Where did all of the Open House postings go? by Rebecca Carlson

As I mentioned in a previous blog post, the NW Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS) recently upgraded to a new system last week.  It was supposed to be completed last Thursday, but took until early Sunday morning.  Unfortunately, the upgrade from the old to new system has been riddled with problems.  The biggest problem right now is open house notices.  At the time of this post, most open houses are not getting uploaded properly (or at all).  If you utilize sites like Redfin or Trulia to search for open houses, you’ll be sorely disappointed (not their fault!).  Agency-only sites, such as www.cbbain.com and www.windermere.com show open houses because they can get the feed directly from their respective company (at least that’s how cbbain.com does it). 

Hopefully by the end of this week, all of this will be fixed.  In the meantime,  if you do a search and notice there are not any open houses, it means the system still isn’t working properly.  If there’s a specific house you are interested in, call your agent or the listing agent to preview it.  Also, if you are considering listing your home this week you might want to talk to your agent about waiting one more week.  That will give the NWMLS time to fix the issues and your agent will be more confident the listing process (including open house notices) is a seamless one for you!

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Seattle Met Magazine’s picks for top neighborhoods, did yours make the cut?

Every year, Seattle Metropolitan Magazine (now Seattle Met Magazine) crowns a handful of Seattle neighborhoods as the “Best Places to Live”.  I look forward to this edition every year.  Unfortunately, I found this year’s article a little too predictable.  Queen Anne tops the list – of course!  And, one of my personal favorites, Capitol Hill, is also among the mentioned list.  For those of you new to Seattle, this is a great guide to the city.  But, maybe my 20+ years in Seattle has made me take these neighborhoods for granted, or perhaps I’m ready for the next best place.  Truth-be-told, there are a lot of great neighborhoods in Seattle, and to have small list just doesn’t do this great city justice!  Here are a few others that top my list:  Bryant, Ravenna, Mt. Baker, North Admiral and Sunset Hill. 

What’s your favorite Seattle neighborhood?  I’d love to hear from you!

My Blog Post of N. Capitol Hill

My Blog Post of Mt. Baker

My Blog Post of N. Admiral

Seattle Met Magazine – Full Story

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MLS System Changes Means No Changes this week! by Rebecca Carlson

The NW Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is finally upgrading its software system.  The majority of the changes will help streamline and simplify the ways in which us Realtors input data, search and utilize the system to assist our clients.  These changes won’t be so apparent to the general public, except this week.  Between noon on  Tuesday, May 4 until noon on Thursday, May 6, Realtors will not be able to input new listings or change the status of current listings.  As a buyer, you will not see anything new pop up during these three days, or any changes in status, such as price changes, pending inspections, etc.  As a seller, your Realtor will not be able either add your house as a new listing during this time, or make any changes such as price adjustments.  Hopefully your Realtor is proactive and discussing this black-out period with you.

While this black-out period will be an inconvenience for some, the changes will enhance our ability to better serve our clients, which is our ultimate goal!

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Day after the Tax Credit Credit Expiration and I’m still working

So many people have commented that May 1st, the day after the homebuyer tax credit expires, will be like the day the Cash for Clunkers program expired for the auto industry – the loneliness day for those sales people.  But, truth be told, I have a busy weekend planned.  I’m still meeting with clients to look at homes, I have an open house, and I just partnered with a new client who is relocating to the area later this month.  And, I have first time homebuyers who qualified for the tax credit, but didn’t find the home of their dream so we’re still looking. 

There’s no doubt that first time homebuyers were driving this market surge.  Approximately 40-47% of the homes sold over the past four months were to these buyers.  Traditionally, this buyer pool makes up only about 30% of the market.  But, if these buyers didn’t find a home by the credit deadline, they should continue their search.  Interest rates are still very low and really drive affordability more so than a tax credit.

What I know about real estate is that no matter how bad the economy is, people still buy and sell homes.  People get married, divorced, die or relocate for a new job – all of these life changes happen in good times and bad.  Tax credit or no tax credit, I’ll be working hard to help my clients no matter what life brings them.

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