Port Angeles Average Listing Price

Author: Chuck Marunde

23 Aug

What is the Port Angeles average listing price? What is the current inventory? Here’s a great graphic answering those questions. One short coming is that the Trulia database does not include the entire Olympic Listing Service database of listings, but it is still useful. You can also search the Trulia database for Port Angeles homes for sale. Drag your mouse over the line on the chart to see the actual listing prices.

Port Angeles Real Estate - Trulia

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Sequim Average Listing Price and Inventory

Author: Chuck Marunde

23 Aug

What is the Sequim average listing price? What is the current inventory? Here’s a great graphic answering those questions. One short coming is that the Trulia database does not include the entire Olympic Listing Service database of listings, but it is still useful. You can also search the Trulia database for Sequim homes for sale. Drag your mouse over the line on the chart to see the actual listing prices.

Sequim Real Estate - Trulia

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Where Have All The Buyers Gone?

Author: Chuck Marunde

21 Aug

The inventory of Sequim homes for sale and Port Angeles homes for sale is high, higher than it has been in recent memory for most of us. Price reductions are almost a common place event in our MLS listings. Is reducing price enough to sell?

No, it’s not. Reducing price and offering selling agents a bonus are motivational factors, but you could logically reduce the price of a listing every week and still not sell it until you were almost giving it away.

So if price is not the only factor, or not the major factor right now for the majority of listings, why are listings not selling?

The answer is simple. Buyers are not showing up.

If buyers don’t show up, you can play with prices all day long and still get no results. Sellers now compete with a very small pool of qualified buyers. A seller has one property to sell, and there is only one unique buyer for that property. Finding the One is everything. Price is not.

When that unique buyer finds the ideal property, will the buyer negotiate hard on the price? Absolutely. For the buyer price is clearly a major factor, but only after they have found the ideal property. Buyers know they have the advantage in a buyer’s market. But for sellers price is not the primary barrier to selling. The fact that buyers are not showing up is the major barrier.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

The Sequim Real Estate Market - Homes For Sale

Author: Chuck Marunde

19 Aug

In order to see what the Sequim real estate market will do in the months ahead, I track four important real estate markets, the markets where the majority of our buyers come from. When all four of these markets begin to show improvement for a reasonable length of time, that will be a leading indicator that the Sequim and Port Angeles real estate markets are poised for a return to steady growth.

What are those four real estate markets? They are California, Arizona, Texas, and the Seattle-Tacoma metropolitan area. (As to how I know this, well . . . that’s practically patented information.)

Today, we have some good news from Texas. Here’s the graphic followed by an explanation:

“The average price of a single-family home rose by 8.0 percent in July to $226,072, second only to last month’s all-time record high of $227,274. The figure represents the biggest jump in average price since June 2006. The median price of a single-family home rose 3.4 percent last month to $161,370, surpassing its previous high of $160,000 in June 2007. Last month HAR reported a record median single-family home sale price of $162,000 for June 2008, however the revised figure for that month is $160,800. The median price is where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less.” This data is for the Houston area, courtesy of the Houston Association of Realtors.

Stay tuned for more updates on all four markets.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Is the Real Estate Market Bottom Here?

Author: Chuck Marunde

19 Aug

Is the Sequim real estate market now at a bottom? This is the ultimate question. Sequim is largely dependent upon markets in California, Arizona, Oregon, and Texas believe it or not. Are these markets and the national market showing signs of bottoming out?

If anyone needs hard evidence that the real estate market cycle is flattening out and turning around, check out the latest pending home sales index numbers.

On a national basis, the index jumped by 5.3 percent last month. But more importantly, it rose in every region of the country, suggesting that the turnaround underway is broad-based — even if it’s likely to proceed slowly and modestly in the months immediately ahead.

The index — which measures signed sale contracts that haven’t yet gone to closing — is a leading indicator of home sales for the coming two to three months. You can bet on solid increases in sales in the South, where the index was up by 9.3 percent, and in the West, up by 4.6 percent. Pending sales in the Northeast states were up by 3.4 percent and in the Midwest by 1.3 percent.

