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In a recent ad campaign, real estate startup Bungalo has announced that throughout the month of October, they will be checking their listed properties for paranormal activity.

The real estate company even hired actual paranormal investigators to visit their properties in order to find out if they have ghosts. The investigators include Jeremy Rettig of Genesis Paranormal Services, as well as Becky Vickers who has appeared on the television shows Ghost Adventures and Ghost Stories.

Josh Stolz, who is the creative director at Bungalo, stated, “This is our first real campaign that takes a step into a bit more of a creative territory,” adding, “We wanted to show both aspects: the regular inspection combined with the paranormal inspection.”

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Over the  years many of us have come across this with buyers, so in light of the new commission changes I have reached out to many of our agents from here and across the country  and locally here is the Seattle market for their best objections to buyers when they say: “I only want to work with the listing agent.”

The overwhelming number of responses lead us to a lot of good material, including simple explanations of what listing agents do, giving advice, one-liners and the all-powerful “good luck.”

Here are our favorite responses. Try out the ones you like the next time you come up against this objection.

Use a one-liner

Sometimes, all you need is a sentence or two to get the job done. Short, sweet and to the point, here are some of the…

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Public Display of Agent Commissions Begins now on www.TheCascadeTeam.com 

Read More: Conversations On Real Estate Commissions
  

In an attempt to get ahead of looming outside forces, broker-owned multiple listing service Northwest MLS is changing its rules to allow the public display of buyer broker commissions, starting October 1.

The rule changes will allow the NWMLS’s 30,000 agent and broker members to publish the amount of commission the seller is offering a buyer’s broker on the subscribers’ websites along with other listing details.

“Making this information readily available to consumers will allow for complete transparency with regard to buyers’ broker’s compensation and provide consumers with additional information at the outset of…

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It’s not Malibu, Beverly Hills, or The Hamptons, but Sammamish that tops the 2018 census list of the richest city in the United States. While many people look at the median income in Seattle topping $93,000 and feel staggered by that number  it was Sammamish, which had a median household income last year of a whopping $183,000, that ranks No. 1 among all the 630 cities for which the Census Bureau produced 2018 income data. It also marks the first time that a Washington city has come out on top for household income.

And not to be left behind, three additional eastside cities: (Redmond, Kirkland and Bellevue) also top Seattle!

See the income chart provided by The Seattle Times below:

 

Gene Balk / FYI Guy: gbalk@seattletimes.com

The…

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What is the market like for fall real estate?

While it’s true that housing inventory (the number of homes on the market) is lower in the fall than in the spring and summer, it’s also true that buyers who are shopping in the fall are likely to be serious about buying. Fall buyers may be moving because of a job relocation or change in family situation, so they’re often eager to close a deal. And, the hotter your local real estate market, the less significant a role seasonality plays.

What months are in the fall?

To clarify the part of the year we’re talking about, fall includes dates between September 1 and November 30. In most of the country, this time of year is marked by cooler weather, shorter days, and falling leaves — think picking…

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After last week’s post we had several great comments. I’ll address one from “B” here, which really went to the heart of why this change is being made…. That being that the public in general really doesn’t understand who pay’s buyer’s agents’ commissions and how they affect the over-all purchase price of a home.

B Day wrote: Why would a salesman list or try and sell a house with no commission? If a person can sell it by their selves, I say let them but to not have a set commission across the board seems pretty self-defeating.

SEE: Conversations On Real Estate Commissions Part 1

  • Cary W Porter wrote: Thanks for the question…. It really gets to the heart of why the change was made and the surrounding confusion on real estate commissions.

    …

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  • New listings dropped nearly 13% system-wide and 18.5% in King County.
  • Pending sales rose nearly 6.6% in the Puget Sound region
  • June and July were also lackluster this year with regard to listings

KIRKLAND, Washington (September 9, 2019) – Depleted inventory continues to frustrate would-be buyers in Western Washington. Many of these potential homeowners are expanding their search beyond the major job centers in King County, according to market watchers who commented on the latest statistics from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

The MLS report summarizing August activity shows less than two months of supply system-wide, and only about 1.6 months of supply in the four-county Puget Sound region. The sparse selection is pushing up…

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Transparency in Commissions

Fact: Real estate brokers’ commission rates are not regulated in any state and are ALWAYS 100% negotiable.

When you decide to sell your house, if you are like most people, you will want to hire — or at least consider hiring — a real estate agent to handle the process.

Surprisingly, many people think that real estate brokerage commission rates are “set” in their area and they have to pay a specific percentage of the sales price to the agent in order to get their services. This is absolutely not the case.  In fact, you can pay whatever you and the agent have agreed upon.

What is a “Fair” amount to pay for real estate commission?

Many people hear the word “discount” company instead of a “traditional” company but…

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Recession fears are growing, and that may prompt some Americans—who are still haunted by the last one—to get skittish about the housing market. Don’t expect another “real estate fire sale” if the economy heads into another recession, economists say.

“This is going to be a much shorter recession than the last one,” George Ratiu, senior economist with realtor.com®, notes in a recent article at the site. “I don’t think the next recession will be a repeat of 2008. … The housing market is in a better position.”

Just 2% of economists, strategists, academics, and policymakers surveyed believe a recession will occur this year, based on a survey of more than 200 members of the National Association for Business Economics. Thirty-eight percent believe a…

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Construction to begin on Aug. 26

Release Date: August 26, 2019

 

As we shared earlier this month, construction on the Issaquah-Fall City Road project is expected to begin today, Monday, Aug. 26, and last for about two years. Work over the next couple weeks will be limited and is expected to have little impact on traffic conditions in the area. We will continue to provide regular updates as additional construction activities are scheduled.

SE Issaquah-Fall City Road will remain open throughout construction, except during the 8-month closure between 247th Pl SE and Klahanie Dr SE during bridge construction. Traffic control and flaggers will be present to direct traffic through the work area. Expect some potential delays, noise,…

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