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        <title>Real Estate Blog</title>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/orting-short-sale-with-a-bank-approved-list-price.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/orting-short-sale-with-a-bank-approved-list-price.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Orting Short sale with a bank approved list price!</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
This short sale in Orting just came back on the market.  The previous buyers did all the waiting for you and negotiated this great price. Unfortunately; they failed to get financing.  Their loss is your gain.  You can buy this 2600 sq ft, move in ready home for $175,000.  Your payments will be less than you could rent it for.


If you'd like to see this home, don't email me, call me.  This one won't wait around! 253-820-2745


Follow this link to see all the listing info on this Orting Short Sale.



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            <pubDate>Mon, 19 Mar 2012 18:48:13 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/homes-for-sale-in-federal-way.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/homes-for-sale-in-federal-way.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Homes for sale in Federal Way</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
I've just listed another home for sale in Federal Way.  This home is located in Madrona Meadows, a nice little neighborhood in FW that offers easy access to I-5 and Tacoma without all the traffic some homes in Federal Way have to deal with.  I don't have all the pics up yet for the virtual tour but I'll post them over the weekend.  Listing number is 329583 and it should be active on the site in the next couple of hours.


At just $195,000.  I expect this nicely upgraded home to go under contract to a lucky buyer pretty quickly.  If you want a chance to be that lucky buyer, give me a call right away!  253-820-2745


 
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Fri, 09 Mar 2012 14:21:01 -0800</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/lake-tapps-waterfront-homes.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/lake-tapps-waterfront-homes.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Lake Tapps Waterfront Homes</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Lake Tapps Waterfront Homes are once again enjoying a Spring bump in activity.  Seems a little early this year considering we just had snow the other day, but the lower prices and rock bottom mortgage rates may have something to do with that? 


Currently we have 22 active waterfront listings to choose from, I expect to see that increase as the weather begins to warm up a bit. Of those 22, 3 are listed below $500,000.00 and only 6 are listed above $1,000,000.00.  The bulk of the active waterfront properties are price in the $600,000-$800,000 range.


17 waterfront homes on Lake Tapps are currently Pending and working their way towards closing. With the exception of short sales, homes in pending status have generally received offers in the past 30 days.  Watching homes in pending status gives you a good indication of what is currently happening in the market.


Over the past 6 months, we've had 18 homes close to new home owners.  The lowest price was an incredible $160,000 (don't hold your breath for another one of those anytime soon) and the highest priced waterfront home to sell on Tapps was just $750,000!  Average home sale price on Tapps over the past 6 months was an incredible $429,081.


If you'd like to browse through waterfront homes, follow the link to see the available inventory of Waterfront homes on Lake Tapps


If you are planning to buy or sell a home on the Lake Tapps this year, here's my cell phone 253-820-2745


 
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Fri, 02 Mar 2012 18:33:18 -0800</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/puyallup-homes-for-sale-silvercreek.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/puyallup-homes-for-sale-silvercreek.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Puyallup homes for sale | Silvercreek | Sunrise</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Puyallup homes for sale are in demand these days. 


That's true due to a variety of factors including it's proximity to JBLM Fort Lewis, great schools and wide variety of shopping and restaurants available.  However; the driving factor behind steady home sales in my opinion has more to do with the wide variety of short sale and bank owned or foreclosed homes available.  While King, Pierce and Thuston counties have not been immune to the bursting of the real estate bubble, it seems the South Hill of Puyallup has been especially vulnerable.


Why so many bank owned properties available on South Hill?


A lot of this has to do with timing.  Puyallup homes for sale on South Hill were really cooking along in 2005-2007.  Just finding a home was a victory for most buyers.  Multiple offers and escalation clauses were the norm and the sellers were happy.  I was building price increases into my listings by the week at that time. This means a lot of Puyallup home owners bought at or near to top of the market.


To keep up with demand, local builders were developing and building at full capacity.


And then the market started to correct.


Many Puyallup home builders were left with homes they couldn't sell, lots they couldn't build on and raw land they couldn't develop.  A lot of those units went back to the banks or were significantly reduced in price.  This additional inventory competing with resale homes only added to an already significant problem.


In addition, because we had so many folks buy homes during the peak of the market, many of them found themselves underwater.  These struggling homeowners further added to available home inventory to the Puyallup Real Estate market.


Real estate pricing is pretty straight forward, supply and demand.  If buyers have an oversupply of homes to consider, prices go down.  If homes are scarce, prices rise.


The available inventory outstripped demand and prices fell and fell hard.  Many homes I see are priced at the same prices they would have 8-10 years ago...Take a moment and think about that.


As of today, I see 651 homes listed as Active in Puyallup, 295 Pending and 698 Sold over the past 6 months.Based on the amount of sold properties, 116.3 Puyallup homes are selling each month.  That leaves us with a little over 5 months of inventory on the market.  That's a balanced market.


