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Maple Valley WA | Real Estate & Life South East of Seattle~ 425.432.5400 | Page 37

The Formula For a Faster Sale: Yesterday’s Price – Market Adjustment = Faster Sale

The Formula For a Faster Sale: Yesterday’s Price – Market Adjustment = Faster Sale

 My mom used to watch Days of Our Lives every afternoon when I would come home from school. Although I haven’t watch a Soap Opera for years, I can still here the music and the announcer’s voice over “Like Sand through an hour glass….these are the days of our lives” For many home owners having their property listed may seem as painful as watching grains of sand slip slowly through the hourglass…..day after day living life outside their regular routine; making the beds every day, (yes, some people don’t make their bed every day!) keeping the dishes out of the sink, the dog in the laundry room…whatever the hoops they need to jump through may be. The fact of the matter is, if you want to sell now, you have got to price your home aggressively and if it doesn’t sell, be prepared for a price reduction. In my market area, of the 29 stick-built homes with sales pending, 75% made at least one price reduction after the initial list price. These homes were on the market an average of 124 days. Compare that to the 25% which came on the market at a relatively aggressive price, never reduced and sold in an average of 22 days.

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Looking for a Dinner Spot Near Maple Valley? Try Black Diamond Bakery!

I’m not sure how I missed this, but I just found out one of my favorite breakfast spots,  Black Diamond Bakery, is now serving Dinner! This is a Big, Big deal, as one of the most common complaints we ”Maple Valley Folk” have is our shortage of local Dinner spots. Here’s a link to their Dinner Menu. Black Diamond is a small town about 10 minutes South of Maple Valley, and on the way to Enumclaw. The Bakery first opened in 1902 and is known for it’s fresh breads which are made daily. The atmosphere is family friendly, with a restaurant, Bakery, coffee bar and a few gift shops. If you’re looking for someplace new to try, check it out….but go hungry. If the Dinners are any thing like their super hearty breakfasts……you may want to wear your ”big” pants. Enjoy!

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Flying South? Good Thing!

Winter 2008

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Our Donut Hole Makes the Tonight Show!

Our Donut Hole Makes the Tonight Show!

It seems Jay Leno finds Maple Valley’s Donut Hole Controversy pretty funny as it recently received airtime on The Tonight Show. I have to admit, if you’re on the outside looking in,  it does seem pretty odd and even funny. …That a City is holding meetings about their Donut Hole issue.  But for those of us who live in Maple Valley and are sick and tired of Ron Sims and the King County Council’s questionable political maneuvers (the suspiciously fast passing of the ridiculously strict Critical Areas Ordinance is one example which comes to mind) it’s really not so funny. As a quick recap, the Donut Hole is an area of property (apx 160 acres) currently owned by the County but entirely surrounded by the City. The County is in negotiations to make a trade with a large developer ; the donut hole for a larger piece of rural property. Because the County owns the Donut Hole property, it would control the density and development restrictions, while retaining all of the development fees. In the meantime, the City, which may see it’s population increase by as much as 30% if developed as outlined will have no control over density or building type, but will have the

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Does the Sun Ever Shine in Seattle? You Bet Check out Hobart Today!

Does the Sun Ever Shine in Seattle? You Bet Check out Hobart Today!

Yep, this is me(the picture is purposely NOT good I hate having my photo taken more than going to the dentist)….enjoying a beautiful January day in the blinding sunshine of the Pacific Northwest! This is typical of Seattle sunny days, when the blue of the sky is awesomely clear and the truest blue I’ve ever seen. I was lucky to be able to enjoy the sun as I needed to preview a few properties in the Hobart area, a very small rural town South of Issaquah and due East of Maple Valley. Although it has it’s own zip code, this history rich town shares a school district and many community amenities with Maple Valley. In fact, the “HO” in Tahoma, stands for Hobart. (Alright, no jokes there ok?) I thought I would share one of my favorite views of rural Maple Valley/Hobart where homes range in age from early 1900′s farm houses to brand new construction. Zoning, is one home per 5 acres and King County has jurisdiction over new development & new construction. PS: If taking your own photo in the blinding sun while driving on a rural road is illegal then I did NOT take this photo myself!

