The Cascade Team Blog - Agent Tips

You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know When Selling Your Home.

Seattle area prices are surging.

Median prices system-wide surged 19.5% compared to a year ago. Statistics show a 55.9% decline in total active listings, shrinking from 9,418 at the end of March 2020 to 4,153 at month end March 2021.

The resulting lack of inventory combined with area job growth has created a market where double-digit price hikes were widespread. In fact, mutually accepted offers surged 40.6% compared to February with Seattle/Bellevue region now ranks #1 in technology office space leases, eclipsing San Francisco.

In a market like this you need more than an agent to just stick a sign in the yard. You need a detailed marketing plan that’s going to get…

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Why There is No Need to Fear a Housing Bubble

We’ve all heard anecdotes of housing shortages and ridiculous all-cash offers.

The logical conclusion for many prognosticators is to call this yet another housing bubble.

I don’t think this is the case. Here’s why:

There are more credit-worthy borrowers. Yes, housing prices are rising at a rapid clip, but this is nothing like the subprime crisis. Just look at the credit scores for mortgage originations:

Loans are mostly being made to those with high credit scores and sizable down payments, the exact opposite of the subprime housing boom.

According to the Wall Street Journal, mortgage credit availability is near its lowest point since 2014. This means the banks pulling back on lending or households pulling back because they have…

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Bidding Wars, Escalating Prices, and Buyer Fatigue are Widespread.

•          Double-digit price hikes were widespread.
•          Mutually accepted offers surge 40.6% compared to February.
•          The drop in the number of active listings between now and last year is extraordinary.
•          Statistics show a 55.9% decline in total active listings, shrinking from 9,418 at the end of March 2020 to 4,153 at month end March 2021.
•          Seattle/Bellevue region now ranks #1 in technology office space leases, eclipsing San Francisco
•          Median prices system-wide surged 19.5% compared to a year ago.

KIRKLAND, Washington (April 7, 2021) – Brokers with Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS) added 10,562 new listings to inventory during March -- the highest volume since September when they…

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With Nearly 8 Agents for Every Listing, What Are YOU Doing to Stand Out? The Cascade Team CAN Help!

There are currently eight (8) licensed real estate agents in the greater Seattle area for every (1) house available to sell. With nearly 33,000 licensed real estate agents in Western Washington, the current total number of listings as of March 23rd, 2021 including residential, condominium, and even mobile homes are only 4394.

With Nearly 8 Agents for Every 1 Listing, What Are YOU Doing to Stand Out? The Cascade Team can Help!

As New Agents Pile Into Hot Housing Market. Most Find It Tough Going.

The red-hot housing market has achieved a number of milestones this past year. Perhaps the most telling is this: There are more real-estate agents than homes for sale. Currently in the Pacific NW that number is a staggering 8 to 1 ratio (Being 8 agents…

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Suck-It! Cary Porter’s Guide to Real Estate Greatness. Order your copy now!

I am very happy to announce the publication of my first non-fiction book: Suck-It! Cary Porter’s Guide to Real Estate Greatness.

With over 20 years’ experience in the real estate industry I’ve seen, been involved in, or helped agents through almost every type of deal and dilemma. We’ve had balanced markets, Buyers markets, Seller’s markets, the crash of 2007 and the craziness of today…. And through it all, when all else fails, it falls back to two little yet very impactful words: Suck It!

Inside you’ll find great real-life stories like this:

The Curmudgeon

An old man walked into our real estate office and approached one of our newer agents.

“What’s your name, sonny boy?”

“Hi, my name’s Jeff, and I’d love to—”

“Listen here Jeff, I…

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Real Estate by The Numbers: Agent Success in a Low Inventory Market

There are currently eight (8) licensed real estate agents in the greater Seattle area for every (1) house available to sell. With nearly 33,000 licensed real estate agents in Western Washington, the current total number of listings as of March 23rd, 2021 including residential, condominium, and even mobile homes are only 4394.

As New Agents Pile Into Hot Housing Market. Most Find It Tough Going.

The red-hot housing market has achieved a number of milestones this past year. Perhaps the most telling is this: There are more real-estate agents than homes for sale. Currently in the Pacific NW that number is a staggering 8 to 1 ratio (Being 8 agents to every single available listing).

So how do you stand out?

How do you break into the industry…

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March Madness For Area Home Prices 2021 Continues

•          Median prices rising by double digits across most of our counties.
•          Total active listings of single-family homes declined nearly 44% from a year ago.
•          We are virtually sold out of unsold inventory everywhere in the Central Puget Sound area except the Seattle city core.
•          Continuing low interest rates, jobs, and lifestyle changes are driving the real estate market.

KIRKLAND, Washington (March 4, 2021) – Housing activity during February remained hot around much of Washington state despite significant accumulation of lowland snow over the Valentine’s Day weekend, according to latest statistical report from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

“It’s amazing how close the February numbers are when…

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Home Is The Nicest Word There Is: Quotes to Survive the Home Search Process

Crazy seller, bad plumbing, wildly competitive open houses, misleading listings, sky-high prices, and ever-escalating offers: there is a terrible lot to contend with when finding a new place to live.

But there’s also no other process that deserves your time and attention like discovering a new place to call your own. Here are seven quotes that will help keep you sane during the emotional marathon that is the home search.

Condos Emerge As One Bright Spot For Buyers In Otherwise Frantic Sellers’ Market

“Home is the nicest word there is.” — Laura Ingalls Wilder Looking for a new home is a lot of work, but it’s important to remember that,…

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Snow Routes and Cold Weather Preparedness For Sammamish WA

With snow in the overcast for the next several days and a potential for 6 to 8 inches of accumulation we want to make sure everyone has the most up-to-date information for cold weather preparedness and snow routes.

The City of Sammamish receives a lot of questions about City procedures before, during, and after snow events. They have compiled many of them below with the answers from our Streets and Stormwater Division experts.  

How does the city prepare for snow and ice events and what happens when the snow hits?

• City of Sammamish has a snow plowing priority system in place to clear our 400 lane miles of public roads and over 730 cul-de-sacs
• Once a snow or ice event has been forecasted and the likelihood of snow is high, the crews…

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Condos Emerge As One Bright Spot For Buyers In Otherwise Frantic Sellers’ Market

KIRKLAND, Washington (February 4, 2021) – Home buyers who have been precluded from entering Puget Sound’s competitive market may want to consider condominiums as an option, according to industry experts who commented on the latest housing statistics from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

•          1 out of every 4 listings is a Condo.
•          King County condo prices “entered negative territory in January,”
•          Prices for condos down about one-half percentage point compared with the same month a year ago.
•          Growing number of homeowners who are choosing to move further away from core urban areas.

“With the trend toward telecommuting and moving to outlying suburban areas, the Seattle/King County condominium market…

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