While We're All Distracted With Politics Did You Ever Wonder: How Much Is the White House Worth?

Posted by Cary W Porter on August 22nd, 2016

Now that the presidential race is hurtling forward at a breakneck pace, we got to pondering one of the many prizes at the finish line: the chance to live in the White House!

Because let’s face it, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. is not only the seat of power for the free world, it’s also a pretty nice place. Sitting on 18 acres of prime Washington, DC, real estate, its 55,000 square feet featuring 132 rooms, 28 fireplaces, and more than 750 historic artifacts.

All of which got us wondering: How much is the White House actually worth? In cold, hard cash?

Some, of course, might argue that you can’t put a price tag on this symbolic structure any more than you could price the pyramids in Egypt or the Eiffel Tower in Paris. But the Royal Institution of…

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Seattle One of The Best Places to Raise the Next Olympic Swimmer (More)

Posted by Cary W Porter on August 16th, 2016

Seattle; Grab those goggles and hit the pool

While when it comes to the top cities to raise a great swimmer, most of the top towns are in warm, sunny states where it’s easy to be out in the pool: think California, Florida, Texas, and Hawaii, don't count out Seattle as the Seattle market came in at a solid number two! Metros in these states have the most access to swim lessons, pools, beaches, lakes, and sports clubs. And you’ll spend a lot of time honing your skills to make the cut: Of the roughly 1,850 swimmers that enter the trials, only about 50 qualify for the U.S. team.

Where you grow up may have some influence over whether you could become the next world-class athletic superstar. So which cities hold the best chances for raising the…

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Good Schools Give 77% Boost to Home Values

Posted by Cary W Porter on August 8th, 2016

Community And School Reports

 

Home values can get a big increase from having a highly rated school nearby. According to the new ATTOM Data Solutions 2016 Schools and Housing Report, homes in ZIP codes with at least one good elementary school have values about 77 percent higher than in ZIP codes without highly ranked schools close by.

Researchers looked at home values and price appreciation against 2015 average test scores in nearly 19,000 elementary schools across 4,435 ZIP codes. They considered a “good school” to be one that had an overall test score that was at least one-third above the state average.

The research team found that out of 1,661 ZIP codes with at least one good school, the average estimated home value was $427,402 – 77…

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Theatre in the Green Bellevue: Sponsored by the Cascade Team

Posted by Cary W Porter on August 4th, 2016

Enjoy this unique live theatre experience from Last Leaf Productions while you relax outdoors with your family, sponsored by the Cascade Team!

Schedule

August 10th: Treasure Island-Pirates, treasure and adventure take center stage in this original musical for young audiences, adapted from Robert Louis Stevenson's beloved novel.  Young Jim Hawkins finds a pirate map that propels him on a grand journey of suspense and intrigue, and did we mention... pirates?

August 17th: Shakespeare's Love's a Labour Lost-The King of Navarre's bold plan to give up women for three years in exchange for intensive study quickly dissolves when a group of eligible females from the French court show up and camp outside the palace.  This silly comedy, filled with…

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Issaquah's New Salmon Run Park: Coming Soon

Posted by Cary W Porter on July 28th, 2016

Overview
To protect nearby private and public property from flooding — and to help Issaquah's iconic salmon — a restoration project is happening at Salmon Run Nature Park.

The 2.31-acre park, at Fifth Avenue Northwest and Northwest Juniper Street near Gilman Village, is a passive park with views of Issaquah Creek. The area was formerly known as the Darren Pritt property. 
The project includes habitat restoration along 450 feet of stream, including the addition of more than 100 logs and stumps in the stream to provide pools and refuge for salmon. Excavation in the creek bank and floodplain will provide refuge for salmon during flooding.

