The unemployment rate was unchanged in May, staying put at 6.3 percent with 9.8 million Americans unemployed. Unemployment is the lowest it has been since September 2008. However, RealtyTrac's Octavio Nuiry makes the case that there is more to unemployment than percentages, and that a hidden actor is depressing housing market growth—and could cause more problems in the future.…
Read more
Default Rates Decline in April to Lowest Post-Recession Rate
Data through April 2014 showed a decline in the national default rate from March, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices and Experian for the S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices. The indices are a comprehensive measure of changes in consumer credit defaults, released monthly. The national composite default rate recorded its lowest post-recession figure of 1.11%…
Read more
U.S. Home Flipping Drops Nationwide: Now Account for Only 3.7% of All Sales
RealtyTrac released its U.S. Home Flipping Report for Q1 2014, reporting that 3.7% of all U.S. single-family home sales were flips. Home flipping over all is down, dropping 4.1% from the fourth quarter in 2013, as well as declining 6.5% from the previous year's first quarter. The company defines flips as homes purchased and sold…
Read more
Foreclosure Crisis Nearly Over!
CoreLogic released its National Foreclosure Report for February, 2014, reporting 43,000 completed foreclosures for the month, a 13.1% decrease from January, 2014. Yearly, foreclosures declined 15% from February, 2013. Comparatively, foreclosures averaged 21,000 per month before the housing crisis from 2000 to 2006. Since September, 2008, 4.9 million foreclosures have been completed. As of February, 2014, 752,000…
Read more
Housing Inventory Continues Fall in January
Housing inventory declined more than 9 percent over the month of January in the 19 markets in which online real estate brokerage Redfin has a presence, according to the company’s Real-Time Price Tracker for January. The decline marks the fourth consecutive monthly drop in inventory, according to Redfin. "A year ago, we didn't think inventory could go…
Read more
5 Things To Know About the Bothell Community
1. Bothell got its start as a logging and farming community It’s true! Bothell was the ideal place to for people to farm and grow agriculture because of its close proximity to the Sammamish River and natural beauty. In 1885 a man named David Bothell bought some land and constructed the Bothell Hotel—how the…
Read more
Top Reasons Why You Should Consider Living in Queen Anne
Recently we had the opportunity to remodel a 4 bedroom single family home in the vibrant Queen Anne neighborhood. With the perfect view of the Sound, Olympics, and golf courses it was impossible to pass up this property. Not only do residents have gorgeous sweeping views of Seattle, Queen Anne is a popular neighborhood to…
Read more
Crisis Over? Foreclosure Sales at 95 Month Low – Down 35% Year Over Year
The national foreclosure crisis is reaching its end as many markets work their way toward normalcy, according to the latest U.S. Foreclosure Market Report from RealtyTrac. As major evidence of this trend, RealtyTrac reports foreclosure starts reached a 95-month low in November. At the same time, overall foreclosure activity across the nation declined by 15%…
Read more
4 Ways to Use Social Media to Be Happy in Your Home Today:
4 Ways to Use Social Media to Enjoy Your Home Today: Hard to believe…but there are 340 different social media platforms available which sometimes seems almost impossible to keep up with. With over 72% of men in the U.S. active on Facebook and 80% of women it’s easy to see how much social media use…
Read more
Neighborhood Spotlight : Ballard
Ballard is a Seattle neighborhood that is known for it’s rich history and historic landmarks, but don’t let it’s old charm fool you—it is also one of Seattle’s most hip neighborhoods, and you’ll see why! Located in the northwestern part of Seattle, Washington, Ballard is home to the world famous Hiram M. Chittenden Locks (known…
Read more
