Monday Market in Vancouver, Washington Monday Market Snapshot 2008/12/15 More inventory. That's what the Multiple Listing System (MLS) reported recently. Our Clark County inventory moved from an inventory rate of 13.7 to 16.9 during November. The inventory is calculated by dividing the number of homes for sale by the average days it take to sell a home and reflects how long it would take to sell all the homes on the market at current rate of sales (if no more homes were added to the market). That increase in inventory does suggest continued downward pressure on prices. This is probably a good time to point out that the numbers I track are not from the same population that the Regional MLS tracks. I have a narrower focus and may not reflect the same numbers in their reports. For example,... 12/15/2008

My commentary concerning the December 2008 Real Estate Market Trends in Vancouver, WA and Portland, OR:    It certainly is an interesting time for our country and maybe the world due to poor decisions made by many people during the most recent real estate boom! And as I mentioned in my last newsletter, I have decided to give little credibility to the real estate news reporting.     What I know, here in the Pacific Northwest: 1. Financing for homes is available and offered at a historically low interest rate!  Several loan consultants have been sending me emails saying they have loans available.  If I was considering purchasing a home, I would definitely purchase now!! At the Home Buying Seminar of which I am one of the presenters, the loan consultant presented several programs.   2.    ... 12/15/2008

December 9, 2008 Extraordinary Numbers The numbers coming out of the markets are absolutely extraordinary. How about gas at $1.70 per gallon just a few months after it was over $4.00 per gallon? How about the loss of over a half a million jobs in one month? In addition, the government looks to be spending about $1 trillion dollars to save the economy from recession. That may include a target rate 4.5% for some purchase loans. The numbers are virtually mind-numbing. These numbers also let us know that it does not make sense to predict what will happen in the future. For example, could a real estate rebound take place in a few months instead of a few years because of lower rates? Our advice is not to even try to predict the future. Right now rates are as low as they have ever been for fi... 12/09/2008

Treasury mulls plan to lower mortgage rates - Dec. 3, 2008 NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Lobbyists are pushing the Treasury Department to consider a plan to purchase mortgage-backed securities in the hopes of driving mortgage rates to as low as 4.5%, an industry source said. Click below to read the rest http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/03/news/economy/treasury_mortgage_rates/ My thoughts:  Even if this comes to pass, with the Treasury potential plan, I'm not sure this will have a long lasting effect the feds are looking for, in terms of jump starting first time home buyers and also getting homes sold. And it certainly would be good for those needing to refinance; however, if you can't get a loan in the first place, based on underwriting guidelines and credit criteria, than lower rates can't be... 12/04/2008

Monday Market Snapshot 20081201 (a little late) This is how December begins... Typically, the Vancouver, Washington market dips in volume over the winter. Less serious sellers take their home off the market for the holidays, less serious buyers turn their shopping attention elsewhere. The ratio of active sellers to homes under contract (and actually selling) is what's interesting to me. I think it shows changes in the market and can alert us to changing trends. Buying signals abound! Supply continues to edge up over demand. We have fewer houses on the market, at 3575 active listings. We have a disproportionately lower number of pending sales at 442. This isn't a big change in ratio, but it is a continuation of what's been going on since June. Kind of like my own weight gain - just a pou... 12/03/2008

In todays Inman News, 11/24/08, Patrick Duffy writes a book review of the book Financial Shock: A 360 degree look at the subprime mortgage implosion and how to avoid the next financial crisis by author: Mark Zandi It is much more succinct than the article I posted of the NPR interview last week on my website blog. Duffy states: "the book is so comprehensive, it still provides an excellent framework from which to understand the root causes of the crisis, from the mistakes made by Alan Greenspan to the rapid rise of irresponsible lenders who rewrote the rules of underwriting based on their own short-term interests. And let's not forget a compliant political system and the home buyers eager to join the ranks of owners despite any potential long-term consequences of poor financial decisions... 11/26/2008