Builders are back building, filling those vacant lots with great looking homes loaded with features they probably never dreamed they would have to offer at these prices.  Well priced bank owned homes are drawing multiple offers and even short sales seem to be drawing attention from buyers attracted by low prices and rock bottom interest rates.  Much of this demand is focused on the lower end of the market.  In a normal market, we'd be out of the woods, but we're missing a key ingredient.


Move up buyers are scarce right now.  Because many of the homes being sold in Puyallup are sold by builders, banks or people short selling their homes, the lower end home sales don't neccesarily guarantee another sale in a higher price range.  This means many homeowners of the more expensive homes in Puyallup are unable to sell without deeply discounting their prices.  Not good news for the seller, but that creates an opportunity for buyers in those price ranges.


Buyers that either do not have a home to sell or can sell their current home stand to benefit greatly from our current market condtitions and low interest rates.  Will the buyers show up and start buying in the $300,000+ range?  Only time will tell.
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 08 Dec 2011 13:07:57 -0800</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/puyallup-real-estate-market-stats.html</guid>
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            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Puyallup real estate market stats</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Puyallup real estate is one of the most active markets currently&nbsp;near JBLM.&nbsp; I ran&nbsp;these numbers while searching for a few homes for an investor to purchase and rehab in Puyallup.&nbsp; I also included averages of several other commonly searched&nbsp;areas&nbsp;on my website.&nbsp;&nbsp;

It's important to note, these figures should not be used to attempt to negotiate a home purchase or set a listing price on your home.&nbsp; They are average numbers looking at&nbsp;general areas.&nbsp; Actual home prices will vary quite a bit depending on many factors.&nbsp; Relying on general figures such as these to purchase or sell a home may cause you to significantly over pay or underprice your home.&nbsp; There's your disclaimer. :)

Puyallup last 30 days 86 salesAverage 1932sq ft, $103.95 per foot, 85 DOM, $201,562.&nbsp; Sales price&nbsp; 98.01% sales price/listing price.

Search for Puyallup homes for sale

Lacey/Hawks Prairie last 30 days 56 salesAverage 1770 sq ft, $104.52 per foot, 109 DOM, $184,910 Sales price 97.28% sales price/listing price.

Lacey homes for sale 

Orting last 30 days 11 salesAverage 1714 sq ft, $102.49 per foot, 92 DOM, $173,306&nbsp; Sales price 97.86% sales price/listing price.

Orting homes for sale

Lake Tapps-I keep my Lake Tapps market stats close to the vest and only for the benefit of my clients.

Graham last 30 days 36 salesAverage 2063 sq ft, $92.00 per foot, 73 DOM, $190,432&nbsp; Sales price 99.06% sales price/listing price.

Homes for sale in Graham WA

Dupont/Steilacoom last 30 days 21 salesAverage 1855 sp ft, $121.67 per foot, 81 DOM, $218,334 Sales price 95.45% of sales price/listing price.

Dupont homes for sale can be found here

Steilacoom homes are best viewed here

Spanaway last 30 days 58 salesAverage 1925 sq ft, $90.33 per foot, 105 DOM, $171,327 Sales price 100.44% of sales price/listing price.

Spanaway homes for sale

&nbsp;
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Tue, 11 Oct 2011 10:06:05 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/another-successful-short-sale.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/another-successful-short-sale.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Lake Tapps short sale | Another successful short sale closing</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
I closed a particularly difficult short sale yesterday in Lake Tapps.&nbsp; This home had nearly every challenge possible in a short sale with the exception of the buyer's financing failing, which is fairly common in this market.

Utilities turned off prior to inspections, appraisal issues (condition, definately not value), uncooperative tenants/housesitters, a nasty pitbull, delays, lock expiration, septic issues etc etc etc.&nbsp; It's the type of transaction that often fails somewhere along the way.&nbsp; But through a lot of hard work and a little luck I was able to hand the keys over to&nbsp;a happy homeowner last night and let the seller know his problem had just gone away.

Happy seller, happy buyer and a happy real estate broker, I'm certainly glad that short sale is successfully negotiated and closed.

By the way, you may be surprised to know that the buyer actually received a check when he closed on the home.&nbsp; Not bad huh?

The entire process from writing the offer to closing took approximately 60 days, not my most efficient short sale, but not terribly long either.&nbsp; 2 weeks of that time period were wasted attempting to get the appraisal back from the appraiser.&nbsp; Thanks HVCC&nbsp;...NOT!

