Saturday July 19 (8 AM - 5 PM) and Sunday, July 20, 2008 (8 AM - 3 PM) is when our office will kick off its first annual Parking Lot fundraiser. The majority of the proceeds from this year's sale are to be added to our office fundraising goal of $25,000 for Cancer. After we reach this objective we will also provide some proceeds to our very own Keller Williams - Tacoma, Keller Cares Fund.  Keller Williams Realty Tacoma Cares  Any Qustions Call 253-460-8640 07/17/2008

Tacoma WA Skateparks Bring Value. Tacoma WA and surrounding cities are waking up to the fact that public skateparks are a necessary part of the local community. These parks bring value to the community. Skaters will always find a place to skate, thanks to these parks, many will not be on our streets and now will be much safer. Skateparks are for everyone -- there's no rule saying that you have to go fast or skate vertical, just have fun. So grab your board, bike or in-line skates and head out to one of the local skateparks. Skateparks (in and around Tacoma, WA) Skatepark at Stewart Heights Park5900 East D12,000 square feetThis facility features ramps, stairs, quarter and half pipes, a bench, half pyramid and fun box withplanter and grind rail. The wood based ramp frames are covered with... 07/16/2008

Five days past since the house came on the market. I had open houses on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday in my opinion was a little bit better. I realizes that I need 7 open house signs to get people from main roads to come here. My home is located on a very quite street. I have only 3 signs. I made sure that every inch of the home is clean, and perfect. People were incredibly nice. They loved it from the very first sight. When I told them that I am not only a Realtor, but an owner of this home too, each one of them were more open and excited. Isn't interesting? People were commenting on everything and asked tons of  questions, They were not shy at all.  So, I remember someone advised me to ask other agents to hold an open houses for me, because it is my own house and people will not be co... 07/13/2008

This Program is designed for serious Sellers in the Tacoma,Olympia,Lacey,Lakewood, Dupont,Roy,Yelm,Graham,Spanaway,Puyallup, fircrest and all surrounding areas. "Your Home Sold in 45 Days - Guaranteed - Or We'll Pay Your Mortgage!"The 45 Day Guarantee and how it works:There's no secret, a lot of people are wondering about this plan. It's very straight forward, and works just like it sounds. Remember, we are not passive agents that just wait for your home to sell; we are active Home Marketers who enable your home to sell in Tacoma WashingtonWe DO NOT just place a sign in the yard and hope for the best! We will use every appropriate marketing tool to get your home SOLD! Our marketing and negotiating skills are unmatched, and we continue to help homeowners sell their homes in this challeng... 07/12/2008

Sign was installed today and flyers were printed. I am trying to put info about this home everywhere on Internet. Any good sites you know about? It is a really lovely home and it priced right, because we are moving out of the country and would be nice to sell it. If you know anyone who is looking for a lovely home with a Sound and mountains view, big organic garden and a lot of artistic touches, please send them this page. It is an energy star home with low enery bills. What do you use to createa listing flyers? Do you remember the best flyer you have ever seen? What was so special about it? I created a flyer for my new listing this morning by using Photoshop. It is not the most efficient way to do it, because there not templates. So everything you do is kind of against the program. You... 07/09/2008

I had to write about it, because it made my Saturday absolutely miserable.  I love Venetian Plaster. I have done my bedroom and master bath in gorgeous marble like Venetian Plaster I have bought in Home Depot.  I had an absolutely terrible experience with Signature Venetian Plaster from Lowes today. I am an experienced painter and I used different types of plaster before. I just recently finished plastering my bedroom with Venetian Plaster from Home Depot and it was so much easer. I had no idea that Lowe's plaster is different. First of all, it is too liquid, almost like a thick paint, so it is an impossible to handle it with anything but brush. Well, there no brush involved in plastering. Second, it dries as quickly as nail polish, so if you go back where you were 1 minute ago, you des... 06/28/2008

Because of my Photography blogs, I started getting more Photo jobs. I really enjoy tacking photos for others agents listings. The last week I got a call from a top producer in our town and he ask me to take photos of this an absolutely beautiful home. It is located in Old Town of Tacoma. Homes like this one you can see on the pages of magazines. So, I was thinking about all this homes that were published. Did you ever sold a home that was published in magazine before & how did you use it in your marketing? I asked the listings agent permission to write about it and post some photos. The MLS #28105938. 06/27/2008