Monday Market Snapshot 11/24/2008 Vancouver Washington at the end of November. This is that time of year - buyers and sellers are 'going to get back to it after the holidays'. What I've seen in years past is a definite drop in numbers of sellers and lookers from now until that magical time just after Superbowl where buyers come back and Easter when the sellers start testing the market again. So, our number of active listings is about the same as last week, with 3865 wanting to sell. And a slight decrease of homes with contracts to purchase at 466. With 54 home sales completing in the last week, the numbers suggest a bit of a build up in the ratio of homes for sale versus those that are being sold. Eighty-five of the (466) pending transactions are 3rd party approval. Not all 3rd party ar... 11/24/2008

When doing your Christmas cards this year, take one card and send it to this address. If we pass this on and everyone sends one card, think of how many cards these wonderful special people who have sacrificed so much would get.           A Recovering American Soldier      c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center      6900 Georgia Avenue,NW      Washington , D.C. 20307-5001      Thanks Crosby Inspections 11/23/2008

Monday Market Snapshot 11/18/2008 Checking in on Vancouver, Washington real estate action How's the market, now as we head in to the holiday season? Well, the number of listings that are actively seeking buyers has dropped a little (from 3717 to 3682) and the numbe of homes that have an accepted offer has held steady at 492. So, this is not unusual for what typically happens as we approach the holidays. Less competition for sellers, if you're taking note... The number of homes that are required to have a third party approve  the transaction (often the bank) is 709. Of the active listings about 69 are advertised as 'bank-owned'. And they are looking like very good deals! So my guess is that our market will continue to be strong for buyers, and actually improving for sellers. We are appro... 11/17/2008

My Christmas Shopping at Backyard Bird Shop I love, LOVE, going into Backyard Bird Shop! There are probably 43 places in Vancouver, Washington that I could have gone to get some bird seed for my little feathered friends. Many locations closer than the drive to my favorite bird store: Back Yard Bird Shop. I went over there to buy a little 5 pound bag of black-oil sunflower seed. The best part is that it took 40 minutes for me to get out of there! You may be saying "What?!!!". The reason it is easy to spend 40 minutes buying a bag of bird seed is because of all the wonderful, delightful, interesting and unusual products that are jam-packed into the bird shop. This store has so many cool things: rain chains, the (un)usual bird and squirrel feeders, bird houses and so forth, but also beauti... 11/17/2008

  Rose Village is getting a facelift one home at a time thanks to the 4th Plain Corridor Revitalization Task Force Housing Coalition 'Paint-a-Thon', generous donations by Fred Meyer and other area businesses, and the efforts of some dedicated volunteers. In just over 2 months, the Coalition has been responsible for painting some 17 homes in Rose Village.  Here are before & after pictures of one of the most recent makeovers.  This home was built in 1920 and had recently started to look a bit tired.  The 'Paint-a-Thon' team consulted with the owners to choose a color combination they would like and that would fit well with other homes in the neighborhood. The Rose Village  area is conveniently located near downtown Vancouver, with easy access to I-5, Highway 14 and SR500.  Much of the ar... 11/14/2008

Old homes are great.  They have character and charm that you just can't find in new homes.  Patty and I have spent the last 2 years renovating an old church into our home.  Recently, we started researching the property to learn more about its history.  We are finding that it can be a real challenge to research a home in our area ... especially if it was built in the early 1900s or before.  We've found a few great resources, though, and thought that we'd pass them along to others who may be researching an old home. One of the first steps we recommend is contact your title company.  For a fee (I think we paid $25), our title company wa able to provide us with a sales history of our property.  The sales history is a collection of deeds, maps, and other relevant documents that indicate the ... 11/13/2008

Living Easier Imagine owning just one car per family. Take a look at what owning a car costs. Do you know how easy it is to add walking to your life? Imagine your children walking to school, your family walking together  to shopping, entertainment. What if you could walk to work? Imagine buying food that is fresh and grown within 250 miles of your home. Learn what makes local grown more sustainable. Imagine living a healthier life and preserving resources for future generations. Where will your next home be? What if you talk to a real estate agent that understands that healthy living is a series of small choices and actions that collectively change your whole lifestyle? Whether you're looking for your first home, or possibly your last, or selling either of them, I have the patience and ... 11/13/2008