I'd like to tell you that I have a 100% success rate closing my clients short sales because I'm a super hero Realtor, but that's not the case.&nbsp; I have a team of people all working towards a common goal of releasing the lien and transferring title to a new buyer.&nbsp; I work with stellar mortgage lenders, title, escrow, home inspectors, contractors, investors&nbsp;and clients to close these difficult transactions as quickly as possible.&nbsp; 

Not every home can be saved from foreclosure, but in my opinion and experience we can save the vast majority of home sellers in difficult situations from foreclosure with a lot of hard work and a great team of professionals. 

If you are in a tough spot with your current home and are considering a short sale as one of your options, please call me sooner rather than later.&nbsp;I'll sit down with you and explain your options in a no nonsense, no pressure consultation.&nbsp; Even if you are behind in your mortgage payments, you deserve to know all your options.

&nbsp;
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Fri, 07 Oct 2011 13:18:55 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/real-estate-brokers-and-public-perception.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/real-estate-brokers-and-public-perception.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Real estate brokers and public perception</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
The public perception of real estate brokers has always concerned me.&nbsp; It ranges from&nbsp;outright contempt&nbsp;to trusted professional.&nbsp; The chief reason&nbsp;for the large&nbsp;range of public perception is the lack of standardized service provided by our industry.&nbsp; 

To illustrate my claim that a lack of standardized service is partly to blame, I'll use fast food as an example.

If you are craving a cheeseburger, there's a company who has served billions of burgers all over the world.&nbsp; You know that if you pull into nearly any&nbsp;of their restaurants&nbsp;and order up your favorite burger, there's a high probability your experience and&nbsp;that burger will&nbsp;be exactly like the last experience and burger you purchased from that restaurant.&nbsp; It's predictable, repeatable and systematized.&nbsp; People come to know and trust that brand because they understand what they will be getting for their money each time they visit.

While customers rightly expect the same treatment in real estate, they are often disappointed to find a different reality.&nbsp; No matter what the brand, each customer experience can be dramatically different from broker to broker.&nbsp; Even within the same company, some brokers shine while others struggle to provide the expertise the public deserves.&nbsp; Choosing a well known brand of real estate broker does not always&nbsp;provide the client a predictable, repeatable, systematized experience they can rely on.&nbsp; 

In real estate, you can't rely on the brand to sell your home or ensure you get a top notch buyer broker.&nbsp; The individual broker you hire is the driving force in your transaction, not the brand.&nbsp; Choose a good one and good things will likely happen.&nbsp; Choose the wrong one and you&nbsp;may be in for a bumpy ride.&nbsp;

Why?&nbsp; 

There is a lot of turn over in real estate.&nbsp; In my 6 years of real estate I've seen many, many brokers come and go.&nbsp; It seems there is always a large contingent of brokers either just getting in to real estate or on their way out of real estate.&nbsp; Being a successful real estate broker is a lot tougher than it looks from the outside.&nbsp; The 80/20 rule is in full affect here.&nbsp; Most new brokers are destined to fail.

High turn over can be overcome by good quality systems when you are dealing with employees, fast food restaurants are experts at managing turn over with systems.&nbsp; But in real estate, each broker is an independent contractor.&nbsp; This complicates the issue somewhat and is a constant concern for the&nbsp;owner of the brokerage.&nbsp; The only brokerage I'm aware of that tried the employee model was forced to abandon it.

As a result, the big brokerage model relies on constantly searching for newly licensed brokers to replenish the ranks of unsuccessful brokers going out of business and their successful brokers leaving for less expensive brokerages.&nbsp; 

What's the solution?

NW Home Brokers is my attempt at a solution to the lack of standardized service dilemma.&nbsp; By hiring only highly skilled brokers, it's my hope that my brand can live up to the expectations of the real estate consumer.&nbsp; Because I do not fill my brokerage with&nbsp;every newly licensed broker who can fog a&nbsp;mirror that walks in the door, I hope to provide a higher level of service company wide.&nbsp; 

It is my goal to build trust and loyalty for my brand in an industry that has suffered from a perception problem for quite some time.&nbsp;We do this one satisfied client at a time.&nbsp;It's not the easy way to build a business, but&nbsp;I think it&nbsp;is&nbsp;a business worth building.
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            <pubDate>Mon, 03 Oct 2011 11:56:50 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/309-nelsen-st-ne-orting-wa-nwmls.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/309-nelsen-st-ne-orting-wa-nwmls.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>309 Nelsen St NE Orting WA | NWMLS 275683</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
309 Nelsen St NE Orting WA | NWMLS 275683 



Here's a beautifully renovated 3,200 sq ft, 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath home in Orting's Carbon River Landing.&nbsp; Originally built in 2005, this&nbsp;spacious home has been lovingly updated with new kitchen cabinets complete with under cabinet lighting and&nbsp;soft close drawers.&nbsp; New slab granite counters, tile backsplash, stainless steel appliances, large kitchen island&nbsp;and hardwood floors are a few of the upgrades you'll find inside.