[Source: Realty Times]

These are good signs. Whether we are at the precise bottom or not, this is still a very good time for buyers to take advantage of low prices and the power they have to negotiate a great price. In my opinion, prices will not go lower, or they will not go significantly lower in Sequim. But when they do start to rise again, when the pent-up demand kicks in, prices will bounce upward, and any buyers hoping for a super price will be sadly disappointed.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Hiking The Sequim Lighthouse and Spit

Author: Chuck Marunde

19 Aug

Come and hike the spit to the Sequim Lighthouse known as the Dungeness Lighthouse on the Strait of Juan de Fuca. If you like the beach, if you like the Ocean, if you like hiking and the fresh smell of sea water riding the crest of a warm summer breeze, you’ll love hiking the spit just a few miles outside Sequim.

Depending on how fast or slow you walk the beach, it’s an hour to the lighthouse and an hour back. More if you take your time, shoot some photos of the wild life, or sit on a dry log to take in the sights. There’s something very special about the steady sound of waves breaking on the shoreline. Know what I mean?

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Sequim Real Estate Homes For Sale

Author: Chuck Marunde

18 Aug

Is Sequim and Port Angeles real estate selling? What home prices are selling most? If you have a home for sale in the $500,000 to $600,000 price range, you may be frustrated because it hasn’t sold in the past three or six months since it has been listed. So are homes selling in this price range? What about other price ranges? Here is a graphic of exactly what is happening from April 1, 2008 through July 31, 2008.

In Sequim 60% of the homes sold for $200,000 to $300,000. The number of homes is shown on the “Y” axis. In Port Angeles 68% of homes sold in this price range. It gets interesting when you get above $400,000. Only 8% of homes in Sequim sold for $400,000 to $500,000, and in Port Angeles it was only 5%. Homes above $500,000 have simply not been selling. Only a few have sold in all of Sequim and Port Angeles in four months.

The bottom line is that very few homes are selling in the upper price ranges. It becomes obvious that the key is connecting with that one or two buyers who will buy a home in that price range in the next few weeks or months. To connect with that person, you must have an effective marketing plan and a proven methodology to bring that person into your world.

That’s what I do. Need help getting this done? Email me at chuckmarunde@gmail.com or call me at 360-775-5424.

[Data is from the Olympic Listing Service, which means that anything not listed with a real estate agent is not included in these stats. FSBO's and new construction (not listed) would not be included. It's safe to say that there has been no large move in either of those market segments.]

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Buying Bank Foreclosures in Sequim and in Port Angeles

Author: Chuck Marunde

17 Aug

Right now buying a home in foreclosure in either Sequim or Port Angeles appeals to people who are in the market to buy a home anyway, and it appeals to cash rich investors.

Want to know where the best possible deal right now is in the foreclosure market? I’ll tell you, but you might not be able to afford it. If you can, you can make some serious money here.

The largest percentage of buyers shop in the mid price range, $250,000 to $375,000. This is where most families shop, because it is what they can afford. There are some bargains in distress or bank foreclosure in this range right now, but they are not super bargains. You might shave $15,000 to $30,000 off the fair market value in this price range. That’s good, and if you’re in the market to buy anyway, it is a bargain and definitely you are buying in a buyer’s market.

But if you can afford to purchase in the upper price range, for example above $500,000, you can pick up an instant $100,000 in a few cases. Why? Because when you get in this upper price range, you reduce the number of folks with cash who can actually buy. In this upper range the percentage of buyers narrows to perhaps less than 10% of all buyers. When you get to $700,000 and above, you only compete with 2% of all buyers in this area.

As I like to say when it comes to a down real estate market, cash is king.

If you are in the upper price range as a serious buyer, email me or call me. With 30 years in real estate, 20 in real estate law, and a lot of experience in foreclosures, short sales, and negotitating, I promise that you will be very pleased with my representation. You’ll get the home of your dreams for a huge discount, and if you are an investor, you’ll be happy to shave a $100 grand off your initial investment.