Hello Everyone, I have spent the last year working on assisting my Realtors close deals pertaining to short sales and learning and collecting as much information about that topic from every source known by man in this arena. The results have been that many people did a short sale and a loan modification could have been the answer instead. As a result of these findings I have just completed a very thorough compilation of interviews, facts, findings, secrets, ingredients, loopholes, and strategies to educate a home owner on their options. This is a "turn key" loan mod kit that is more complete then 90% of the loan modifications that are starting to pop up from the same slime balls who put the people in the "Prime America" friends/family loved ones loan at a 10.5% 30 yr fixed with a 5 year... 11/12/2008

Market Snap Shot 11/11/2008 Monday Market Musings (on Tuesday) The good news is that the number of active listings has been generally averaging downward since June. In August the number of active listings was usually around 4000 and by October it was around  3800, and so far the average number of active listings for November is 3700. The other side of that story is that we've moved from about 670 homes under contract each week in June to about 500 each week the last couple of weeks. Overall, the average number of homes for sale has moved from 5.8 active to each home under contract to 7.5 active for each under contract. Yeah, and what does that mean? It's possible that these numbers reflect the approaching holiday season where we typically see fewer homes on the market and fewer sales be... 11/11/2008

Happy Veteran's Day! What I learned from my Father about a Positive Attitude My father served in WWII when at the tender age of 16, he changed his age (easier back then to alter a birth certificate) and was enlisted in the US Army and sent off to the war zone. He felt it was his duty to fight for his country! His mother was terrified, as she had lost 2 other sons in the war. My father didn't do a job that most would write home about, he wasn't a pilot, general, or captain...he was a private and his job wasn't glamorous either, in fact it was probably the worst one of all...burying the dead. When I was growing up we loved to hear his stories, although he was honest about the situation and didn't "sugar coat" the reality of the situation, he always found a way to switch to HUMOR so we wou... 11/11/2008

Newly Remodeled with Vinyl Windows, Interior/ Exterior Paint, Cedar Shake Gables, Covered Porch, Patio, New Carpet, Vinyl Flooring, Granite Countertops,NEW For-Air Unit,Washer and Dryer Hookups in the Basement.2 bedrooms 1 bathroom ... beautiful house 660 se polk camas call me at 360-910-0497 Debbie - Realtor Keller Williams Realty Premier Partners if you want to take a look at this beautiful home priced way below market for a quick sale 11/09/2008

      These are my grandchildren!! I call them "The Lil' Darlin's." I'll only tell you one story about one of them and it is kind of real estate related.  I took my 7 year old grandson Preston with me to show homes one day in Vancouver, Washington with one of my guy friends and his Dad. We were touring an older two story home. As the gentlemen walked through the house, they were knocking on a wall here and there, just checking things out. Preston began walking behind them knocking on walls right behind them. Then Preston began asking them, "Well, are you going to buy it or not?!!" I tried to shush him. They kind of laughed. Preston asked them a few more times during the touring. "Well, are you gonna buy it or not?!!" I gave him a few frowns with that "not now" look. When we finally lock... 11/08/2008

First Friday and North Bank Artists Gallery Art and Evil Early today I glanced at the 'Life' section in The Columbian and just skimmed the article "Women, darkness & the soul". What I read was the little caption about the artist, making silicon molds of her hands. When I walked into the North Bank (one of my favorite galleries) and I recogonized the hands, I realized this was the artist, Kathi Rick. I had initially walked by the North Bank because the windows were darkened. So as I walked in, it felt a little odd. I noticed the show was partly the slides and images on the wall in the most interior region. As I walked into that room, I saw the hands that had been referenced in the newspaper article. Then on the floor, a life size, nude female form. In what appeared to be a pool of blood.... 11/07/2008

First Friday Art Walk Great night for an art walk! The monthly Vancouver Art Walk had great balmy weather tonight and the rain held off just long enough. I was late getting to town tonight but it seem the art walk had a pretty nice turn out. The Angst is the newer gallery on the tour. Tonight I noticed they had more art to view than they had last month. I like the downtown tour and I hope you will stop in some time too. While I make a point to get to the galleries on First Friday, the various artists and shows are usually on display for the entire month. So, if you miss the First Friday, be sure to wander through the galleries during the day. Going on the opening night is the most fun though! I've got the map here so you can see where the galleries are. The new Angst gallery is just nor... 11/07/2008