Selling

Articles, Buying, Housing Market, San Juan Islands, Selling

The Gardner Report – Q2 2017

ECONOMIC OVERVIEW The Washington State economy has been expanding at a rapid pace but we are seeing a slowdown as the state grows closer to full employment. Given the solid growth, I would expect to see income growth move markedly higher, though this has yet to materialize. I anticipate that we will see faster […]
Articles, Buying, Lifestyle, Selling

How the Neighborhood Impacts a Home’s Value

Whether you’re buying or selling, accurately pricing a home requires professional assistance from someone who knows the neighborhood. The “estimated” home prices you see posted online can be off by tens of thousands of dollars—not because they are dishonest, but because the computer programs generating these guesstimates don’t take into account the current condition of […]
Articles, Buying, Housing Market, Selling

Top 10 real estate tips for 2017

Sean Justice/Getty Images High demand and low interest rates drove housing sales in 2016, and 2017 is shaping up to be another good year, albeit with a few minor caveats. While home prices for starter-to-midrange homes are pushing upward toward pre-recession peaks, especially in secondary markets, they’re stabilizing in higher-priced areas. Prognosticators see the robust […]
Articles, Buying, Lifestyle, Selling

Planning for the Future: Housing Options to Consider

It should come as no surprise that 75% of the senior citizens polled in the latest AARP Preferences survey strongly agreed with the statement, “What I’d like to do is stay in my current residence as long as possible.” After all, home is where the heart is; and the longer you live in a place, […]

Articles The Gardner Report – Q2 2017 ECONOMIC OVERVIEW The Washington State economy has been expanding at a rapid pace but we are seeing a slowdown as the state grows closer to full employment. Given the solid growth, I would expect to see income growth move markedly higher, though this has yet to materialize. I anticipate that we will see faster […]

Articles How the Neighborhood Impacts a Home’s Value Whether you’re buying or selling, accurately pricing a home requires professional assistance from someone who knows the neighborhood. The “estimated” home prices you see posted online can be off by tens of thousands of dollars—not because they are dishonest, but because the computer programs generating these guesstimates don’t take into account the current condition of […]

Articles Top 10 real estate tips for 2017 Sean Justice/Getty Images High demand and low interest rates drove housing sales in 2016, and 2017 is shaping up to be another good year, albeit with a few minor caveats. While home prices for starter-to-midrange homes are pushing upward toward pre-recession peaks, especially in secondary markets, they’re stabilizing in higher-priced areas. Prognosticators see the robust […]

Articles Planning for the Future: Housing Options to Consider It should come as no surprise that 75% of the senior citizens polled in the latest AARP Preferences survey strongly agreed with the statement, “What I’d like to do is stay in my current residence as long as possible.” After all, home is where the heart is; and the longer you live in a place, […]

Articles Selling Your Home? Go Through This Safety Checklist With Your Real Estate Agent Selling your home can be stressful for many reasons. Not only are you trying to get the best financial return on your investment, but you might also be working on a tight deadline. There’s also the pressure to keep your home clean and organized at all times for prospective buyers. One thing you can be […]

Housing Market Six Key Factors That Affect the Sales Price of Your Home Pricing a home for sale is not nearly as simple as most people think. You can’t base the price on what the house down the street sold for. You can’t depend on tax assessments. Even automatic valuation methods (AVMs), while useful for a rough estimate of value, are unreliable for purposes of pricing […]

Buying 2016 Home Sales Will Be Best in a Decade, With Surprising Hot Spots, Realtor.com Predicts CNBC December 2, 2015 Total homes sales next year are expected to reach the highest levels since 2006 on the back of new construction and the existing housing market, Realtor.com reported Wednesday. The report contains several surprises. Among them, Providence, Rhode Island, ranked as the hottest market for 2016, and millennials are expected to make […]

Housing Market It Pays to List in Winter Spring may still be peak home-shopping season, since most families want to move when school is out. Yet it actually pays to list in the winter, when buyers tend to have more urgency. A study by online brokerage Redfin found that average sellers net more above asking price during the months of December, January, February, […]

Financial 7 Renovations That Reduce Your Home's Value Most people think home-renovation projects will always add value to a home, but this isn’t necessarily true. According to Scott McGillivray, host of the HGTV series Income Property and author of How to Add Value to Your Home, these 7 renovations should never be done… 1. DO NOT expand your master bedroom if that means […]

Buying What You Need to Know about Real Estate Appraisals Posted in Selling and Buying by Tara Sharp Appraised value vs. market value Appraisals are designed to protect buyers, sellers, and lending institutions. They provide a reliable, independent valuation of a tract of land and the structure on it, whether it’s a house or a skyscraper. Below, you will find information about the appraisal process, […]

Selling Getting Your Home Ready to Sell Are you ready to move on to your next stage in life? Getting your home ready to sell can be a big task, from getting the physical space ready and preparing for the emotional aspects of selling your home. We recommend you work with a listing agent through this process to make sure you are […]

Selling Questions to Ask Yourself When You're Thinking About Selling When you make the decision to sell your home, the end goal is to get the best price and most favorable terms in a time-frame that meets your needs. But before the sign goes up in your front yard, there’s a lot to be done to get you and your home in prime selling condition.

Housing Market Selling Your Home? Price It Right From the Start! In today’s market, where demand is outpacing supply in many regions of the country, pricing a house is one of the biggest challenges real estate professionals face. Sellers often want to price their home higher than recommended, and many agents go along with the idea to keep their clients happy. However, the best agents realize […]

Buying Are we on the verge of another housing "Bubble" bursting? Posted August 10 2015, 9:05 AM PDT by Matthew Gardner August Perspectives Posted in Perspective by Matthew Gardner Every year there’s some aspect of the real estate market that becomes a focal point for the media. A few years ago it was whether or not housing would ever recover from the Great Recession. Then it was historically […]