King County Apartment Vacancies Decline

Tom Cain of Apartment Insights reported that the apartment vacancy rate on 50+units in King County declined to 5.6% in the third quarter of 2010, down from 6.1% in the second quarter. The strongest submarkets with just under 4% vacancy included Bellevue East and Capitol Hill. Class A properties have the best occupancy rate, and are only 5.1% vacant in King County.

The median monthly cost of housing in the Seattle metro area was $1320 in 2009, compared to the national median of $922. The Seattle metro area ranks in the 70th percentile nationwide in monthly housing costs.

Big house! Big corner lot! Big price drop! (and open tomorrow)!!!

In anticipation of tomorrow's FREE Sunday Tour of Bargain Homes, this seller has just dropped his price by $20,000! Hey buyers, you snooze, you lose! Grab an extra hour of sleep tonight, then join us at 2 pm tomorrow at 6503 48th Avenue South in Seattle for our Sunday Tour of Bargain Homes in Columbia City!

THIS HOME FEATURED ON OUR SUNDAY TOUR OF HOMES, NOVEMBER 7:
Price just reduced $20K!!! Many Many Updates! This is a great value in an up and coming area. Move-in ready with room to grow. Major systems updates include electrical and plumbing. Fresh paint, carpet, flooring, appliances, cabinets and granite counters. New Roof. Unfinished basement offers the handyman quick equity. Mother-In-Law apartment? This huge lot could be a great in-city garden with fruit trees or build a legal accessory dwelling unit. 1 mi to Columbia city. Bus to city. Walk to Seward Park. And cheaper to buy than rent!

For more info, call my 24/7 recorded real estate hotline: 888-621-4999 and follow the prompts.

6 Things To Know Before You Buy

6 Things You Must Know Before Obtaining a Mortgage

Before you commit your hard earned dollars to monthly mortgage payments, consider these 6 issues. Effective consideration of these important areas can make your payments work much harder for you.

❶ You can, and should, get preapproved for a mortgage before you go looking for a home.
Preapproval is easy, and can give you complete peace-of-mind when shopping for your home. Your local lending institution can provide you with written preapproval for you at no cost and no obligation, and it can all be done quite easily over-the-phone. More than just a verbal approval from your lending institution, a written preapproval is as good as money in the bank. It entails a completed credit application, and a certificate which guarantees you a mortgage to the specified
level when you find the home you’re looking for.

❷ Know what monthly dollar amount you feel comfortable committing to.
When you discuss mortgage preapproval with your lending institution, find out what level you qualify for, but also pre-assess for yourself what monthly dollar amount you feel comfortable committing to. Your situation may give you a preapproval amount that is higher (or lower) than the amount of money you would want to pay out each
month. By working back and forth with your lending institution to determine what this monthly amount is, and what value of home this translates into at today’s rates, you won’t waste time looking at homes that are not in your price range.

❸ You should be thinking about your long term goals, and expected situation, to determine the type of mortgage that will best suit your needs.
There are a number of questions you should be asking yourself before you commit to a certain type of mortgage. How long do you think you will own this home? What direction are interest rates going in, and how quickly? Is your income expected to change (up or down) in the near term, impacting how much money you can afford to pay to your mortgage? The answers to these and other questions will help you determine the most appropriate mortgage you should be seeking.

❹ Make sure you understand what prepayment privileges and payment frequency options are available to you.

More frequent payments (for example weekly or biweekly) can literally shave years off your mortgage. Simply by structuring your payments so that they come out more frequently, will significantly lessen the amount of interest that you will be charged over the term.

For the same reason, authorized prepayment of a certain percentage of your mortgage, or an increase in the amount you pay monthly, will have a major impact on the number of years you will have to pay and could shorten your payment term considerably. These two payment options can cut years off your mortgage, and save you thousands of dollars in interest. However, not every mortgage has these prepayment privileges built in, so make sure you ask the proper questions.

❺ Ask if your mortgage is both portable and/or assumable.
A portable mortgage, where available, is one that you can carry with you when you buy your next home and avoid paying any discharge penalties. This means that you will not have to go through the entire mortgage process again unless you are making a
move up to a much more expensive home.

An assumable mortgage is one that the buyer for your home can take over when you move to your next home. This can be a very powerful tool at the negotiating table making it much easier and more desirable for a buyer to buy your home, and again saves you any discharge penalties.

