Sweet Home Seattle

Agent Kick Backs

realestateteam — Tue, 18 May 2010 19:06:56 +0000

While perusing the internet and other blogs, I saw a lot of questions about agent kickbacks and incentives. Briefly, an agent incentive might be something like, “if you can close this deal in X number of days, selling agent shall receive a $5,000 bonus on top of their commission.” While these incentives are somewhat rare, they do happen. The question I am seeing in cyber space, is do buyer’s agents have to disclose this to their clients? The answer simply put is no. The seller sets the commission the buyer’s agent is to get paid. What the seller is willing to pay the buyers agent is up to them. It does not affect what the buyer is paying for the property (the commission costs have already been included in the sales price). A good and honest buyer’s agent is most likely willing to give their client something in return. A nicer gift or a credit towards their closing costs.

A person selling real estate (not the buyer) usually determines how much the agent makes. Sometimes as buyers agents we really don’t make that much. In other cases our pay off is good. The real question out there is do agent incentives actually help the property sell faster? To be honest I do not think so. If a property is priced correctly and marketed well, it will sell. Agent incentives certainly make us agents very happy but the reality is buyers are only going to buy a place if it is a perfect fit for them.

Erin Goodwin

www.SusandErin.com

Deceptive Marketing

realestateteam — Mon, 17 May 2010 16:11:04 +0000

Recently I have been getting calls from friends and clients all over the US. They are concerned about a specific real estate company advertising that their company has extended the $8,000 home buyer tax credit. While they may be able to get you that $8,000 credit toward your closing costs, let us be very very clear.. They did not get the TAX credit extended.

Here is how it works; buyers have always been able to ask for closing costs. You could always ask for the seller to credit you $8,000. The deceptive company is calling a tax credit (with implies money from the government) is still available. It is not unless you are already in contract. What is available and has always been are seller credits (money from the seller). My point… don’t be mislead. You can always ask for a credit, but the seller may say no. Unlike the government, sellers aren’t necessarily going to give up that money that easy. Also a good thing to remember in real estate transactions is that sellers and buyers can not exchange funds out of escrow. Simply put they can credit you money (take it off the purchase price) but they cannot write you a check for $8,000.

Erin Goodwin

RE/MAX Mutual Realty

www.SusandErin.com

Changes to the NWMLS

realestateteam — Tue, 11 May 2010 16:35:06 +0000

If your receive emailed listings from a real estate agent, you have probably noticed that things look a bit different. That is because the nwmls has completely updated their system and now it is better to use, faster, and has much more valuable information. When clients receive listings they can sort which are their favorites and the agent can track that as well.

Here are some helpful tips to make receiving and reviewing these emails a bit easier:

1.) Make sure your agent has set up a portal for you. The nwmls has changed for everyone. Make sure your agent has set up a special area for you to log into (through email) and track the homes you love, or don’t care for at all.

2.) Change how you view the listings. If the listings are emailed as a list from your agent, change the view on the bottom left hand corner of the page labeled ‘display’. I recommend the ‘Client Summary’ view. This way you get plenty of information and pictures.

3.) To sort the listings check the box on the top left corner next to the listing. Then scroll down and choose which category you would like the home to fall into. (Note: Homes will not disappear from your original email list. They are copied into the category you selected. This is helpful because you can go back and view old emails.)

4.) Map more then one location on the map by checking the box in the top left corner of the listing and scrolling to the bottom of the page and clicking the map icon. (It’s the globe)

5.) Ask your agent to send you driving directions before you meet up. That way if the home is in a hard to reach area, your agent can provide you with directions.

These are just some helpful tips we thought you may find useful. If you are having any problems or would like us to sit down and go over it with you, contact us anytime. It is a learning curve for everyone but we pride our team on being the tech savvy.

Erin Goodwin

206-251-4259

www.SusandErin.com

What are the ‘Best’ Seattle Schools?

realestateteam — Thu, 06 May 2010 19:40:12 +0000

Almost every person we meet who is relocating to Seattle asks us about the ‘best’ school areas. As real estate agents, we are not allowed to give opinions on schools because it may be construed as ‘steering.’

Steering is defined as: the illegal practice of directing home seekers to particular areas either to maintain the homogeneity of an area or change the character of an area, which limits where they can live.

Now this seems really silly to some people and they wonder if we perhaps know nothing about the schools. The truth is that ‘best’ is subjective, while high test scores may be of number one importance to one family, small classroom size to another, and a successful sports program to the third. In fact, we have to take ‘steering’ very seriously, because even with the best of intentions, agents and brokerages have been sued for giving ‘harmless’ opinions.

Erin and I like to refer our clients to a source we find very helpful. The Seattle Times School Guide has compiled statistics and has good descriptions of the area schools. Of course, visiting the schools is a great way to get a feel for the educational environment.

Susanne

New Changes on How to Deal with Lead Base Paint

realestateteam — Wed, 05 May 2010 22:01:47 +0000

As of April 22^nd of this year, the EPA has changed rules regarding how contractors deal with homes that may have lead base paint in them. These new rules affect all homes, schools, and daycare centers built before 1978. Contractors are now required to wear special gear “outfitted with air filters, goggles and hoods,” and work spaces will have to be “protected with heavy plastic and cleaned thoroughly with special vacuums, with warning signs posted.” This will affect anyone remodeling a home built before 1978. Most lead poisoning does not occur from eating paint chips, but rather from contact with lead dust from renovation projects.