This home is eligible for the USDA 100% financing program



Brand new stainless steel appliances 



Stainless Steel sink and oil rubbed bronze fixtures and hardware

This kitchen is nicer than most of the homes I've seen on Lake Tapps.&nbsp; You just don't find this type of quality very often in the $229,000 price range in Orting.&nbsp; 



Large master suite with jumbo walk in closet


If it's time for you to buy a new home in Orting, this one is definitely worth a look.&nbsp; It's priced to sell quickly, get in the car and see it today! ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Sat, 17 Sep 2011 06:49:39 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/pierce-county-short-sale.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/pierce-county-short-sale.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Pierce County Short Sale</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
If you owe more than your Pierce County home is worth in today's market you may be searching for options to reduce your financial burden?&nbsp; Perhaps that's how you found my blog?

People in this situation are often under a tremendous amount of stress and are vulnerable to receiving poor advice from unqualified sources.&nbsp; While the Internet is a wonderful thing, it's not always a reliable source of information.

A quick Internet search reveals many possible options that may or may not be available to a struggling homeowner.&nbsp; I see sites touting mortgage modifications, walking away, short sales, deed in lieu of foreclosure and several more exotic remedies designed to help distressed home owners who need to sell but can't write a large check at closing.

It's nice to have options, but which option is right for you?

That's a great question and here's my answer.&nbsp; &quot;I don't know and I couldn't tell you if I did.&quot;

As a real estate managing broker experienced with short sales, I can tell you many things.&nbsp; I know what paperwork we need to submit to the bank.&nbsp; I know what price the bank will likely take.&nbsp; I know how to market your home and attract a good offer.&nbsp; I know the entire process inside and out.

What I don't know is which option is best for you and neither does any other non attorney real estate agent, broker or managing broker. The best option for you depends upon your motivation, your future plans, the type of mortgage you have, your financial outlook and the law.

What you need is legal advice.&nbsp; Unless a REALTOR is also a licensed Washington State Attorney, they aren't qualified to provide you legal advice on how to deal with this situation in Pierce County.&nbsp; You'll need to speak with licensed attorney for that.

Choose the right attorney!

My advice is to use a local, experienced attorney who is familiar with the current trends in the industry and has a solid track record of success. Whether you pursue a loan modification, short sale, deed in lieu or just walk away, you want to make sure you are receiving good relevant advice from a trusted attorney.

Before you list your home as a short sale, give me a call and I'll put you in touch with a local real estate attorney who provides a $150.00 consultation that will explain ALL your options.
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 11 Aug 2011 10:38:39 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/flip-this-house.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.brettsellshouses.com/blog/flip-this-house.html</link>
            <author>broker@nwhomebrokers.com (Brett Tousley)</author>
            <title>Flip this House!</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
If I brought an opportunity to you that was 2012 assessed at over $300,000 and you could buy it for $192,000 would you pull the trigger?&nbsp; 

An experienced investor might answer that question this way.&nbsp; Tell me more.

This is a 2500 sq ft daylight basement home on an acre overlooking the Sumner Valley.&nbsp; You can see the Puyallup fairgrounds from the deck currently and with some pruning, you'd have a panoramic view of the valley.&nbsp; It needs a good cleaning and some upgrades but overall the home is in fair to average condition.

The main floor has beautiful oak hardwoods throughout, with a large fireplace and big windows to enjoy the view.&nbsp; Downstairs is a large rec room with another fireplace, a two car garage, 3/4 bath, an office and a big slider opening out to the back yard.

It's a HUD approved short sale at the current price.&nbsp; Unlike many short sales, this price is already approved by the lien holder and response times are roughtly 48 hours.

&quot;Why hasn't someone else scooped this up yet?&quot;

There's several reasons for that.

1st.&nbsp; The people currently living in the home are tough to reach and arrange showings.&nbsp; We've had more unsuccessful attempts to show the home than successful showings.

2nd. There is a large pit bull currently in the property.&nbsp; No joke, the dog got loose during a showing and trapped a Realtor in a bedroom.&nbsp; She ultimately had to climb out the window.&nbsp; She didn't write an offer...Imagine that! :)

3rd. You'll notice that I don't have any interior pictures of the home.&nbsp;Statistically,&nbsp;homes with multiple pictures sell much quicker than homes&nbsp;with&nbsp;only a few.&nbsp;I'd love to take pictures of the interior but the housekeeping situation isn't conducive to showing off the home on the Internet.&nbsp; Like I said, it needs a good cleaning.

http://www.brettsellshouses.com/idx/properties/196183/details.html

If you are in the market for a home priced 1/3rd below assessed value, give me a call. 253-820-2745

&nbsp;
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            <pubDate>Fri, 05 Aug 2011 12:31:29 -0700</pubDate>
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