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Uncategorized Windermere Foundation Quarterly Report | Windermere Foundation Greetings from the Windermere Foundation, Thanks to you and the wonderful support the Windermere Foundation has received so far this year, we have disbursed nearly $185,000 to qualifying social service organizations dedicated to serving low-income and homeless families throughout the Western U.S. Our amazing agents, brokers, staff and owners, along with public supporters, continue to […]
Uncategorized Americans Predict Rents and Home Prices to Increase We report on Fannie Mae’s Quarterly National Housing Survey every ninety days. Fannie Mae also does a monthly survey covering different aspects of the housing market. Here are some record numbers we found interesting in Fannie Mae’s March report (emphasis added). Thirty-three percent of respondents expect home prices to increase over the next 12 months, the […]
Uncategorized Seattle house prices up again – seattlepi.com Do you have clients waiting for the bottom?  Oops, looks like they may have missed it!  Read the article below… Seattle house prices rose for the second month in a row in March, the Northwest Multiple Listing Service reported Thursday. One reason is an extremely low supply.” Close to the job centers, 45 percent of new […]
Uncategorized West Seattle Blog… » Warren Buffett-owned company buys Prudential Northwest Realty Prudential Northwest Realty, led by West Seattleite Mike Gain, now has something in common with household names such as Dairy Queen, See’s Candies, GEICO Insurance, and Fruit of the Loom: It is now owned by a company that belongs to Warren Buffett‘s Berkshire Hathaway. Ahead, the news release announcing that HomeServices of America is buying […]
Uncategorized Educational, motivational titan Lou Tice of The Pacific Institute (TPI) dies – Puget Sound Business Journal Lou Tice, chairman and co-founder of The Pacific Institute (TPI), died at his Seattle home Sunday evening, April 1, after an illness. A statement released by TPI says: “Surrounded by his wife, Diane, and loving family and friends, Lou spent his final days challenging those around him to carry on with his life’s work – […]
Uncategorized Housing Crisis to End in 2012 as Banks Loosen Credit Standards Capital Economics expects the housing crisis to end this year, according to a report released Tuesday. One of the reasons: loosening credit. The analytics firm notes the average credit score required to attain a mortgage loan is 700. While this is higher than scores required prior to the crisis, it is constant with requirements one […]
Uncategorized Downtown Seattle bus free rides ending in September – Puget Sound Business Journal Riding the King County Metro Transit    buses for free in downtown Seattle will end Sept. 29 after 30 years. The Seattle P-I.com reports the Ride Free Area logs an average of about 9,000 free rides per day but costs about $2.2 million per year to operate. Boarding buses is expected to take longer downtown […]
Uncategorized HomeStreet cease-and-desist order lifted by regulators – Puget Sound Business Journal HomeStreet Inc.    , the holding company of HomeStreet Bank    , announced Wednesday that regulators have lifted an order to “cease and desist” operating with unsafe and unsound banking practices that dated from 2009. “This is a major milestone for our bank and reflects substantial improvements in the risk profile and financial condition of […]
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Uncategorized financial benefits AND social benefits of homeownership Homeownership has more than just financial benefits, there are also quite a few social benefits for you, your family and the greater community. What are some of the social benefits that are most important to you? http://bit.ly/H9zspi
Uncategorized From boom to bust and boom again ~ Barron's: http://t.co/SpzB2gxN
Uncategorized Buying cheaper than renting in nearly 100 major U.S. markets: Trulia | HousingWire Buying is more affordable than renting in 98 out of the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas — even in New York, Los Angeles and Boston, according to real estate company Trulia’s rent vs. buy index. The index is based on asking prices for rental units and homes for sale on the company’s website between Dec. […]
Uncategorized Survey: Puget Sound apartment vacancy rates drop – Puget Sound Business Journal The vacancy rate among Puget Sound apartment rentals decreased to 4.7 percent this month, down from 5.3 percent last September, according to a survey of 20-unit and larger apartments published Monday. The results excluded vacancies in new properties in lease-up and properties going through major renovation. The survey, conducted by research firm Dupre + Scott, […]
Uncategorized Home prices ‘bottoming now,’ BofA Merrill Lynch analysts say Home prices 'bottoming now,' BofA Merrill Lynch analysts say
Uncategorized BofA Borrowers in Foreclosure May Get Rent-Back Option BofA Borrowers in Foreclosure May Get Rent-Back Option Daily Real Estate News | Friday, March 23, 2012 Bank of America announced this week that it will make an offer to a select group of its borrowers who face foreclosure: You can stay in the property, but you’ll have to rent it instead. The bank’s pilot […]
Uncategorized Seattle: No. 5 in U.S. job growth last year – Puget Sound Business Journal Seattle ranked fifth nationally for job growth between January 2011 and January 2012, according to a new study, which indicated Washington state ranked No. 15 nationally for job growth during the same time. The W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University    study indicated that Houston (up 3.7 percent), Atlanta (up 3.1 […]
Uncategorized Dig begins on Seattle waterfront pit for huge tunnel machine – Puget Sound Business Journal Workers near Seattle’s waterfront this week began building the underground lair for the giant tunnel machine that will chew a new path under the city. Like a subterranean beast, the tunnel machine will creep along at 3 inches a minute, digesting the compacted silt and gravel that underlie Seattle. The start of drilling the pit […]
Uncategorized Apartment rents climbing in downtown Seattle, Bellevue – Puget Sound Business Journal Monthly rents topped $1,500 for the first time in downtown Seattle and Bellevue during the first quarter of this year, according to a new report from Tom Caine of Apartment Insights. The Seattle-based company tracks apartment complexes with 50 or more units in King and Snohomish counties. Downtown Seattle is the first Puget Sound area […]
Uncategorized Seattle is U.S.s ninth-most stressful city: Study – Puget Sound Business Journal With high rates of divorce, suicide and alcohol use, coupled with long commute times, Seattle ranks as Americans ninth-most stressful city, according to a new study. Research firm Sperling’s BestPlaces reports Tampa-St.Petersburg in Florida ranks as the nations most stressful city, followed by Las Vegas and Miami. Minneapolis is the nations least-stressful city, according to […]
Uncategorized Hot to live in an old fire station? Two for sale in Seattle – Puget Sound Business Journal Interested in living in an unusual Seattle landmark? The city of Seattle has put two historic firehouses in the West Seattle and Ravenna neighborhoods up for sale. Since they were listed for sale in late February, the properties have generated strong interest. During recent open houses, 355 prospective buyers and lookie-lous toured Fire Station 37 […]
Uncategorized Warren Buffett on CNBC: I’d Buy Up ‘A Couple Hundred Thousand’ Single-Family Homes If I Could – CNBC Warren Buffett says along with equities, single-family homes are a very attractive investment right now. Appearing live on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Buffett tells Becky Quick he’d buy up “a couple hundred thousand” single family homes if it were practical to do so. If held for a long period of time and purchased at low rates, […]