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Wenatchee- It's not easy being green
2007-03-22 16:05:00
Thanks to Andy Dappen of Wenatchee Outdoors.org for letting me post this great article. When I read the front page news about a "Green Wenatchee" I too was a little disturbed. Ten Reasons We're Not No. Five Andy Dappen If only it were true. Unfortunately, all I can say about the March 2007 issue of Country Home magazine that ranked Wenatchee as the fifth greenest city in America is, “What were they smoking?” An odd amalgamation of statistics compiled by those who don’t live here have found Wenatchee wonderfully green, but rather than congratulating ourselves and then turning our patted backs from some real environmental transgressions, we still have very basic ground to cover to deserve our ranking. Here are ten reasons we’re not No. 5: 1) We can’t even place colored glass in our curbside recycling bin. Microbrews and recycling go hand-in-hand. Did you know that the New Belgium Brewing Company (makers of Fat Tire Beer) generates all the energy used to make their beer...
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Why aren't homes in Cashmere Selling? (It's the price...)
2007-03-07 02:28:00
Allyson got this bit of fan mail today... “So what is up with the blog? I notice that the frequency of postings has decreased--I rely on it to keep up to date on the greater Leavenworth real estate market--I am starting to get the shakes--when will we get a new post?” This is for you Holly.... I have been a little surprised that there hasn't been much movement in the usually crazy Cashmere housing market. Currently, there are 10 homes on the market in Cashmere under $300,000. This is about a 3.5 month supply. Clearly a strong seller's market by most approximations. Yet, there is only 1 pending sale! I decided to dig deeper. In the last 6 months, 17 homes sold in this price range. The average home was 1660 square feet and sold for $190,000. The current crop of homes average just about 1600 square feet, but are on the market for $240,000. Now it's POSSSIBLE that the homes on the market today are much nicer, newer, etc homes, but.... not very LIKELY! In the last 6 m...
More About: Selling , Homes , Price

A good cause
2007-02-07 21:55:00
I was looking for blogs on log homes and log cabins so I can provide some more details for home buyers to look at. I ended up at this site. The owner is in the process of building a log home and is going to blog about his/her trials and tribulations. The site owner is trying to get bloggers to donate money to a number of worthwhile charities. One he focused on is One House at a Time that is working on rebuilding in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. I am happy to provide a link an encourage folks to visit their website if they want to help.
More About: Good

A note on Insurance by Eric Kossian of Leavenworth Insurance
2007-01-25 18:45:00
Your Good Credit Score Can Save You Up To 50% Off Home Insurance I know a lot of people don't like this (the one's with bad credit) and I agree that it is not fair for those otherwise credit upstanding citizens who, due to no fault of their own, had a divorce or family medical situation that ruined their credit. Nevertheless, the truth is, from an actuarial standpoint, people with excellent to good credit can get huge discounts on home, auto and excess liability insurance because they are statistically much less likely to have a claim (and that's what insurance companies are ultimately concerned about - not your driving record, etc) So, if you have excellent to good credit I suggest you shop your insurance because while almost all preferred companies now give discounts for good credit, the amount of the discount varies widely. I literally had a customer with very good (not excellent or just good) that sold his home to a friend and retained the mortgage. The friend had terrible c...
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Low Inventory in Leavenworth Homes Market
2007-01-25 01:42:00
Moderately priced home sales have really taken off in the Leavenworth Washington real estate market. Today there are only 16 homes under $300,000 and 26 under $400,000. Scarier yet, many of these are small (under 1000 square feet, some under 500) or have other issues that may make them difficult to get a loan for. (Lack of septic and electricity, half interest in property, leased land etc.) When we look at the list without these homes we see 9 under $300,000 and 19 under $400,000. If you are a home seller and thinking about waiting until spring to sell, maybe you should re-think your planning. If you are a buyer, you have a dilemma: Buy now despite the lack of choices or buy later and be prepared to pay a premium as prices continue to go up?
More About: Market , Inventory , Homes , Vent , Tory

New Swicki for Leavenworth Real Estate
2007-01-23 22:37:00
To the right of this post in my sidebar you will find something new. This is a Swick i. You can learn all about it here. Basically it is a tool for you to search for articles and info that you are looking for. This Swicki searches all the web, but it highlights info found on sites I like - my website, my blog and my Active Rain Blog. The Swicki allows me to see what topics my readers are interested in and write articles that meet those curiousities. The topics in large type are the topics that are most popular. Try it out and let me know what you think
More About: Estate , Real Estate , Real , Wort

Why Electric Heat in Leavenworth?
2007-01-11 21:45:00
Why Electric ? As you walk through homes around Leavenworth, you may notice that most people have baseboard electric heat, electric furnaces or heat pumps, and electric stoves. In fact the only gas you may see is a gas fireplace. Why do most Leavenworth residents have electric heat and appliances? The answer: Chelan Co. has one of the lowest electric rates in the state. The Chelan Co. Public Utilities District (PUD) operates three hydroelectric dams on the Columbia River generating enough power to run a city of 900,000 people for a year. As the name implies, the PUD is owned by the residents of Chelan Co. All this translates to an average price of 2.9 cents/Kilowatt hour. Listed below are the residential rates for electricity for Chelan Co. and the City of Seattle. Chelan Co. is by month and Seattle is by day. Chelan Co. Monthly Charges per kWh. First 1,000 kWh--2.18 cents. 1001 to 2000 kWh--2.70 cents. > 2000 kWh--2.85 cents. Basic Charge--$6.85. Seattle, Residential: City. Dai...
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Leavenworth 3 bedroom home prices explode!
2007-01-05 20:38:00
I was running some numbers today for a Windermere publication that comes out quarterly. It uses average prices of sold 3 bedroom homes as a gauge of the market. For the first half of 2006, the average 3 bedroom home in the Leavenworth area. (including Plain and Lake Wenatchee) was $375,000. For the second half it is up to $458,000. I double checked. Those numbers represent a 22% increase in a 6 month period! It looks like buyers in the Leavenworth market haven't been bothered or effected by negative press about either a "soft landing" or a "bubble bursting". Leavenworth and Lake Wenatchee continue to remain popular as a destination for vacation homes.
More About: Home , Bedroom , Explode , Wort , Prices

New Lending Laws for 2007
2007-01-03 17:49:00
Did you know that in 2007 Mortgage Lend ers (Brokers and Loan Originators) must be licensed in the State of Washington? It's true. You can learn more about it here. Appraisers have been directed not to take appraisal orders from lenders unable to provide a current license. Has the lender you have been working with kept up with current legal requirements? If not, I would be happy to refer you to some knowledgable and trustworthy lenders in the Wenatchee Valley.
More About: Laws , Lending

Two Years of Blogging
2007-01-02 21:04:00
It’s hard to believe that I’ve been blogging about real estate now for two years. In the beginning it was just a few statistics (market updates) but mostly it was another venue for me to talk about my listings. Obviously that wasn’t particularly exciting or engaging – not for me or for my readers. As I learn more about the blogosphere and about real estate blogging, I try and continually adapt and change to make this a more educational and useful site. Highlights over the past few years are many. Certainly being noticed by other bloggers and real estate professionals is nice. Mentions in the Spokesman Review and being named as one of the 500 real estate “blogs to watch” were fantastic. Last week a reporter from the N Y Times contacted me about doing an article on vacation homes in Leavenworth after reading my posts. More important is receiving comments from consumers. I love it when home buyers ask about a post I made. Better educated consumers are great – they are fun...
More About: Blogging , Years , Blogg , Year , Ears