Work will add gravel pedestrian pathways and viewpoints in both the City-owned park and along Gilman Village. In…

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5 Of The Strangest Things People Have Tried to Sell With Their Homes

Posted by Cary W Porter on July 19th, 2016

Moving and decluttering go hand in hand. After all, what better time to offload all those unwanted belongings than when you’re planning to sell and leave your home? But sometimes home sellers take their inner Marie Kondo a little too far.

From BDSM rooms to snow machines, there have been some epically wacky things that sellers have tried to get off their hands—even, in some cases, the family dog. (That’s ruff!)

Read on for some stories of seller add-ons that sound too wacky to be true—but aren’t.

A dungeon in the master bedroom

Sometimes you can hide the dungeon, and sometimes you can’t. In this instance Dean Ferraro, a real estate agent in Oceanside, CA, was on a listing appointment at a house that was curiously overpriced. Upon…

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It’s a Pokémon Go Open House Weekend with The Cascade Team!

Posted by Cary W Porter on July 14th, 2016

Seemingly everyone is playing Pokémon GO. If you’re not already playing it yourself, you’ve no doubt heard about it. It’s not an exaggeration to say that the new mobile and augmented reality game from Niantic Labs and The Pokémon Company is having an enormous impact on people’s daily routines. This has obsessed Pokémon players taking unusually long walks with their canine friends, people visiting Pokémon Gyms,  and a co-pilots double-fisting smartphones while you’re driving to dinner (please don’t drive and hunt Pokémon — get someone in the passenger seat).

For those not yet in the know, Pokémon GO uses your phone’s GPS and camera to turn the real world into a massive hunting ground for the iconic creatures, but it also transforms local…

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North Bend Block Party And Legends Car Show with The Cascade Team

Posted by Cary W Porter on July 13th, 2016

Join us on Saturday, July 16th!

Join The Cascade Team for the North Bend Block Party!  The Cascade Team Real Estate is proud to serve the North Bend community and provide FREE popcorn and give-away prizes!

The North Bend Downtown Block Party and Legends Car Show will be held on Saturday, July 16th noon to 11:00 p.m. and Sunday, July 17th 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Once again the Block Party will have a wonderful lineup of great entertainment, music, activities, tasty local food and drinks for the entire family.

The festivities start at Noon on July 16th and run until 11pm.  Children's booths are open from Noon to 8pm.

The Downtown Block Party is located in the heart of North Bend on North Bend Way between Bendigo Blvd. and Ballarat.

It’s a free…

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Annual Snoqualmie Ridge 4th Of July Festival

Posted by Cary W Porter on June 29th, 2016

4th of July Celebration! 

4th of July Celebration!

Join The Cascade Team for the Snoqualmie Ridge 4th of July Celebration and Parade!  The Cascade Team Real Estate is proud to serve the Snoqualmie Ridge community and provide FREE sno-cones and give-away prizes for the 11th straight year!   The festivities start at 10:30am at Cascade View Elementary School with a parade.   Show your spirit and decorate your bikes, tricycles, skateboards, scooters, wagons, etc. in red, white, and blue and come walk or ride in the parade as it makes it way to the Community Park!   It’s a free event open to the Snoqualmie community.  So grab your family, your red, white and blue – and see you at the park!    

If you would like more…

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Snoqualmie, North Bend, Duvall, Carnation and Covington Warned By State to Slow Growth

Posted by Cary W Porter on June 22nd, 2016

  Snoqualmie Ridge, perched idyllically above Snoqualmie Valley below. Several small cities like Snoqualmie in King County have seen their 20-year growth plans be rejected by regional leaders because they want to grow too much. (Steve Ringman/The Seattle Times)   By  Lynn Thompson Seattle Times staff reporter

Leaders of the small cities — Duvall, Carnation, North Bend, Snoqualmie and Covington — say they, not a central planning agency, should determine how they expand within their own borders. And they say that without growth they can’t keep the lights on and the roads paved.

“We have a right to grow, a right to revenue to support our city,” said Snoqualmie Community Development Director Mark Hofman.

Much…

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