❻ You should seriously consider dealing with a Mortgage Expert.
Consider dealing only with a professional who specializes in mortgages. Enlisting their services can make a significant difference in the cost and effectivness of the mortgage you obtain. For example they can make the process faster thereby avoiding
costly delays. Typically there is no cost or obligation to enquire.

Schedule for Sunday Tour of Bargain Homes

The best time to snag those housing deals is in the dead of winter, when the other buyers have gone home!

Here are six bargain properties in Seattle, priced $208,900 - $275,000, each with a minimum of THREE bedrooms! Looking for cash flow rentals in the city limits? a bargain on a first-time home? Look no further than these great bargain homes. The tour is FREE, no obligation, no reservations required. Just mark your calendar for this Sunday, Nov. 7 and come join us!



Meet at 6503 48th Avenue South at 2 pm to pick up maps, directions, and listings for each house on the tour. Feel free to drive by the homes before the scheduled tour times, but once the tour starts, don’t be late for the one(s) you want to preview. There will be lots of other buyers on the tour, and show times are exact. If you are interested in one of the homes on the tour, we can arrange a private showing at another time.

Current Schedule:
2pm: 6503 48th Ave S $249,000

2:20pm: 5714 46th Ave S $249,000

2:40pm: 5998 Rainier Ave S $275,000

3:00pm: 6801 51st Ave S $208,900

3:20pm: 6714 40th Ave S $210,000

3:40pm: 4614 S Brighton $260,000

According to Wikipedia, “Columbia City is a neighborhood in the Rainier Valley area of southeast Seattle, Washington, known either for being one of the "hottest" neighborhoods in Seattle, or for its rapid gentrification, depending on one's perspective. It is best known for being a historic district, being one of the few parts of Seattle with genuine ethnic and income diversity (some claim that its zip code, 98118, is one of the most diverse in America) and for being an extremely walkable (having a 92% "WalkScore"[3]) and transit-oriented urban village."

To be notified of upcoming Sunday Tours of Bargain Homes, call our free 24/7 recorded real estate hotline at 888-621-4999 x4.


Courtesy of Home Land Investment Properties, Inc.

Finding Money for Real Estate Investing

You are ready to invest in real estate; you even have found the right property and a willing seller, and now that pesky problem: where to find money?

Most buyers simply go out and borrow money using a conventional lender, i.e. getting a mortgage on the property. However, limits on the number of properties that can be mortgaged under one name, and the tightening of conventional lending requirements may make it difficult for some investors to finance non-owner-occupied properties this way.

Several other options are available. One option may be using your HELOC. A HELOC , or Home Equity Line of Credit, is extended to a homeowner by using his home as collateral. There is a maximum amount that the owner can borrow, but he may draw on that line of credit as desired. The interest charged is usually the prevailing prime rate. Repayment schedules, which can vary from 5 to 20 years, are negotiable as long as the interest payments are made monthly. This option can be particularly powerful for the investor if he has amassed equity in his home, especially as historically-low interest rates are now available. This may be a viable tool for investors, even in today’s market, if they have owned their homes for a long time.

Secondly, credit cards may be a viable option in the short run, if you are looking for funds that will be cashed out when the remodel is finished and sold, or if those funds will be replaced by a traditional mortgage or by other private funds. Hang on to those promotional offers from credit cards! Many offer a 0% interest rate during the promotional period, for a low balance transfer fee of 3-4%. Read the fine print, but keep this option open.

It is a good idea to periodically request increases to your credit card limits, if you are a good borrower. This will give you flexibility in financing options for the future.

Often times, relatives and friends are willing to partner in sound real estate investments. Don't forget that rich Uncle! You may be doing him a favor in providing an investment with better returns than his other investments are currently paying. Sometimes co workers or clients are open to investment opportunities, and through pooling such resources, you can accumulate a sizable amount. Talk it up and ask around – people have pulled money out of the stock market and are looking for investment opportunities. REAPS featured a panel of private money investors at its August meeting, where this topic was discussed with real world examples from our own backyard.

