I’ll do some 1st and 2nd quarter comparisons and 1st half YOY in a few days when I’m sure the majority of June 30 closings have been posted.  For now let’s update our regular weekly stats.  Inventory is down this week (selling faster than they are coming on market) in both the condo and residential categories.

King Couny Condos

2004 – 1Q – 1,694 – $188, 2Q 2,636 – $199, 3Q 2,540 – $196, 4Q 2,176 – $195

2005 – 1Q – 2,066 – $198, 2Q 2,925 – $209, 3Q 2,769 – $226, 4Q 2,266 – $224

2006 – 1Q – 1,956 – $242, 2Q 2.748 – $252, 3Q 2,737 – $269, 4Q 2,217 – $278

2007 – 1Q – 2,042 – $295, 2Q 2,862 – $302, 3Q 2,676 – $311, 4Q 1,618 – $294

2008 – 1Q – 1,258 – $299, 2Q 1,485 – $286 (2Q postings as of 7/06/08)

Changes in condo stats for this week

Active Listings: 3,958 – DOWN 89- median price $319,990 – MPPSF  asking $319 – DOM 64

In Escrow:  870 –  DOWN 43 – median asking price $295,000  – MPPSF asking $298  – DOM – 49

Sold YTD :  2,777 – UP 132 – median list price $292,000 – median sold price  $287,900 – median PPSF – $291 DOM 49  Note: only 35% selling in 30 days or less.

Residential King county

2004 – 1Q 5,650 – $152, 2Q 9,237 – $160, 3Q 8.737 – $163, 4Q 7,467 – $165

2005 – 1Q 6,402 – $173, 2Q 9,093 – $185, 3Q 9,131 – $192, 4Q 7,301 – $195

2006 – 1Q 5,596 – $201, 2Q 8,248 – $214, 3Q 7,771 – $216, 4Q 6,204 – $217

2007 – 1Q 5,304 – $222, 2Q 7,393 – $230, 3Q 7,944 – $229, 4Q 4,301 – $221

2008 – 1Q 3,640 – $219, 2Q 4,558 – $220 (2Q  – postings as of 7/06/08)

Changes in residential stats for this week

In Escrow: 2,760 – DOWN 103 – median asking price $435,495 – DOM 49 – MPPSF $209

SOLD YTD: 8,315-  UP 407- median asking $449,950 – median sold price $440,000- DOM 49 – MPPSF $218  Note: Only 36% selling in 30 days or less.

Actively for sale 11,903 – DOWN 284- MPPSF <$800,000 is $220- MPPSF >$800,000 is $336

Stats not compiled or published by NWMLS. (Required disclosure)

Rantings on volunteering, wigs parties, de-icing

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Although I’ve just recently become accustomed to Seattle and its nuances, and my schedule has fallen into a rhythm of some sort, I’m looking to somewhat overhaul my routine. I enjoy being busy to a large degree and too much free time definitely breeds indolence. Therefore, outside of work, one class and freelancing I’m beginning to familiarize myself with some of the local food banks by performing service work for a few through Seattle University and my church.

There was a time when, after volunteering during several college spring breaks at a Franciscan soup kitchen in the heart of Philadelphia’s most destitute neighborhood, that I was going to be a live-in volunteer there for one or two years after college before starting my career. But as perhaps anyone would, I had grave concerns regarding how I would jump into my career after a two-year hiatus and little professional experience under my belt. Luckily, the bevy of opportunities to help the less fortunate in Seattle have stymied any regrets I may have had in not welcoming the amazing opportunity that the friars in Philadelphia offered me. Within a year, I do hope to voyage back to my volunteer roots for several days and assist the needy there once again. 

Wigs n’ Wine 

On a lighter note, last weekend my roommate along with friends and myself donned wigs and slurped libations for a Wigs n’ Wine Party commemorating my upcoming birthday. We kicked off the notable occasion with dinner at Peso’s Kitchen & Lounge in Queen Anne. Having resided in Seattle now nearly five months, it was neat to get out and poke around the nuts and bolts of Queen Anne a bit. It’s probably by far the Seattle neighborhood I have frequented the least. Our evening out was a far cry from my birthday outing last year, which took place at a sleepy pizza parlor nestled in a leafy Illinois suburb. Despite the mundanity of last year’s evening, it was a pleaseant time nonetheless; this year was just understandably extremely new and different.

Am I back in Chicago?

Sure, it rains here plenty, and, of course, no shock there, but I am a bit perplexed at how much the sun has poked it’s head out from the clouds the past couple weeks. On the other hand, must say I was surprised at how much the temperatures have fluctuated lately; the thin coat of frost that blanketed my car windows the other day reminded me of my numerous years in Chicagoland and the frequency in which I had to de-ice my windshield. Oh well, I’m not complaining, guess it’s just an unseasonable cold October for Seattle standards. 