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Maple Valley Rental Market Update

Maple Valley Rental Market Update

If you have considered adding a rental property to your investment portfolio in 2008 (and might I say it’s an excellent time to do so) you may be curious as to what the rental market is looking like in our area. Year to date 23 properties have been listed & rented through NWMLS in Maple Valley. The average rental price is $1625 with the lowest rent at $950 and the highest at $2990. This average rental rate is up approximately 6% over rental averages for 2006. Interest in rental properties is increasing as buyers find it more difficult to qualify for “low down” financing programs and find themselves needing to rent while saving for that downpayment. Although my husband and I haven’t ventured into the world of Landlords just yet, it’s definitely on the agenda for this year. There are just too many excellent opportunities out there right now! Enjoy the Ride! Colleen Fischesser

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Maple Valley Bank Owned Homes

Maple Valley Bank Owned Homes

Sometimes Bank-owned properties (or those which have gone through foreclosure and are now owned and available for sale by the Bank/Lender/Asset Management Co) are a “good deal” and sometimes they aren’t. Here are a few tips if you’re looking at Bank-owned properties: If you’re looking to purchase a bank-owned property, enlist the help of a professional in your area who knows your  market and can help you navigate the Bank-owned process. These companies will often have their own forms and “quirky” requirements. Make sure you understand all the implications before signing on the dotted line Do your due-diligence, talk with the neighbors, find out about all “the skeletons“, if any,  before you buy. Sometimes the bank will have conducted an inspection of the property but there are things even an inspector cannot find….for instance flooding in the back yard, past leaks or plumbing problems now undetectable. Hire your own inspector! Even if he/she finds nothing, it will be money well spend on future peace of mind. Currently (as of 12.26.07) there are 4 Bank Owned Properties for sale in the Maple Valley Market, this is a higher number than we’ve seen in the past, but certainly better than many other areas

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SouthEast King County Market Comparison-Year to Date Prices

SouthEast King County Market Comparison-Year to Date Prices

The chart below represents information for Single Family properties listed with a NWMLS Member and closed from January 1, 2007 through December 23, 2007. Average Market Times vary between 48 days and 88 days on market with Hobart having the shortest market time and Ravensdale having the longest.   If I can answer any questions about the South King County Market, please post them!  Colleen Fischesser, Broker/Owner www.ColleenFish.com       www.MapleValleyRealEstate.com Colleen Fischesser has been selling and marketing Real Estate in South King & North Pierce Counties since 1990. She is the Broker/Owner of RE/MAX Select in Maple Valley, WA.

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The Negotiation Dance….Lady, You’re Ruining Our Rhythm!

The Negotiation Dance….Lady, You’re Ruining Our Rhythm!

Another Agent in my office and I were both negotiating sales this week. The two experiences are different as night and day. I am currently working with a very Professional agent negotiating an offer on one of my listings. It’s really amazing what’s been going on…..When he calls me, I either answer the phone or return his call. When I call him, he either answers the phone or returns my call. Pretty cool don’t you think? I can understand why this is so hard for some agents in this industry to aspire to this level of professionalism. My Associate’s experience with another (experienced!) agent has been much different. My Associate represents the Buyers. The Seller’s agent does not return phone calls for days. When the sellers do make a counter, it’s verbally and the Seller’s agent tells my Associate she’s too busy to put it on paper and will My Associate please get it written up, have her buyers sign and then send it over. Long story short, after weeks of back and forth and long periods of no communication in between, the Buyers walked. It was just too difficult and they fell out of love with the house. Thanks

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What Defines a “Reasonable” Offer?

What Defines a “Reasonable” Offer?

I received another “Builder Incentive” email in my inbox this morning. “There will be a drawing this weekend for a hotel stay and no reasonable offer will be refused”. It made me pause and ask, “What makes one offer ‘reasonable’ and another not?” In the early 90′s I wrote a very ridiculous offer on a Builder owned property, which of course was rejected. I was a “newbie”….I’m sure my clients had bought and sold more homes than I had, and I allowed that to intimidate me. We wrote the offer low and asked for the moon…., furniture, new deck planters and benches to be built, fence, paint….oh, and we were about 10% low on purchase price when the market was indicating homes were selling within 1-2% of List price!!! The laundry list of requests took up a whole 8 1/2 x 11 blank addendum. Of course we were shot down, the builder didn’t even counter. I remembered that offer when I received the email this morning and I know that somewhere an agent is writing a ridiculous offer that a builder will think is unreasonable. So what’s the difference? How low is too low? How much is too much to ask for?

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All information is current as of published date. Listings for sale or rent, are avaialable as of the date published, however price and availability are subject to change.