Consider limited partnerships- such arrangements may give you the immediate cash flow benefit you need. The seller himself can often be creatively induced to enter into a funding agreement with you, particularly if he is highly motivated to sell, as many are in this economy.
Become educated on the dos and don’ts of private lending. REAPS invited the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions to our October meeting to discuss state and federal regulations and exemptions for borrowers and lenders.

Don’t forget retirement funds! You may self-direct your Individual Retirement Account (SDIRA) to invest in real estate, not just securities! Your 401 K is a great source of funds that can be partially liquidated, or you could borrow against the cash value of your insurance policy.
Stocks or other equities may be cashed in, and proceeds rolled into a self-directed IRA or used to fund purchases directly.

Of course, hard money lenders are always a possibility. Sometimes lenders can be flushed out by perusing the 'wanted to buy" ads, or even a more direct approach- take out a newspaper ad yourself asking for potential lenders who may be eager to invest in a real estate project with you. Tell the potential investor how he benefits. An example may be: " I have the opportunity to buy a $200k house for $100k, but I need a cash investor. I do the work, you invest the cash, and we split the profits.”

Sometimes YOU can be the best source for private money- and that's OK! If you have cash under the mattress, pull it out and get in the game! Or partner with other investors.

The only limit to finding private money for your real estate needs is your own hesitation. With creativity and a little knowledge, you can be the greatest source of generating needed capital.

Sunday Tour of Bargain Homes in Seattle

The best time to snag those housing deals is in the dead of winter, when the other buyers have gone home!

Here are six bargain properties in Seattle, priced $208,900 - $275,000, each with a minimum of THREE bedrooms! Looking for cash flow rentals in the city limits? a bargain on a first-time home? Look no further than these great bargain homes. The tour is FREE, no obligation, no reservations required. Just mark your calendar for this Sunday, Nov. 7 and come join us!

View up to six Columbia City homes on Sunday, November 7th priced under $275,000!

Our Sunday Tour of Bargain Homes is Very Different from a Traditional Open House



Our Sunday Tour of Bargain Homes is a great way to get an overview of what homes and features are available in your price range in your favorite Seattle neighborhoods. There is no pressure being a part of a group and you will enjoy the constructive comments of your fellow tour members. Each tour features a different Seattle neighborhood. Our next tour will be in Columbia City on November 7th.

Here is how it works: Our tours begin on selected Sundays. Each tour runs from 2-4 pm and you may meet us at any home on the tour. Tours begin at 2pm SHARP at the first house on the schedule where you will pick up detailed maps, directions and information of the featured houses. I will post the schedule of houses on the tour 3 days in advance on my Seattle Real Estate Investor blog at www.wendywonder.blogspot.com.

Meet at 6503 48th Avenue South at 2 pm to pick up maps, directions, and listings for each house on the tour. Feel free to drive by the homes before the scheduled tour times, but once the tour starts, don’t be late for the one(s) you want to preview. There will be lots of other buyers on the tour, and show times are exact. If you are interested in one of the homes on the tour, we can arrange a private showing at another time.

Tentative Schedule:

2pm: 6503 48th Ave S $269,000

2:20pm: 5714 46th Ave S $249,000

2:40pm: 5998 Rainier Ave S $275,000

3:00pm: 6801 51st Ave S $208,900

3:20pm: 6714 40th Ave S $210,000

3:40pm: TBA

The Sunday Tours of Bargain Homes are led by Wendy Ceccherelli, Designated Broker for Home Land Investment Properties, Inc. She is an experienced real estate investor, and the tour provides valuable guidance for first time home buyers, real estate investors and other bargain house-hunters.

According to Wikipedia, “Columbia City is a neighborhood in the Rainier Valley area of southeast Seattle, Washington, known either for being one of the "hottest" neighborhoods in Seattle, or for its rapid gentrification, depending on one's perspective. It is best known for being a historic district, being one of the few parts of Seattle with genuine ethnic and income diversity (some claim that its zip code, 98118, is one of the most diverse in America) and for being an extremely walkable (having a 92% "WalkScore"[3]) and transit-oriented urban village."

To be notified of upcoming Sunday Tours of Bargain Homes, call our free 24/7 recorded real estate hotline at 888-621-4999 x4.

You will find the Sunday Tour of Bargain Homes to be much more convenient, efficient and productive than a traditional Open House!

Courtesy of Home Land Investment Properties, Inc.