By Mike Rosenberg

 A new survey found 71 percent of Washington adults think a housing bubble is coming. New York, Florida and California residents were the next most likely to fear a housing bubble.

The biggest concern we here from buyers, sellers and even many agents in this market right now is,  “bubble.”

Home owners and long term residence still vividly remember the 2007 crash that lasted well into 2011. For buyers many see bidding wars on almost every property, and home owners nervously watch the prices ticking up and wonder;  "How much longer can this go on?”

Now a new national survey finds that 71 percent of adults across Washington are worried about a housing bubble and think prices are overvalued and unsustainable. That’s the

(Zillow Image)

• Zillow’s test of its new initiative for home sellers called Instant Offers is expanding beyond its initial two markets and moving into Phoenix, the Seattle-based real estate tech company announced on Wednesday.
• In addition to dotloop (transaction management and e-signatures), Zillow Group also owns Diverse Solutions (IDX provider), Market Leader (CRM), Postlets (listing advertising) and, of course, its search portals Zillow, Trulia, StreetEasy and HotPads.
• Zillow now has a new program called “Premier Agent Assist” where it will provide the initial and continued follow-up for 30 days on new leads to help its Premier Agents increase their conversion rates.
• Zillow has publicly stated that it has no intention of going into the

When your seller receives multiple bids on their property, the highest offer shouldn’t always be their default choice. If it comes with an appraisal contingency—and the appraised value doesn’t match the sale price—your seller could be back at square one, looking for another buyer.

With King County home prices surging nearly $100,000 just this year to a record $599,000 in June—home prices in many markets are escalating so quickly that appraisals can’t keep up. That’s why real estate professionals may need to have more conversations with their sellers about appraisals.

“Any time prices move up fast, the actual appraisal process can lag behind because [appraisers] are looking back in history, not forward into the future” to determine appraised

KIRKLAND, Washington (Aug. 7, 2017) – New figures from Northwest Multiple Listing Service indicate home sales and prices, like July’s temperatures, sizzled. Prices area-wide rose slightly more than 9 percent from a year ago, but several counties near job centers saw larger price increases, including King County where the median price jumped 18.6 percent.

The latest report confirmed what most buyers and brokers know: inventory shortages persist even though MLS members added slightly more new listings last month than the same period a year ago.

“We should be entering the summer doldrums, but I don’t see that happening,” reported Diedre Haines, principal managing broker-South Snohomish County at Coldwell Banker Bain in Lynnwood. “Inventory remains

Sammamish, Washington

The first city from the west coast on the list is Sammamish, Washington. This city on a plateau has a population of 52,365. It was named after Lake Sammamish; however, Beaver and Pine lake are the biggest lakes in the area. In fact, Beaver lake had a famous lifeguard teacher in the 1950s, Clint Eastwood. The city contains no major interstates within its limits but is a short commute to many big employers such as Costco and Microsoft.

Sammamish has secured the No. 5 spot in a new report over the safest cities in the U.S.

The Top 100 Safest Cities in America announced for 2017 report looked at crime rates in 764 cities.

According

Much of the country is used to occasional 100-degree days. Seattle, which has had just three in the past 123 years, is not.

So unaccustomed is Seattle to scorching heat that, in 2015, only one-third of the housing units in its metropolitan area had air-conditioning.

That’s going to make this week dangerous.

The National Weather Service is predicting “widespread record highs” as a heat wave engulfs the Pacific Northwest. An excessive heat warning is in effect from 2 p.m. on Tuesday through 9 p.m. on Friday. Seattleites can expect temperatures in the mid-80s to

Are People Actually Happy in Tiny Houses?

A recent survey suggests that the answer is no.

Between their efficient organization and streamlined design, tiny houses have totally taken over on TV and social media in the past few years. The idea of scaling back on belongings (as well as mortgage payments) is certainly appealing. But how many people could—or would—be able to actually live in 400 square feet? Not many, according to a recent report by Trulia.

Forty-four percent of more than 2,000 adults recently surveyed by the real estate website Trulia said they had housing regrets—and the biggest regret among homeowners centered on the size of their home. One in three homeowners surveyed said they wished they had chosen a home that was larger.

The Cascade Team is now the first Brokerage where customers can receive direct text communication from the website! Currently all real estate related sites like Zillow, Trulia, RedFin, John L Scott, Windermere, Realtor, Etc. all require you to download their App to receive notifications…. That is No Longer the Case for The Cascade Team!

Without being intrusive or requiring people to download an app and communicate through the app function, people registering at www.TheCascadeTeam.com can now select their preferred method of communication: E-Mail, Phone or Text….. You will then be able to receive property updates, new listings, and communicate directly with an agent through your phone's text platform without ever needing to download an app!

See Related: Safety Benefit of Smart Homes for Owners and Agents

Here are some sobering stats from the FBI: A robbery occurs every 1.6 minutes in the U.S., a burglary every 18.2 seconds, and a larceny theft every 5.4 seconds.

SafeHome, a home security systems reviews resource, analyzed FBI Uniform Crime Reporting data from 2015 to determine the items thieves most commonly target.

The most stolen items were classified as miscellaneous valuables, jewelry, and precious metals, according to the report. In some states, certain thefts were more common than others. For example, in Florida, Texas, Massachusetts, and Colorado, thieves were more likely to target diamonds, gold, silver, and other jewelry. Meanwhile, clothing was the most stolen items in

Staying on top of the latest trends in home decor isn’t for everyone, but even for traditionalists, it can be fun to incorporate some new ideas. Here are five bathroom decor trends that are appearing in 2017.

1. Geometric Patterns: Many homeowners are selecting bold patterns in geometric shapes, like chevrons, triangles, or hexagons. These patterns can add intrigue and continuity to your tile or shower curtain.
2. Plants: Even the best-designed bathrooms can benefit from some small plants. If you have a windowless bathroom, there are some low-light options that can survive with little maintenance.
3. Dark Colors: This can be tricky to achieve, but it comes with a big pay off. While traditional bathrooms are often painted with brighter whites and greys,