Do It Yourself Home Staging

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This is a good example of what a homeowner can do by themselves to get their property ready for market. There are really only three things that will help a property sell. Location, Condition and Price. The only thing you can do anything about are condition and price. So make sure you do your best with condition, before considering a price change.

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This 3 bedroom townhome in Brookwood Place in Bothell was already on the market with these before photos when Jeremy Keener and I arrived with nothing but a camera. We did not bring anything with us for staging this townhome to recreate the “stage” except what the owner already had in the townhome. Everything that was in the room is still in the room, just arranged a little differently.

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As you can see, this is the same room. The main change is to show the townhome’s best selling feature. By opening the blinds so that the photo in the mls shows the green out the window, a prospective buyer can readily see this prime feature. The “copy” did say it “backs to greenbelt”, but a picture speaks a thousand words. So we opened the blinds and let the greenbelt show.

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Transforming the dining room was easy. Mostly we just moved the sofa, which you will see in the living room photos, so it wasn’t blocking the entrance to the dining area. The tall piece in the corner was moved up behind the folded out futon in the bedroom photo above. The owner had already placed the tablecloth, table runner and pictures.

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We ditched the folding chairs into a closet. The room is big and bright without the chairs, so we left it that way. We reversed the sofa and loveseat, but I couldn’t get the sofa corner to fit totally out of the dining room entryway, so we simply took the blanket throw from the back of the sofa and draped it to help camoflouge the dark sofa corner intruding on the dining entry space.

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The living room was just too crowded with stuff. We pulled the big 3 foot ottoman out of the room and put it in the 3rd bedroom, which is on the main level and used as an office. We put the blue doggie bed in there also. We reversed the couch and loveseat to make more room walking into the dining area.

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We moved the coffee table into the center space between the couch and loveseat. We found the mantle items in other places, the center “picture” being a placemat. The throw pillows on the sofa ended up upstairs on the beds. We opened the blinds a tad to bring the green of the outdoors, inside. Other rooms were arranged as well, and it took less time to transform the townhome than it did to write this post.

Autumn season always one to savor

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As we stride into October, I’ve found myself wondering where the year has gone (like we all do). It was a year ago this weekend that I journeyed to Seattle from Chicago and was spontaneously whisking my way through Seattle with a friend and touring the gargantuan Mt. Rainier. And though the temperatures are quite brisker this year than when I visited last year, longtime residents have insisted this year’s September weather is an anomaly. But there’s nothing like watching the lush greenery morph into bright reds and oranges and leaves dance from trees. Autumn has always been my favorite season, so, in spite of my sometimes overwelming schedule, I’ve been taking advantage of some of the local events. With Fremont just a stone’s throw away from my home, enjoying Oktoberfest was a given, though it seemed slightly overhyped.

Both the Fremont and Ballard farmers markets have become mainstays when it comes to my Sunday routine. When I first dropped by Ballard’s market, I could not believe the breadth of the vibrant vendors and just the vast amount of fresh fruit, fish, dairy etc. all centered in one dwelling. The Pacific Northwest and the Midwest versions of farmers markets, not surprisingly, are just not comparable.
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Recently, I managed to take a jaunt via the Victoria Clipper to Victoria, B.C., with my Mother while she was visiting from Chicago. Our weather could have been a smidge better during the morning portion of our trip, but the afternoon sun that poked its head through the ominous clouds more than made up for the initial gloom. The absolute pure beauty of Victoria is just breathtaking; it melds modernity with antiquity in a dynamic that gives it a cozy and classy, yet hip feel. If you have never been there, you must try High Tea at the picturesque Empress Hotel (pictured), which is nestled amid much grand beauty. Replete with tea sandwiches, petit fours and other delicacies, the overall afternoon tea experience is something analogous to what you would enjoy in London, and you should not skip it if you plan to spend time there.

Now that fall is upon us and the full-fledged rainy season is soon to set in, I am quickly warming up to Rihanna’s hot last-summer song, “Umbrella.” It seems it will be a good IPod song now that I am riding the bus to work and grad school – yes, I barely drive my car anymore and I can’t stress enough how much it thrills me. Banished from my mind are the days of braving brutal Naperville, IL traffic. It always seemed no matter how prematurely I left for work there was always a snag (usually random, unannounced lane closures, courtesy of seemingly construction) that would prevent me from being punctual.

Although I have some trepidation about Seattle’s impending winter, when I think about trudging through Chicagoland’s cumbersome snow and the street salt and muck that constantly encapsulated my car, and often my clothes, I’m hardly fazed. The tepid temperatures here have been a welcome change and as long as we don’t have to cope with negative figures, frequent clouds and snow, it will be a breeze to endure.