Email: chuckmarunde@gmail.com
Cell: 350-775-5424

Chuck Marunde, J.D.
Realtor/Broker/Owner
Sequim & Port Angeles Real Estate, LLC
618 South Peabody St., Suite I
Port Angeles, Washington 98382

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Clallam County Fair 2008

Author: Chuck Marunde

15 Aug

The Clallam County Fair in Port Angeles is full of excitement, but maybe the best way to show that is with this video.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Port Angeles Water View 3 Story

Author: Chuck Marunde

14 Aug

Port Angeles Water View Home For Sale, 3 Stories, 3.19 Acres, $849,000, in Freshwater Bay.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

For Realtors It WAS All About Listings

Author: Chuck Marunde

14 Aug

There was a time (decades), when real estate agents were taught all across the U.S. that the business is all about listings. Listings, listings, listings. Agents were told that’s where the money is. Get listings, because even while you’re on vacation, your homes can be selling and you’ll be making money.

That time is over. An agent could have many listings, especially in the worse markets, such as Las Vegas, and not make a single dollar. Some agents have not sold anything this calendar year!

Real estate ownership is still “the thing,” but for agents listings are no longer the ultimate answer to success. The key to success for agents today is qualified buyers.

Connecting with qualified buyers is the great challenge of the day for real estate agents and for FSBO’s who are trying to sell their own homes. This is where it gets interesting, because few agents and few FSBO’s have a solid understanding of the technology, marketing, and tools necessary to connect with buyers.

We have entered a new age of marketing and the old rules are rapidly fading into the history of “that’s the way we’ve always done it.” The fascinating thing about the dramatic changes in the way buyers and sellers are connecting is that there has not been a clearly demarcated point in time, nor has there been a definitive event. It would seem that these powerful changes for the transfer of billions of dollars in real estate has snuck up on us.

I would suggest that “the thing” today is effective marketing, and that is happening most powerfully today right in people’s homes at their computers. Searching the Internet for real estate anywhere in the country is private, non-confrontational, easy, free, and instantaneous. Is it really a surprise consumers would move en masse in this direction?

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Elwha River in Port Angeles

Author: Chuck Marunde

13 Aug

The Elwha River, just west of Port Angeles, is another inspiration of nature. I took this photo while standing on the Elwha River Bridge. If I were standing in the same place today, I would be standing in mid-air, because the bridge is gone. A new bridge is currently under construction.

At this location, we are just a few miles up river from where the Elwha River empties into Freshwater Bay. This stretch of the river is also good for fishing. Upriver from this location about one mile is the lower Elwha River Dam, which is slated to be removed some day.

This is a great area for biking and hiking. On the Olympic Peninsula, it’s just another day in Paradise.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Freshwater Bay - Port Angeles Homes for Sale

Author: Chuck Marunde

12 Aug

Freshwater Bay, just west of Port Angeles, Washington is about a 12 minute drive from the city, and is one of the Olympic Peninsula’s most beautiful water front havens on the entire west coast. Gorgeous five acre parcels are common, and extraordinary views of International waters from the first and second decks are also common. Here’s a photo of the public boat launch on Freshwater Bay that gives all the homeowners free access to the Bay and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

When I took this photo, I sighed and said, “Another day in Paradise.”

I have two homes listed in the Freshwater Bay area, which you can view at Freshwater Bay Homes for Sale #1 (464 Striped Peak Road) and Freshwater Bay Homes for Sale #2 (92 Lawrence Pointe Road), and you can also Search all Homes for Sale in Freshwater Bay.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Real Estate Agents - Jobs and Recruiting

Author: Chuck Marunde

12 Aug

I recently saw a recruiting ad for new agents published by a large franchise in another county. It almost sounded impressive, but after pausing for a few seconds on what they were really offering, I broke out laughing. I will shout from the mountain tops, “Brokers don’t get it!” If only these recruiters could see their true reflection in the pond.

Here is the list of HUGE bonuses for agents who join this brokerage, besides getting to pay almost $300 per month (but you get to keep 100% of your own commissions, like the ones you’re not earning in this market). Oh, the $300 per month does not cover all your licensing, education, and subscription fees, which is about another $300 per month.

