Bellevue WA - In this case I would recommend you sell the house. Now, if you are reading this blog, then you must be researching a short sale. Which means that you are probably upside down on the home. You have three options. Option #1: Let your lender foreclose on the home. You just stop making the payments and surrender the home to your lender. Option #2: Short Sale the house and get the debt wiped out. A short sale offers the following benefits over a foreclosure. Issue: Can I get a Future Fannie Mae Loan? Foreclosure: The current Fannie Mae Guidelines require you to wait 5-7 years before you can buy another home with a Fannie Mae Loan. Most other banks and lenders have the same or even stricter procedures. Short Sale: If are back on your feet 2 years after the short sale, then Fanni... 12/10/2010

Dishonest Banks & Fake Loan Modifications-Solving our Housing Crisis.  It looks like we are just in for more and more every day. Yeah, let's just keep giving money away to people who do not need it while the rest of us struggle, that is the American way, after all.  I am just sick to my stomach about all this nonsense.  Do you know that if you add up all the money that was spent by the federal government on the loan modification program (Where there is less then $5k of actual money per deal doled out by federal government in compensation to all parties involved), that if you add up all the money already spent & divide it by how many loans actually got modified that it comes out to a whopping $177k per loan!! Really, as of the end of August this is a fact.  So my question is, where did a... 12/09/2010

Bellevue WA - I am following up on a question from Arman. His loan was owned by Fannie Mae and the company handling the loan for Fannie Mae was rejecting an excellent short sale offer for no reason. Discover how other sellers successfully did a short sale to avoid foreclosure by clicking here. Here is a quick recap of what I recommended Arman do. Step #1: Call up IBM and demand a written letter explaining why they are declining the short sale offer. Step #2: Write down what you project your damages are going to be if the property is foreclosed upon instead of sold as a short sale. Step #3: Call up the company handling the loan for Fannie Mae and tell them if they reject the short sale for no reason and the house is foreclosed, then you will be suing them for those specific damages you d... 11/23/2010

Bellevue WA - First, it benefits the owner of the loan. This is because they get to sell the house at today's price, versus what it will be worth 6-12 months down the road. I just did a comparison and pulled up sold listings. All of the listings were the similar properties in similar neighborhoods. First, I looked up the average selling price per SQFT of homes that sold in Spring. They sold for an average of $103 a SQFT. Then, I pulled up homes in the same neighborhoods that sold as REOs in the last 2 months. They are sold for an average of $85 a SQFT. These homes average 1,700 a SQFT. That means a 1,700 REO sold for $30,600 less. Ouch! Discover how other sellers successfully did a short sale and request a free consultation by clicking here. The other person that's getting value is the... 11/11/2010

Houses for Sale in Kenmore, WashingtonKenmore Washington is located at the top of Lake Washington, half way between Seattle and Bellevue.Perfect location whether you work Eastside, on the Seattle side, or up in Everett.We were called on to price this long low rambler in Kenmore. It is at the end of a long driveway, next to trees. Very private, with a large flat yard.If you are looking for a home to buy in Kenmore Washington, give me a call. View Larger Map 11/07/2010

Previewing Properties in Kenmore WashingtonHave a buyer who is looking on line pretty much every day.She has saved 6 properties as favorites.Today I went out to preview those 6 properties in Kenmore, Washington.  First property I previewed had a great kitchen. Was remodelled throughout.Second property I previewed had a great kitchen. House was 21 years old. In good shape. Nice yard.Third property I previewed had a great kitchen. Was all remodelled but the house was strange. The lot dropped off steeply and you had to go across a bridge to get to the front door.Fourth and fifth properties I previewed had a great kitchen. Was brand new. What can I say? New is nice. Really nice.Last property I previewed was south of Bothell Lake City Way. Nice house. Great colors. Very nice kitchen. No gar... 09/15/2010

  Two Bedroom Two Bath Condominium for Sale at Trail Walk in Kenmore WashingtonHere is a bank owned two bedroom two bath condominium for sale at Trail Walk that has an ideal location.Kenmore is located between Shoreline and Bothell on the north end of Lake Washington. From here you could easily commute to any of the three major employment centers of Seattle, Bellevue or Everett.The Trail Walk Condominiums is an active lifestyle living place. The complex has a complete work out facility, as well as a small swimming pool.  From your two bedroom two bath condominium for sale at Trail Walk there is direct access to the Burke Gilman Trail. This particular two bedroom two bath condominium for sale at Trail Walk is on the first floor, and looks out into the trees. When you come home, you are h... 08/29/2010

