Pending Ratios
Pending Ratios
As I’ve discussed before, pending ratios are a good way to look at how “hot” a particular real estate market is and to compare it to other markets or the same market at a different time. I noticed today we have 83 active listings for single family homes in the Leavenworth area. This is certainly a lot more than the 40 some we had …
Market Update
I had a spare moment so I decided to take a look at market numbers for the Leavenworth market. I think this is really important since these numbers are in contrast with housing sales nationally. (National Stats) If we look at the number of homes (single family, not condos or manufactured homes) sold in 2006 we see an increase of 7% in the number …
Spokesman Review Blogspotter
Thanks to Frank Sennett of the Spokane Spokesman Review for including me in his review of Washington State real estate blogs. The mention is enouraging. I think blogs are a great resource for both consumers and industry insiders. When I’m not out selling homes or blogging here, I’m over at Rain City Guide peeking in at the Seattle real estate market.
Lake Wenatchee Website
I wanted to take an opportunity to plug Dave Neir’s LakeWenatcheeInfo.com Dave has done a great job making the Lake Wenatchee and Fish Lake area accessible to visitors and locals alike via the web. Dave has a great understanding of the possibilities such a resource can be. I’m amazed at how many websites are static and become quickly dated or useless. Not the case …
Owning a Vacation Rental
A frequent request we get is a buyer who wants to buy a vacation home, but would like to rent it out when they aren’t using it. It sounds like a great idea in theory, but rarely works out. First of all you need to consider zoning. In the city limits of Leavenworth nightly rentals are only legal in commercially zoned areas. There are …
THE PERILS OF BEING AN UNREPRESENTED BUYER
Mostly we focus on how people shouldn’t be an unrepresented seller. We stress the importance of listing a home with a trusted REALTOR who will put their home on the Multiple Listing Service, look out for their best interest and get them the highest price. However, there is also danger in being an unrepresented buyer. It is dangerous to blindly enter into a contract …
Absorption Rates
What is an absorption rate? It is the average number of houses that sell per month and it tells us what kind of inventory we have. I ran some numbers today which confirm what I thought was the case. Currently there are 57 single family homes (not including condos or manufactured homes) in the general Leavenworth market. This includes Plain, Peshastin, and Lake Wenatchee. …
More “non-traditional” homes for sale
Since I posted about homes without permits, wells, or septics being put on the market we have seen a few more. Both are being offered under $100,000 and fit into the tear down category. The previous offerings were nice little cabins, even if they didn’t meet current legal or health requirments. The newest offerings? Little to no value as structures, in my opinion. (I …
Fortune Magazine “Real Estate Survival guideR...
My new issue of Fortune came in the mail today. I’ve been a fan of the mag the last year or so. I don’t really have the energy to pour through the Economist like I used to, nor do I feel like I need to start each day with the WSJ or NYT. I tried Money, but was often dismayed by their lack of …
No permit, no well, no septic
Think this might be a problem for selling a house? Apparently not in today’s real estate market for Leavenworth Washington. Two homes recently popped on the market just outside of town. Nice little fixer upper cabins. Cabins without water, wired for generators and hooked up to sketchy homemade septic systems. Both received multiple offers in just a few days. A surprise to a number …