Web based Document Storage System
Lead Router (sends email leads to your cell phone instantaneously)
[Large Brokerage Name] Works (Intranet Site)
[Large Brokerage Name] University
[Large Brokerage Name] Email
[Large Brokerage Name] Referral Network (x,xxx U.S. offices)
[Large Brokerage Name] Websites
Television Advertising Option
7 Day a Week Broker Support

Why is this list so lame? Here is the brief answer.

Read the rest of this entry »

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Advertising Real Estate For Sale - New Methods

Author: Chuck Marunde

12 Aug

Selling real estate in Clallam County, or anywhere in the country for that matter, is not what it used to be. It has dramatically changed in recent years. I’m not talking about the economy, the mortgage debacle, or the state of the real estate market. I’m thinking about the marketing and advertising of real estate for sale. The way buyers and sellers are connecting has taken a leap into the future, although I admit that leap was more like a frog in a pot of water slowly getting warmer. There is no precise point in time when this dramatic change took place, but it certainly has.

Most real estate brokers and agents around the country are still in the dark, but when the light does go on, it is like shining a flashlight into a dark room. Light shining into darkness reveals the truth. When you discover something, you suddenly begin to see proof of it everywhere, even though you’ve never noticed it before. I recently purchased a Chrysler New Yorker that is in nearly perfect condition. Before I bought it, I never noticed New Yorkers on the highway. Now that I drive one, I see New Yorkers everywhere. Funny how that works, isn’t it?

USA Today had a great article on August 8, 2008 in the Money section, entitled, “Faster, higher, stronger - and digital.”

“Marketing around the Olympics used to be like a 100-meter cakewalk. You’d pay a gazillion dollars to the International Olympic Committee, then pay a gazillion more to brag like heck about it on TV and in print ads. That was then. This is now: Add on a multi-pronged digital ad strategy that feeds on megabuzz. It must touch all the hot buttons from the hippest social-networking sites to the coolest blogs to the cellphones of those most coveted by marketers - trendsetters 18 to 26.”

Technology, the digital age, and the Internet, have changed the rules of the game in real estate, too. Of course most buyers and sellers are not 18 to 26, but even people in their 70’s are using the Internet for email, for shopping, and for research on buying and selling real estate.

Now that you’ve taken a ride in my Chrysler New Yorker, take a look at the scenary every day around you. I think you’ll begin to see how dramatically technology is changing everything. The new is in. The old is fading. This reality is important for buyers and sellers of homes and land, but it is especially significant in this slow market. No, it’s not just important–it’s critical!

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Port Angeles Custom Home Quality

Author: Chuck Marunde

9 Aug

A Port Angeles or Sequim custom home might be built with the highest quality materials and workmanship . . . or NOT. Here’s the challenge. The average person does not have the trained eye to be able to distinguish the two.

I wish they could. I wish we all could. Take the room in the photo to the left. Was this home built with the highest quality materials and the skilled hands of framers, finish carpenters, electricians, plumbers, sheetrockers, and painters, none of whom took short cuts or skimped on materials and labor?

I realize it’s hard to tell anything from a two dimensional photograph, but if we were walking through this room could you tell? Few could.

What a difference it will make when you live in your home for many years, or the rest of your life. I hear this testimony again and again from many people. Perhaps a real life example will make the point best.

Read the rest of this entry »

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Build Your Custom Home Now at Low Interest Rates

Author: Chuck Marunde

8 Aug

Since this is a buyer’s market, it’s not a great time to be selling your home, but if you own a lot, and you are planning to have your home built in the near future, this is a good time to start the process of selecting a builder and planning your home.

Most people plan to finance the construction and long term mortgage of their home, and this is why it is a good time to get started. Interest rates are at historical lows, and most experts are saying that interest rates are headed upward in the months ahead.

At an interest rate just 1.0% above the current rate of 6.52% on a 30 year fixed, your mortgage payment on a $300,000 loan would increase by $200 per month. You would pay $72,000 more in total interest on your loan than you would at today’s interest rate. At an interest rate 2.0% above the current rate, your mortgage payment on a $300,000 loan would increase by $400 per month, and you would pay $168,000 more in total interest on your loan than you would at today’s interest rate.

