Best Christmas and Holiday Light Displays Around Seattle, Tacoma and the Eastside

From zoo sparkle to gaudy neighborhood displays, where to trip the holiday lights fantastic!

There's nothing like a stunning display of Christmas and holiday lights to evoke childhood memories. Treat your family to some glowing, electric, "ooh-ahh" joy this season by visiting one of the many spectacular displays lighting up zoos, gardens and neighborhoods.

Seattle area

WildLights. Photo credit: Ryan Hawk

WildLights, Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle

WildLights Santa. Photo credit: Ryan Hawk

Woodland Park Zoo's annual holiday lights show features wild animals and exotic destination scenes illuminated by more than 600,000 LED lights. Santa will also be visiting WildLights every Friday–Sunday during the lights festival and also…

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2016 Sammamish Market Report/ 2017 Housing Predictions... One Word: HOT!

  The median home value in 98075 is $889,000. 98075 home values have gone up 13.5% over the past year and The Cascade Team predicts they will rise a minimum of 5.3% within the next year. The median list price per square foot in Sammamish is $303. The median price of homes currently listed in 98075 is $988,000 with the median Sold price for November 2015 coming in at $902,264.   Median price is the midpoint between the highest and lowest price. Median prices give a more accurate picture of pricing because it's not skewed by unusually high or low priced sales. Find out the price of your home.     Additionally Sammamish is one of the "Heathiest" real estate markets in the country. As of the latest national report which was issued…

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‘Twas The Night Before Christmas… (Real Estate Version)

‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse

My signs were all out and brochure boxes loaded
The ad copy in and the lock boxes coded

I just wrote an offer with that one perfect buyer
eeghads its so low…they say they won’t go any higher

So I call up my seller with the not so good news
And they agree to meet with me…what have they got to lose?

So we sit at the table and I do what I do best
Crunch numbers, talk deadlines and give it a rest

So the sellers agree and get ready to sign
And then they exclaim… “We’ve got an equity line!”

More crunching and digging to find extra money
The sellers are smiling…but this really isn’t funny

Three months on the market with…

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What a Fed rate Hike Means For You and Home Prices

The Fed hiked its key rate by 25 basis points to a range between 0.50% and 0.75% at Wednesday's meeting. That increase is likely to have an effect on mortgage rates going forward. To that end, The Cascade Team has calculated how the rate hike this week would affect mortgage payments with rates moving up from a 4.0% rate to one with a 4.25% rate. (Please note that the payments are based on borrowers with a minimum 720 credit score and 20% down. Payments also do not include property taxes or any HOA fees or assessments).   One rate hike won't change the world but the process of rising rates affects millions of Americans. If you have a credit card or savings account, invest in stocks or bonds, want to buy a home or a car, pay attention.  

The…

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Here We Grow Again! Two New Offices Located in Vancouver, WA and Avondale, AZ

The Cascade Team is very happy to announce the addition of two new offices.

The first is located in Avondale, AZ and will be managed by Michael Gabriel 

Located in Avondale just off the I-10, our Avondale office team is committed to delivering Simply Outrageous Service to our clients by providing more technology and service than any other local Avondale Realtors, all the while provide unparalleled value. If you have a West Valley home to sell, or are looking to purchase, contact one of our local area real estate agents below.

The Second office is located in Vancouver, WA and will be managed by Gary Firth.

The Cascade Team Real Estate is ready to serve our clients with Simply Outrageous Service. Our Vancouver, WA office is centrally…

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2017 is Almost Here: Elevate your Real Estate Career… More Money, Listings & Sales!

Here is your chance to be part of an innovative Real Estate Brokerage that's changing how things are done. 

We are a FULL Service company with a comprehensive marketing plan, great training and support, and great agents! We save our clients thousands on the sale of their home, give them the support and service level they want, and in the process are building a name for ourselves that is second to none!

Contact Janet Jolly-Porter: janet@TheCascadeTeam.com or 425-830-6743 to set up your appointment to learn more.

It’s time to do the math and elevate your business!

8 (x) the Business (And future referrals) and 7 (X) the Money with INCREASING Inventory up 21%!

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What are your thoughts on ‘Transparent Bidding’ in real estate?

 By Teke Wiggin

I would be very interested in hearing comments of this topic. At The Cascade Team we already have a "Make An Offer" button on all of our in-house listings, so this is something we could fairly easily modify and do.... But there are definitely some negatives to go along with possible advantages. As an Agent/Broker I would love to hear from you, and also as a home Seller/Buyer I would love to get your thoughts!

How the process works and the arguments for and against its use

• Brokerages and tech firms are experimenting with "transparent bidding," which shows buyers all the offers made on a listing.
• Supporters say this fetches top dollar for sellers, but skeptics say that's often not true because it takes away one of their…

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7 Holiday Décor Tips and Tricks for Sellers

You can still be festive. These tips will help you celebrate — without alienating would-be buyers - BY: Neila Deen   

Selling your home through the holiday season can certainly come with a few challenges. Chilly, wet weather and falling leaves in November and December might mean more raking and shoveling to keep your home pristine. However, the damp weather and dark skies don’t have to squelch your holiday spirit. In fact, the holidays are a perfect time to showcase the warmth and character of your home to prospective buyers.

If you’ve already got the basics of staging under control — meaning you’ve pared down, freshened up and added a splash of color — you’re ready to follow these seven do’s to create an appropriately festive home for sale.

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Housing Inventory Plunges To Lowest Level Of Year, As Housing Sales Hit Busiest November Period Of All Time!

The Seattle residential real estate market is not taking time off for an end-of-year breather!

• “Last year’s holiday season ended up being the best time to sell a home around King County”
• November showed a 13.2 percent drop in inventory of single family homes.
• November also showed a 31.3 percent spike in closed home sales.
• And an 11 percent increase in prices compared to the same month a year ago.

KIRKLAND, Washington (Dec. 5, 2016) – Pending sales of homes hit an all-time high for the month of November according to the latest statistics from Northwest Multiple Listing Service. The report covering 23 counties around Washington state also shows the number of new listings added during the month plunged to the lowest level in 11…

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Our Clients Have More Money for The Holidays: RESULTS: How About $6,879, 013 in Total Value!!!!

RESULTS: Our clients' TOTAL combination of 
savings and value for the last 18 months!

And this AMAZING total is just for our results page…. Meaning only for homes we sold in under 7 Days going for OVER asking price… If you add in all of the homes we sold that took slightly longer than 7 days or were at full price or close to it that number reaches an astonishing $15 Million+!

A FULL SERVICE REAL ESTATE BROKERAGE FOR HOME SELLERS

The Cascade Team provides a full service experience that is a step above; by executing a marketing plan that is unique to your home, rich in technology and high in service.  We leverage the most innovative technological tools to provide the most exposure possible for your home to increase the communication and…

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