A lot of Seattle homes fall into this category, so it is something to consider when buying a home that needs work. It may in the short term add an additional expense to remodeling projects; however it is much more important to protect everyone’s health. Hip hip hooray for the EPA!!

Erin Goodwin

Earthquake Insurance in Seattle

realestateteam — Tue, 04 May 2010 18:25:13 +0000

We learned today from an Allstate agent that contrary to some beliefs, all homes in Washington can get earthquake insurance, including brick homes. The insurance does not come cheap however, and some homes in areas close to the coast (West Seattle, Magnolia, Mukilteo) are going to be more than further inland area homes, Homes built before 1961 are also more than ‘newer’ homes. Homeowners can have their homes retrofitted, or structure bolted to the foundation, to get a lower insurance cost. One thing to note is that the insurance often comes with high deductibles, perhaps 10%. The insurace in WA is provided by Geovera. Asking around the office, we could not find anyone with earthquake insurance, most feel that it is too expensive, I guess a risk we are willing to take…. but know that it is available to you!

Susanne

Is Seattle Still a Best Recovery Bet?

realestateteam — Mon, 03 May 2010 21:02:22 +0000

Remember that CNN money article back in October of last year that named Seattle as one of the best housing recovery bets? The article predicted that our real estate market should start to turn around June of 2010. It also predicted that between June 2010 and June of 2011 the city should see a gain of 6.2%. Hmmm…. sounds good to me!

We are well on our way to June and it will be interesting to see what the real estate market does into 2011. 6.2% sounds pretty ambitious but my thoughts are that we are at the bottom so we should start to see small gains in housing prices around the city. It’s true that our inventory of good homes is low and there are still many buyers out there shopping. Even million dollar homes, way past the conforming loan rate, are selling within a week of being put on the market, some with multiple offers.

Predicting our housing statistics is like predicting the weather in Seattle… I don’t dare to even think about putting out my tomatoes! But I know the warmth of spring is coming… let’s hope it brings new leaves for the housing market as well.

Susanne

Kauai Real Estate

realestateteam — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 20:58:22 +0000

Searching for some much need rest and relaxation, my husband and I decided it was time to pull out the sunscreen and head off to Kauai. (That’s the “Garden Island” of Hawaii). It was spectacular. If you have gone to Kauai you probably know that most people rent cars so that you can find all of the islands hidden treasures. We spent a lot of time driving around and dodging roosters and chickens,

but it was hard not to notice all of the for sale signs. If you search home prices for the island you will find that the majority of homes are valued between $800,000 to $1 million. The south east section of the island appears to be the most ‘affordable’ (with the average home listed for below $530,000). Currently there are 19 places to live on the island for under $250,000. What is remarkable is the latest statistic I can find places the average sales price of Kauai at $610,000 (in 2008). What a buyer can expect is that now that number is even lower, with the amount of homes on the market still increasing. (there are a lot of unfinished developments there too)

So what the heck is my point with all of this?! It is a great time to buy in Kauai. Prices are low for now and I foresee it increasing very very soon. If you would like to purchase here let Susanne and I know, and we would be happy to refer you to one of our trusted RE/MAX Kauai REALTORS. There are 3 RE/MAX offices on the island, and hopefully one day if we are luck, you can find Susanne and me there too!

Aloha!

Erin Goodwin

RE/MAX Mutual Realty

Tax credit is going, going…

realestateteam — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 20:05:40 +0000

The $8,000 tax credit for first time buyers is almost gone and we have not heard anything about a possible renewal. I think the tax credits over the past years definitely had an impact on the real estate market, but most people who really wanted to take advantage have likely purchased. If you are disappointed that you have not found a home before the expiration, don’t worry, the interest rates are still low and many sellers are willing to contribute thousands of dollars to you in the deal – usually in the form of paying your closing costs. This has always been a part of negotiation.

Real estate sales seem to have picked up in Seattle, the main problem we are having in our Sus and Erin business right now is finding good homes for our ready and able buyers. Maybe many sellers are afraid of the “buyers’ market’ and not listing their homes? Will someone please list a nice, huge, craftsman home in Ravenna or a water view mid-century in Sunset Hill! We are out there knocking on doors to try and find these homes for our buyers. So we want sellers to know that it is not so bad out there as you may think!

Susanne

Interest rates are going to go up

realestateteam — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 16:02:52 +0000

If you have been sitting on the sidelines, waiting for that very bottom of the market until you buy a home, here is a wake-up call for you. All we keep hearing that interest rates are going to go up, and they have already started, there are no more rates under the 5% mark.

Now is the time to get a great deal on a house AND get a low interest rate loan. If the rates go up, house prices will have to come down to give you that same payment. Yes, prices may come down some more… but my opinion is that we are at or near the bottom, so think hard about the balance between the house price and the cost to buy the home (your monthly payment). If you were approved for $200K couple months ago… you better check again!

Great article on more of ‘WHY’ this is happening on the Seattle Times website.

Susanne