6834 NE 165th ST Kenmore, WA 98028 Kenmore Home for Sale near Inglewood Golf Club Home   Photo Gallery   Virtual Tour   Property Map   Payment Info   Request Showing   Contact Me   Isaac Real Estate Team Office: 425-483-6849 Mobile: 206-841-9976 Website: Visit Website Price : $369,921 Bedrooms : 3 Bathrooms : 2.5 Square Foot : 2,080 Lot Size : 10,340 Community : Juanita County : King Property Type : Detached Year Built : 1962 MLS Number : 99778 click for more information and pictures Property Description Pride of ownership shows in this meticulously maintained remodeled Kenmore Home for Sale near Inglewood Golf Club with an immaculately landscaped yard. The large, fully fenced back yard is well manicured, with fruit trees flowers all around. There is a new Large Trex Deck off the livin... 07/12/2010

Last week we staged this model home at Creekside in Kenmore.  The builder did not want us to use any area rugs on the new hardwood floors, so we used lots of color in pillows, interesting accessories and artwork. This is the thrid development we have staged for this savvy builder.  He knows that staged homes sell!   Enjoy the photo tour! Living Room:  Dining Room:  Living and Dining Great Room: Kitchen with breakfast bar: Master Bedroom: Master Bath: Main Bath: Staging by SISTERS Interior Redesign, Edmonds, WA, 425.776.7890, sisters@sistersredesign.com Give your listing the advantage of professional staging.  Contact us today for a complimentary quote. We look forward to working with you! 07/05/2010

    City of Kenmore Invites the Community to Attend the Dedication Ceremony for the New City Hall   The Dedication Ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, May 22 from 9:30 a.m. to noon and will feature a formal program and other activities. The formal program begins at 10 a.m. with Congressman Jay Inslee invited to be the guest of honor. Other dignitaries have been invited but are not confirmed as of this date. The City’s offices will move into the new City Hall over the May 15 weekend and will open for business on the afternoon of Monday, May 17. The City Hall is one of Kenmore’s first projects developed under the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification standards. The project is on-track to receive a LEED Gold rating. The building fe... 05/21/2010

  City of Kenmore Invites the Community to Attend Upcoming Events for the New City Hall   Kenmore, WA – The City of Kenmore celebrates the opening of the new City Hall located at 18120 68th Ave NE with two special events – an Open House and a Dedication Ceremony. The Open House is scheduled for Saturday, May 8 from 10 a.m. to noon and provides an opportunity to tour the entire City Hall prior to the move-in date. There is no formal program, but there will be the chance to get a good look at the entire facility. This is a wonderful addition to our community and we should all be proud of the way this was built.  Hopefully it is but the beginning of a lot more Green buildings for our wonderful city.  I will be there tomorrow and if you cannot make it, I will blog again prior to the Dedica... 05/07/2010

FDA: Failure, Deception, & Abuse, How Much Abuse Can Americans Tolerate?  Really, enough is enough already. There is so much going on here that is unbelievable, that someone finally put together a book on it.  I can only mention a few examples here, and then you might all want to go read a 98 page PDF of the information. A subsidiary of pharmaceutical behemoth Pfizer has pled guilty to a criminal charge that it fraudulently sold Bextra not to treat arthritis, but to be used in higher doses to relieve acute and surgical pain. They actually settled for $2.3 billion, which, for them, is a drop in the bucket. Cash kickbacks have been paid to doctors to prescribe drugs.  Pfizer actually paid doctors to illegally prescribe drugs. And it continues unabated.  Pfizer has paid 4 settlements since... 02/15/2010

If You Want to be a Real Estate Consultant, Stop acting like a Car Salesman.  A lot of complain that people treat us like car sales men and do not trust us.  Well, how do they get paid and how do we get paid?  Sound familiar?  Would you pay any consultant on a commission basis?   I do not think so.  We all want the best of both worlds.  We want to get paid like a salesman and be trusted like a professional consultant.  Some of us can even pull it off some of the time. If you want to make a commission, then fine.  Always make 3%, or make nothing.  Take the risk and if it works you make the big bucks. And if not, (like most of the time) then make nothing.  But do not say you are really representing your client.  How can you do that if you may not get paid by doing so?  There is an inheren... 02/06/2010