It’s a good to build your home. It’s a good time to get a loan to build your home. Procrastinate, you and it may cost you in the long term.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

How the New First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Works

Author: Chuck Marunde

8 Aug

There is a tax credit for first time home buyers. Under the new housing bill, home buyers who have not owned a home in the last three years will be eligible for a tax credit equal to 10 percent of the purchase price up to a maximum of $7,500.

Here’s how it works:

The credit is $3,750 for married couples filing separately. Unmarried people who jointly purchase a home will be able to divide the $7,500 credit.
This program is actually a loan, which home buyers must repay over 15 years at zero percent interest beginning in the second year after they purchase the home. A home buyer who qualified for the whole credit would pay $500 for 15 years or about $41.67 per month.
The credit applies only to homes purchased on or after April 9, 2008, and before July 1, 2009.
High-income home buyers don’t qualify: Eligibility begins phasing out for single filers with adjusted income of more than $75,000 and $150,000 for joint filers. It completely phases out at $95,000 for singles and $170,000 for married couples filing jointly.

There you have it. It’s not a gift, but a loan. Still, it might help some first time home buyers get into their home, and as Martha Stewart often said before her incarceration, “That’s a good thing.”

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Sequim Lots for Sale in a Planned Community

Author: Chuck Marunde

7 Aug

Sequim lots are available in a Master Planned Community with many amenities in the community.

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Foreclosures Port Angeles and Sequim - I Have Buyers

Author: Chuck Marunde

7 Aug

There are Sequim and Port Angeles homes in foreclosure. Many are in pre-foreclosure, and for some the Trustee’s Sale Date is looming. This is unfortunate for the owners, and that’s an understatement. When it comes to getting the home sold in a timely way, and pocket some money, this is more difficult than most think. Talk is cheap, so be cautious about any investor or real estate agent who talks big, because most of the talk is just that–talk. At the end of the day, you are very likely in this market to end up simply losing the house at the sale. All the equity you have will just go poof!

I have several clients who are cash buyers, and they have asked me to find them a good investment. This is not easy to do. I have more data on Sequim and Port Angeles foreclosures and more access to relevant information than probably any other agent out there, and having been a real estate attorney and now a broker, I don’t think it is unfair to say I probably have more knowledge and experience in handling foreclosures than most, but . . . it is still very difficult to find a foreclosure property that is a reasonable investment for a buyer. Let me explain that.

There are many homes in pre-foreclosure and foreclosure, and to do the due diligence required of me to narrow down a 100+ properties, collect the ownership and financial data, look at the homes and evaluate them, do comparative market analyses, figure out what they could be sold for in this market, and work with a potential investor, all of this alone could take 60 hours a week. In other words, working foreclosures could easily be a full time job, and as a Realtor, I have other clients, other listings, and other responsibilities.

Cash is king! Always has been. So, here’s the deal. If you, or someone you know, has a home in foreclosure, or land in foreclosure, email me with the information or call me, and I will examine your property and see if I can sell it for you. Of course, that could be to one of my current clients or it could be by listing it and promoting it to other potential buyers. You won’t find anyone more diligent and caring in this process than me. I mean that.

May I make a suggestion? Do NOT procrastinate. A Trustee’s Sale Date has a way of creeping up on you like a ghost in the night. You do not have time to fool around, to experiment with various approaches that might sell your home, to try to become an expert in marketing and real estate by being your own FSBO, or by letting an inexperienced real estate agent burn up the next few months dinging around while you lose your home.

May I be bold here? I am being blunt, because many who are in foreclosure are simply out of time. Real estate agents are a bit like attorneys. Ask an attorney if he or she can handle a particular legal matter, and their answer is always, “Yes,” even if they have never touched the subject. Hey, everyone has to start somewhere. There’s a first time for everything, right? It’s just that if you are in foreclosure, you don’t have time to let others learn in the school of hard knocks at your expense. There’s too much at stake for you.

You know how to reach me.

Sincerely, Chuck Marunde, J.D. (Realtor and Retired Real Estate Attorney
chuckmarunde@gmail.com
360-775-5424

Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Related Posts

Recent Posts

Categories