Seattle (Especially Eastside Suburbs) Becomes No. 1 U.S. Market for Chinese Homebuyers/ Investors

By Mike Rosenberg Seattle Times business reporter:

There’s been a large increase this year in Chinese buyers looking for property in the Seattle area, and a new tax on foreign buyers in Vancouver, B.C., is expected to amplify the trend.

A growing wave of money from China and other foreign countries is pouring into the Seattle-area housing market, helping drive home prices even higher. And since July a new tax on international buyers in Vancouver, B.C., long a popular market for home seekers from China, has focused even more global interest here.

Seattle saw more inquiries from mainland-Chinese homebuyers than any other American city in four of the last seven months, according to Juwai.com, China’s biggest real-estate site for buyers looking…

3172 Views, 0 Comments

Main Reasons Home Sellers Are Sitting On The Fence

  I recently got this question from a neighbor of mine: "I keep reading that it’s a sellers’ market because fewer homes are available for sale than normal. And home prices are going up, so it should be a really good time to sell. Why aren’t more sellers selling?"

My not so simple answer was this.... This is a confusing real estate market, with both good news and bad news for almost everyone in the marketplace. Let’s start with buyers, who are having trouble finding homes to purchase that they like and can afford. At the same time, home prices are rising steadily, and sometimes dramatically.

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), there’s a paucity of homes for sale now and because of this, existing home sale numbers…

2588 Views, 0 Comments

City of Issaquah Enacst a Six-Month Moratorium on New Development

City Enacts Development Moratorium

The Issaquah City Council voted Sept. 6, 2016, to enact a six-month moratorium on certain types of development.

In 2012 — to protect Issaquah's existing neighborhoods and natural environment — the City adopted the Central Issaquah Plan (CIP), which guides the long-term evolution of Issaquah’s existing commercial core into an urban center.

Since the plan was adopted, several developments have been built, approved or are currently under review.

During a City Council work session in July 2016, the City assessed whether those projects met the community's vision for the CIP.

Several issues were identified, including:

• Architectural fit with the community
• Urban design elements
• Vertical…

3686 Views, 0 Comments

Area Home Sales Notch Best August Since 2005!

Housing market still active, with overall direction “positive” 

KIRKLAND, Washington (Sept. 7, 2016) – Home sales in Western Washington continued to outpace year-ago activity, but member-brokers at Northwest Multiple Listing Service say persistent inventory shortages are constraining activity. 

Despite a sparse selection in many areas, an expected summer slowdown, and “appraisal conundrums,” Northwest MLS members notched 11,898 pending sales during August, eclipsing the same month a year ago by 1,295 transactions for a 12.2 percent gain. There were 8,628 pending sales in the four-county Puget Sound region -- the best August for mutually accepted offers since 2005 when members tallied 8,874 sales.

Brokers added 11,411 new listings to the…

2759 Views, 0 Comments

Has The Local Real Estate Market Stabilized?

This year has brought steady improvements in the real estate market. Prices rose driven by lower inventory in many markets, and consumers remained relatively optimistic about the economy and its direction—an encouraging indicator for real estate. While the long-anticipated increase in interest rates will likely occur in late 2016 or early 2017, a number of positive signs point to a balanced market with benefits for both homebuyers and sellers in the next year. For example, an increased supply of inventory and slightly more transactions are expected in late 2016 and on into 2017. Home prices are forecasted to see more modest increases, with some markets still facing bidding wars while other see slight price drops or fairly flat prices.

What is a…

2127 Views, 0 Comments

What You Need to Know About Comps When Selling Your Home

The sales price of neighboring homes is only one part of the equation. Be sure that sellers understand the other factors that affect how their home compares to their neighbors'.

Location within the neighborhood.

If your seller’s home is in a part of the neighborhood that borders a highway, train tracks, or an industrial area, it’ll likely fetch a lower price. Make sure you pull comps of other homes in similar locations to compare and explain pricing differences to sellers.

The home’s lot.

Take into account that hilly terrain can affect the usability of each home’s lot and bring your seller’s price down. You can have two one-acre lots next to each other, and one can be fully usable while the other is only half usable because of steep…

3759 Views, 0 Comments

Welcome To The Cascade Team Valerie Kerr Hart!

Welcome To The Cascade Team Valerie Kerr Hart!

Valerie Kerr Hart

• Office: 1-800-509-6905 ext. 1143
• Cell: 509-939-5697
• Fax: 509-565-7311
• valerieh@thecascadeteam.com

We are happy to welcome Valerie Kerr Hart to The Cascade Team!  She will be working out of our Spokane office with James Faucett, Managing Broker.

Valerie Kerr-Hart has been licensed since 2014 and an active broker in the Spokane Washington market. She specializes in providing individualized service to home buyers in the Spokane area. We are very happy to have Valerie join The Cascade Team Spokane and work alongside James Faucett as they continue to make big waves and dominate their local market!

Valerie will be a wonderful addition to The Cascade Team Real…

3914 Views, 0 Comments

A Super Hero Themed Issaquah Highlands Day Saturday, August 27th with The Cascade Team!

Saturday, August 27th!

Join The Cascade Team for the Issaquah Highlands Day Festival!

This annual summer celebration is Saturday, August 27th from 12PM-4PM. 

Located at Blakely Hall and Village Green Park: 2550 NE Park Drive, Issaquah WA 98029

Be sure to check out our booth!  Meet Batman and Deadpool and get your picture taken with them!  Download our Comic Book HERE and read the action packed story of Batman and Deadpool VS "The Commission Creeps"!

Batman And Deadpool VS. The Commission Creeps!

Download our Comic Book HERE to read the story!

We will also be giving away FREE beach balls and Frisbees!
 
Other highlights of the event include carnival rides, giant inflatables, food trucks and the always popular market place of…

3414 Views, 0 Comments

Welcome To The Cascade Team Tom Caulton!

Welcome To The Cascade Team Tom Caulton!

Tom Caulton

• Office: 1-800-509-6905 ext. 1142
• Cell: 253-905-6473
• Fax: 425-996-9520
• tom@thecascadeteam.com

We are happy to welcome Tom Caulton to The Cascade Team!  He will be working out of our Tacoma Office with Roger Stensland, Managing Broker.

Tom has 20+ year experience in real estate including work in the mortgage and construction fields.  He worked for a mortgage company involved with originating and servicing construction and residential loans.   He also worked for a construction firm developing a variety of financial and analysis tools and software.  He is a Washington native and a graduate of UW.  He has also taught classes at several local colleges. 

Tom will be a…

2066 Views, 0 Comments

Home For Sale In Issaquah - Matt Jensen

$900,000 - 3500 NE Meadow Way, Issaquah    Bedrooms: 4    Bathrooms: 2.5    Sq. Footage: 3,130    Year Built: 2005    Garage Spaces: 3    Type: Residential    MLS® Number: 1017214

OFFERED BY: PROPERTY DESCRIPTION:   Matt Jensen Branch Manager - Issaquah Highlands Office 206.909.8200 Schedule a Showing Request More Info RARE & elegant Burnstead beauty on large corner lot at Magnolia Park high above greenbelt backing two sides with excellent privacy! Intelligent light & bright floor plan offers den at main, sunken family & formal dining rooms. 4 bedrooms & large…

1256 Views, 0 Comments