Home Loans in Kenmore, WA - pre- approval It is getting harder and harder to get a Home Loan Approval these days.  We have never really seen this level of necessary paperwork ever.  As a loan originator and a real estate agent, I prepare my clients from day one to be ready for everything they can imagine to be asked for and then some.  But every time there is a new deal, I am surprised at what problems can arise in getting a Home Loan Approval.  I just had an FHA loan denied, after we already had a Home Loan Approval from the lender pending results from a 4506T response from the IRS.  That form is used to verify that they indeed did file tax returns.   It turns out, however, that my client had not filed her 2007 Tax returns.  She owned no money, we had the necessary W2 forms.  Not only ... 11/20/2009

Signing a Buyers Agency Agreement -  in Kenmore, Washington Homes for Sale is not about the paper itself.  I would never hold someone (including myself as the agent) to working together if we no longer wanted to.  The reason for the agreement is simply to make a mutual commitment to each other.  If anyone wants out, it is best to end the relationship as quickly as possible and I have done this several times from both sides in the past 10 years or so.  Signing a Buyers Agency Agreement -  in Kenmore, Washington Homes for Sale As I see it, as an agent, I can see myself as a salesperson, or a consultant.  If I am a salesperson, then I would not want an agreement and I would just meet anyone at any time and try to sell them a house.  This is not how I want to run my business. No matter how ... 08/30/2009

Kenmore Wa topped the list in the number one spot for best neighborhoods in Seattle, but it is actually a Seattle suburb.  Seattle Magazine took suburbs and Seattle neighborhoods and compared them all together to come up with the best places to live based on a point system.  Kenmore came in at #1!  Affordable homes in the Suburbs! On RainCityHouses.com I just wrote a post on Seattle suburbs with homes under $300k for first time home buyers trying to take advantage of some low prices and the tax credit before the deadline in Novemebr.  Kenmore was on my list with 10 homes available for iunder $300k.  Come check out this cool city and see what the buzz is about:  Kenmore real estate  Done't forget to peek at Lake Washingotn - you might see the Evening Magazine seaplane taing off - there a... 08/06/2009

I moved my family from Shoreline 7 years ago to Kenmore even though Shoreline was a wonderful place.  I had heard great things about the schools here and the sense of community because of the size of the city, which at that time was only 3 years old.  I have not been .  It feels really wonderful here most all the time.  I will be blogging about this town and why it feels so wonderful to me as often as I get a chance, time being the way it is.  This week, in the Kenmore Reporter there was an article that confirmed that I was not alone in feeling that this was such a great place.  The magazine, Family Circle, apparently looked at cities across the country using the criteria of affordable housing, good neighborhoods, green spaces, and A+ public schools.  they chose Kenmore as one of the 10... 07/13/2009

For home buyers looking for Lake Washington waterfront homes without the traffic of Seattle or Bellevue, Kenmore is a nice option.  At the North end of Lake Washington, prices are a bit less, and Kenmore has a more suburban feel to it. There are a handful of homes on Lake Washington in Kenmore currently for sale, and one such home is under $1 million.  It's likely that we'll see a few more of these homes in the next year or two, and in the near future they'll be just a memory.  Lake Washington waterfront homes are scarce enough and in high enough demand that the real estate prices will eventually leave $1 million in the dust. Kenmore waterfront real estate, Lake Washington homes 05/08/2009

One of my favorite on-line real estate publications is www.marketwatch.com. Quite often I find that the authors provide honest and sober analysis of the marketplace. Today Marketwatch published two interesting articles: Five Reasons to Buy a Home This Year and Five Reasons Not to Buy a Home This Year. I’m going to list the reasons for and against and I’m also going to comment briefly on each. I’m curious if any of you have your own thoughts about this subject. First, lets summarize the 5 reasons to buy: Affordability is better than ever You have a large inventory to choose from Builders are offering big discounts Mortgage rates are historically low You can get a Federal Tax Credit All five of these factors are, indeed, the case in our local market. Many homes have dropped to 2005 value... 02/07/2009

Two articles caught my eye today. The SeattlePI reported a drop in King County home prices to 2005 levels. Of particular note in the article were the following comments: Pending home sales were higher in January than a year earlier in eight of the 19 counties the listing service covers. But sales in Seattle and King County dropped 10.8 percent and 17 percent, respectively, from January 2008 The median price, $382,500, was down more than 12 percent from a year earlier, 5 percent from December and 20 percent from its all-time high of $481,000 in July 2007, according to the Northwest Multiple Listing Service But the current state of the economy complicates any predictions about what could happen to the housing market, said Gina Ard, an agent with Windermere Real Estate, on Sunday. “We’re ... 02/05/2009