Working in the Tacoma Real Estate market has some excellent advantages!  I took a little time out the other day to cruise around 5 mile drive in Pt Defiance and see if I could spot the gray whale that's been hanging around lately.  I got the call from my brother that he had spotted one while on the ferry to Vashon Island over a month ago.  Apparently the living is good for the whale as he/she was still in the area. I stopped on the bluff overlooking Pt Defiance looking out towards Dalco Point, and sure enough he made an appearance.  Unfortunately the whale was on the Vashon side of the water and was nearly impossible to see with the naked eye.  Another whale watcher was there with a 2 foot telephoto lens on his camera and seemed very excited at the shots he was getting. He was clicking ... 06/25/2008

  Looking for a great place to spend the day that won't break your budget?  Pack up a picnic lunch and head to the Pt Defiance Zoo and Aquarium!  Located just minutes from Tacoma, Pt Defiance offers a world class zoo, and aquarium, beach access, 5 mile drive and fine dining on the water. Inside you'll find Elephants, Tigers, Polar Bears, Reindeer and a large interactive exhibit for the little ones complete with a petting zoo.  We really enjoyed the Walrus and Beluga whale exhibit! You can get a great underwater view of these massive sea going mammals from the downstairs observation point. The Aquarium was a favorite of my 3 year old son, he enjoyed viewing the sharks, flounder/sole and cod in their enormous two story tank.  Another hot spot is the marine touch tank area where young and... 06/23/2008

If you need to capture a room with a big windows, try to do it when the sun is on the other side of the house. Use flash and if the window is not the only light subject in the photos, you should be just fine.  Try to line up the window frame and a horizontal line of the landscape behind the window, but in the same time use angles inside of the room. By capturing the image from the far away corner will allow you not to have a flash reflection on the window. Later on adjust light for the window and room separately.   Good luck! 06/22/2008

I have talents  but I do not use them properly. I was a good dancer; I never took classes or did anything about it. I did sing, my school used me in their concerts all the time, but since then I never did sing again. I take good photos, and I started making some money by taking photos for other agent's listings. But I never took classes and still do not have a professional camera. I live in America and I speak English somehow, but I still make thousands of mistakes. So, is it good to know how to do everything but not good enough? Or is it better to do one thing but perfectly?  I am a painter. I think it was my destiny to be an artist. I loved to paint since I was 4. But I was going to special math school and then to Economy University in Minsk, Belarus.  Now, I am 26 years old. I live i... 06/15/2008

Museum of Glass. Tacoma Museum of glass in the one place you can not miss when you see the city for the first time. It is the most unusually shaped building in the downtown. I lived in Tacoma almost three years and I have been in museum three times. The last time I visited it I was completely amazed by spiritual creative energy and the fact that the best glass artist in Italy came to Tacoma to teach his techniques.. I spent three hours inside and I didn't want to leave. The new inhibition is full of the best glass vases in the world; it is so beautiful and inspiring! If you go there, my advise to start with a theater room. It shows a short movie about an artist - Limo Tagliapietra , who is the world's greatest living glassblower artist and who's works are shown in the galleries of the m... 06/13/2008

 McCrath's Fish House Restaurant in Federal way.  If you live in Federal Way or NE Tacoma, you probably happily noticed how much the Common's mall area changed in the last year. The whole parking lot in front of the mall has been transformed in to a restaurant snova land. We have some nice places to go to eat now. And it is so popular that you can not find parking.  The last two times I came to there to have a lunch with my friend, I had to drive 5 circles around parking lot before I finally parked. McCrath's Fish House is one of the three franchise restaurants open in Washington State. They promise the freshest fish and a great service. I like their interior atmosphere. It has a New England Old charm with North West photography everywhere you look at. The food is good. Lunch is quite a... 06/13/2008

North East Tacoma, WA 98422. Browns Point and Dash Point. May 2008. We have 227 homes for sale. During this month 7 sales were pending, 13 homes were sold. At the end of May, we had 17.5 months of inventory. The amount of days that now takes to sell home in NE Tacoma decreased from 91 to 78. The average price per square foot went down from $182 to $153. The average price of sold home in NE Tacoma is $360,000.  The average price of active listing is $501,000. Buyers where are you? It is an amazing time to buy. Prices never been so low in Browns Point and Dash Point! Our average price per sq.ft is $154. The last time we had this price it was July 2005. You can find great homes with view, large lots and lots of space and quality. If you need an agent to answer your questions, give me a cal... 06/12/2008

