Tips from The Cascade Team Agents

  •          Year-over-year inventory, pending sales, and closed sales all fell by double digits. Only prices rose – up 17.4% overall!
  •          We will experience strong demand and very active home sales in 2022
  •          Available inventory “Drastically low.”
  •          Smart buyers are making their best offers using pre-inspections, family support, bridge loans, leveraging 401(k) accounts, and other resources

KIRKLAND, Washington (January 6, 2022) – Severe shortages of inventory, record-low temperatures and snow restrained December housing activity around Washington state beyond expected seasonal slowdowns, according to a new report from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

Summary statistics from the MLS show the volume of new listings…

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Here is your chance to be part of an innovative Real Estate Brokerage that's changing how things are done!

  • Issaquah, WA
  • Full-time
  • Salary: $18.00 to $20.00 /hour

Transaction Duties:

Create Files for New Transactions: Read through contracts and file; ensuring we have mutually signed contracts, and all forms relating to the transaction. Creates commission disbursement forms.

Escrow Duties: Open escrow and assists with communication between agents, escrow, and The Cascade Team; ensuring Escrow receives all pertinent forms for each transaction.

Time Frames and Deadlines: A real estate Transaction Coordinator's job includes paying attention to deadlines for items such as earnest money, inspections, and other related deadlines.

…

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Housing Inventory Grinch Means No Seasonal Holiday Slowdown for Area Housing Market

  •          Eastside and Southeast King County map areas, prices jumped more than 26% from a year ago
  •          King County inventory down 90% from 2010
  •          Overall prices rose a little more than 15%.
  •          Area wide inventory down 29% from a year ago
  •          Homes are coming off the market faster than they are coming on.

KIRKLAND, Washington (December 6, 2021) – Historically soggy weather and the onset of holidays did not deter thousands of buyers and sellers during November, based on the latest report from Northwest Multiple Listing Service. Numbers for new listings, pending sales, and closed sales were comparable to year-ago totals,…

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As we careen at warp speed from Thanksgiving, Christmas, and all of the joyous (read: stressful) festivities in between, you might be tempted to take your home off the market—or hold off on listing it—until after the new year. After all, you’re swamped with cooking, shopping, and decorating, and the last thing you need is a bunch of potential buyers traipsing through your house, right?

Wrong!

In fact, there are plenty of homes listed around the holidays that may command more money, especially if the inventory is limited. If you play your cards right, you may even be able to sell your home quicker than ones listed in the spring. One of the reasons is the lack of competition during the holidays. There are so many different reasons why people won’t…

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  •          “As the weather cools, the housing market intensity heats up for each new listing,”
  •          Only 3 Weeks of Housing supply remain market wide!

As the air turns cool and winter approaches, we are approaching our seasonal low in inventory. Each year, as the year closes out, potential home sellers wait until the new year to put their homes on the market. In reality, a home listed now will have higher viewership since the buyer pool has not gone down. With the pace of this market a correctly priced home offered now would probably be off the market by Thanksgiving, allowing the seller to have a quiet holiday.

Nearly half of seller’s plan to put their homes up for sale within the next six months, according to a recent Realtor.com®…

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It's official: famous haunted houses and homes used in horror films sell for much more than their neighbors!

If you live in a house with a reputation for being haunted, you may, understandably, think that potential buyers may be put off it. And yet, recent research* shows that anything but is the case.

It turns out that if you live in a home that’s known for being haunted or even just a house that has an association with a famous horror film, you may not need much property advice for selling it – it is guaranteed to be in demand, and sell for more than other comparable properties in the area.

According to new research, buyers will pay more money for a haunted house or for homes that have been made famous by appearing in horror movies. In…

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Would you buy a haunted house? According to a recent poll that’s been released by Real Estate Witch, 73% of Americans said that they would at least consider it. The recent poll surveyed a total of 1,000 Americans who were asked 20 questions regarding their paranormal experiences, what they prefer when buying a home, etc…

WHAT’S SCARIER THAN LIVING IN A HAUNTED HOUSE?

Among people who believe in the supernatural, 44% say paranormal activity has increased since the pandemic began — yet more than half of Americans say problems such as mold or foundation issues are still scarier than living in a haunted house.

As Americans plan their Halloween costumes and indulge in scary movie marathons this October, many sense a ghostly chill in the air. 

…

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  •          Northwest MLS brokers report gains in new listings, closed sales, prices versus year ago!
  •          Historically low interest rates and inventory shortages as factors contributing to a “very active market.”
  •          The housing market intensity for each new listing will continue its upward trajectory as the first of the year approaches.
  •          Shortage of supply still remains a significant issue.

KIRKLAND, Washington (October 6, 2021) – September’s housing market remained “very active” to “frenzied” around Washington state with brokers reporting year-over-year (YOY) gains in new listings, closed sales, and prices. Brokers with Northwest Multiple Listing Service also detected growing stability in the condominium market.

…

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“Did you hear that?  I feel like I am being watched.  There are things going bump in the night.”

As a buyer, these aren’t the things you want to say after you moved into your new home.  Fortunately, for the month of October, you can have a thorough paranormal activity inspection to reassure you that, yes, you were just imaging it. 

The Cascade Team and Eastside Home Inspectors have announced that they are teaming up to offer Paranormal Inspections to buyers as part of the home inspection process.

In addition to their standard process, the inspectors will conclude home inspections by using state of the art thermal cameras to find out if the homes have any unusual activity such as ghostly apparitions, unidentified orbs, objects moving without…

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Justice Department probe, civil lawsuits pose challenge to real-estate industry practices

“Plaintiffs’ allegations plausibly show that the Buyer-Broker Commission Rules prevent effective negotiation over commission rates and cause an artificial inflation of buyer-broker commission rates,” the judge wrote last year. “But-for Defendants’ conspiracy, each Plaintiff would have paid ‘substantially lower commissions.’”

Transparency in Commissions

Fact: Real estate brokers’ commission rates are not regulated in any state and are ALWAYS 100% negotiable.

The end goal of this lawsuit is for “Buyer Agent Commissions” to be fully seen as a fee paid for and financed in the buyer’s loan.

For example, on a $1 million home with a 3% commission the…

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