Affordability Pinch - liability costs for condo builders up to 50k per unit
Housing affordability is on just about everyone's mind these days. I've recently written about a widening condo shortage caused in part to the costs associated with the liability local regulations and state laws place on developers. Last week, we had the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties (MBA) present at my monthly Northwest Independent Brokers Association meeting. Gina Clark, the King County Manager of Government Affairs, touched on a variety of tre
Success! Nearly 100 people contribute to the Good for a Change Ravenna Park Seattle Cleanup
Having attended a couple different Good for a Change community events with my daughter – one making cards and giving gifts to kids at Seattle’s Children’s Hospital and the other showing support for local first responders – I was asked if I could lend my hand in a different way at their recent Ravenna Park Cleanup. UW Professor Jeffrey Shulman, the guy behind the Good for a Change movement, is a friend of mine and knows I enjoy putting the drone to use for clientele. Though th
Buying land in Seattle or King County? Find out how much it costs
Buying land in Seattle or King County to develop your own home is not for everyone. It can be a rather massive and demanding undertaking for the novice, but that's not to say it can't be done. Like any purchase or sale, it simply takes aligning the right property with the particular goals of that client. So, for those considering buying land in Seattle or King County, here are some basic MLS data points and trends that will help paint the picture of what to expect. For star
What month should I sell a home in Seattle to get the most money?
I often get asked "what month should I sell a home in Seattle [or insert neighboring city here] to get the most money?" The reality is that life or extraneous factors often dictate when people list their home for sale. BUT, if you have the option of picking your timing, then listing a home for sale in May is probably your best route to making the most money on your sale. "Waiting to list a home for sale past May could end up costing the median King County house $24,639 and t
Typical Seattle Rain - it's not what you out-of-towners think
"You're from Seattle? It rains all the time there, huh?" Not exactly. Those of us who live here know what it's really like. Sure, our fall, winter, and spring have a fair amount of "gray" days, but it's not all gray. And when it rains, it's typically not heavy. I own an umbrella, two in fact - one for golf, and one stowed away in my car for the rare occasion someone else needs it. I can't even remember the last time I used an umbrella... at least a few years ago, with the ex
It's not all glamour, and our new 3 year old assistant sheds light on that.
The real estate TV shows out there are nowhere near an accurate depiction of what it is like to buy and sell a home or what the life of a real estate broker is like. There's of course the contingent of people out there who think real estate agents are overpaid, focusing solely on the single commission earned and neglecting all of the time, resources, and cost associated with being a successful real estate broker. You might be surprised to learn that the median gross income of
King County median house price now nearly 700k, up 8.2% since February.
You read that right... the median selling price in King County (single family homes) rose 8.2% in one month alone. The King County median house price for single family homes that closed in March came in at $698,000, which represents an 8.2% increase compared to February ($645,000) and a 17.8% increase compared to March of 2017. The first quarter of 2017 also saw a significant one month spike, when prices rose 9.1% between January and February. Why the spike? In March, there w
Judge Strikes Down Seattle City Council's "First in Time" Rental Ordinance
In an effort to make housing more equitable, Seattle City Council passed legislation in 2016 requiring landlords to accept the first tenant application received that met their minimum rental criteria. Much of the reasoning behind it was to prevent a landlord from exhibiting bias, whether intentional or not. This "first in time" Seattle City Ordinance, that was officially put into effect last year, was just struck down as being unconstitutional by a King County Superior Court