No, I will not tell you why it is so stinky when you drive around the port area...just a couple advises on the other matter.   Do you need to dispose of large household items that won't fit in your garbage container? Consider using Call-2-Haul. Available by appointment twice a year. It is a free picks up service provided by City of Tacoma. Call (253) 573-2468 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. weekdays.   http://www.cityoftacoma.org/Page.aspx?hid=1227                  If you have an old refrigerator. You can get rid of it for free and get a $30 rebate  Schedule a free pick up:  Phone: 1-877-577-0510 Jaco Environmental Inc. will mail you a rebate check 4-6 weeks after the pick up of your unit. Why recycle your old fridge or freezer? It uses 4 times the energy of newer models (about $200 a year... 05/29/2008

Downtown Tacoma Farmers Market Starts May 15th.   The Downtown Tacoma Farmers Market series begins May 15th. The Downtown Farmers Market will run every Thursday until October. Located between 9th and 11th. on Broadway the farmers market will be open 9am until 2pm. Featuring the freshest fruits and vegtables along with flowers, and artisan crafts all in our downtown business district. For more information you can visit the Tacoma Farmers Market website by clicking here.   Best wishes, Scott  Contact Scott Cowan, Rainier Real Estate. Licensed real estate salesperson in Washington at 253-219-1194 to list your property for sale or purchase a home in Tacoma, Gig Harbor, Puyallup, and the rest of Pierce County Washington. Gladly accepting referrals. Copyright © 2008 By Scott Cowan, All Right... 05/14/2008

I'm going to talk about something a little off-topic from my usual discussion of luxury real estate, but which I find compelling and interesting.On Saturday, May 10, 2008, I ran my first half-marathon at the 2nd Annual Tacoma City Half-Marathon. That was 13.1 miles of pain and unique discovery. I had never run more than 10 miles in one stretch before and so I pushed through some barriers and found some amazing truths on the other side.I ran the race with one of my sisters, Nicole. She was actually the one who invited me to run this race in the first place. You see, back in October 2007, my left knee began causing me a great deal of pain so I went to a Physical Therapist for two months and did some exercises to get the joint realigned. A few days after Christmas, the pain in my knee disa... 05/14/2008

The Grand Cinema hosted a 72 hour film festival which had 32 films showing at the Rialto Theater. The catch each film had to to be 5 minutes or less. Here is one that was linked on the Tacoma Blog Exit 133. It was another is the series of short movies that proclaims the benefits of Tacoma over Seattle. Trust me Tacoma does not have a little brother image problem when compared to Seattle... not at all!!! I hope you will enjoy the film. For those of you from around here. How many locations have you been to? Best wishes, Scott 05/10/2008

.style1 { font-family: Cambria; font-size: x-large; } .style2 { font-family: Cambria; font-size: large; } Tacoma Washington Major Employers Looking Elsewhere? One of the challenges facing Tacoma's housing market in the next few years is the availability of well paying jobs that keep and attract people to move into the city. Recently Frank Russell Investments has been shopping for a new city for their corporate offices. Tacoma does not easily come to mind when you are thinking world class investment companies. Recruiting has been mentioned as one of the reasons for considering leaving Tacoma. Frank Russell employs over 1,000 people in Tacoma. They have completed over ONE TRILLION dollars in investment trades from the investment floor in Tacoma. The employees contribute over 80 million d... 05/04/2008

Are you looking to buy a home in Tacoma Washington? If so then you might qualify for the City of Tacoma Downpayment Assistance Program.Designed to help home buyers who can afford the payments but do not have the money for a downpayment or closing costs. Tacoma will loan up to $20,000 interest free to qualified buyers.The map below shows the areas that are available for downpayment assistance.The downpayment assistance can be used towards a downpayment or closing costs. There is no interest and the loan is paid back when the home is sold, refinanced, or the buyer no longer lives in the home. Or after 20 years of ownership.There is income guidelines that are as followsFamily Size Income Family Size Income 1 $37,050 5 57,200 2 42,350 6 61,400 3 47,650 7 65,650 4 52,950 8 69,900If you would... 04/28/2008