A mere 6 years ago, both my children were still in elementary school, my parents and in-laws were all alive and still actively working and the future seemed to stretch ahead endlessly.  Fast forward to the present and my son is about to graduate from high school (in 4 months he will be hundreds of miles away at college), my in laws both have suffered the infirmities of aging, my father has passed away and my mother, as I write, lies in ICU fighting for her life.

With our busy, active lifestyles we do not notice time slipping by...until the changes are suddenly thrown upon us.  A few years ago, I helped the parents of a friend of mine to purchase a retirement home closer to her and her family.  While at the time purchasing a 2nd home at a 55 plus community was a difficult decision for them to make (who wants to admit getting older, after all?) today they are greatful that they made that decision.  It has given them time to transition to a new era in their lives and has also provided them with an opportunity to be closer to their children and grandchild.  As the time approaches when they will not be as mobile as they are today, they also recognise that their second home might become their primary residence in a few years.  It will be good for them to be closer to family & to be able to get assistance, if needed, while keeping some independence.

For me, my mother is thousands of miles away in a completely different country.  Flying to her from the west coast means a 23 hour flight (not mentioning the waiting time at airports.)  If there is a crisis, the quickest I can expect to be there is within 2 days.  My family in the Seattle area also needs me and I am torn between caring for my family and caring for my aging parent...and there are no easy solutions or answers.  I cannot I go back to our lives 6 years ago, but so wish that time could be reversed! If it was poosible,  I would've had a conversation with my parents about purchasing a home closer to mine or my sister's.   What a difference it would've made to my present situation! 

To put it bluntly, it really sucks being stuck in the sandwich generation.  With the baby boomer generation -- of which I am at the tail end-- aging, the best advice I can give anyone  is that if you are part of the growing aging population, try to move closer to family if you can possibly do so (or want to do so!)...even if it is a second home that you will be occupying for only part of the year.  Personally, that is what I plan to do sometime in the future.  I do not want to repeat the mistakes of past decisions!   

Anyone have any advice (positive or negative) to share regarding partnerships/teams?

Years ago, my father started telling me that by the time you reach the end of March, you've reached the end of the year.  At 20-something I found his words of advice quite amusing.  After all, most of the year, and my life, still lay ahead.  It really didn't make sense to me how my dad could think of  March as the end of the year.  

As I've gotten a bit  older :) I realize the wisdom of his words...and its actually very applicable to us in real estate.  By March we have layed the foundation for our year; we've worked out our business plan, marketing and networking strategies, we are in full swing to take on clients whether they are relocating, downsizing, upsizing, first time home buyers or those in need of a change.  By the time spring ends and summer starts we will have helped clients start new lives -- either by selling their homes and/or finding a new house and helping with their transaction.  Fall & winter still bring buyers and sellers -- the process never really ends -- but the end of the year is already in the crosshairs. 

Guess time flies when you're having fun; just never realized how quickly it all goes by...and to think it is already the end of March and therefore close to the end of the year! 

Perhaps it was the fact that the sun suddenly came out after a few days of rain and overcast skies in Seattle, but on my way home late this afternoon, I was suddenly blinded by the light.  No, not trying to reference a bad song of years ago, but an Accord driving infront of me that was emanating an intense light from its lisence plate area.  Coming to a stop at a traffic light, I realized that it wasn't a design flaw of the car, but that the owner had decided to add a custom chrome license plate frame.  As the sun shone on it,  light was reflected so brightly, that it was as if the car had a set of extra strong HID lights shining from the back of the car.  Trust me, it's difficult shielding one's eyes from light coming so strongly from the back of a car!  Realized that custom license frames made out of chrome or steel are not a good idea.  It might look good on your car and draw attention to whatever you want to say or advertise, but it might also leave your fellow drivers agitated at best, or blinded at worse!

Just a quick reminder to all the first time home buyers out there, that you only have until November 30th 2009 to close on a house in order to qualify to collect the up to $ 8000 tax credit.  I am attaching a video that explains exactly how the tax credit works!   

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIVb2ordwNQ

Here's a great opportunity to own a 3 bedroom condo with 2 full bathrooms in Kirkland!   

I have a new listing on Lake Washington.  The home is in Kenmore and features 62 feet of no-bank waterfront, moorage for 3-4 boats and it has 4 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms.  All primary rooms face the lake!  Rather than me writing about it, check out the video I made on the house!

Kirkland, WA is a suburb of Seattle on the eastside of Lake Washington.  An affluent community,  Kirkland, with its art gallery and boutique store downtown fronting  Lake Washington, has some of the highest priced real estate in Washington.  A few miles up from downtown is Totem Lake, a community of Kirkland.  With many condominiums, apartments, established neighborhoods as well as some newer construction commuinities, Totem Lake is a great place to live.  With easy access to the interstate, Totem Lake provides area residents an easy commute to major area employers on the Eastside as well as a do able commute to Seattle or Everett.  Totem Lake has good area schools.  The Totem Lake area is also known for its medical services. One of the biggest hospitals on the Eastside, namely Evergreen Hospital, is located here and surrounding the hospital are numerous private practices by specialists. 

I just wanted to share a bit of happy news.  Late last year I sold a wonderful house to clients in the 55+ community of Trilogy in Redmond, WA.  I just heard that they, like all the residents I've ever spoken to in that community, love their home and the whole lifestyle that Trilogy offers.   Trilogy is a very active community.  One of the on-site sales agents likes to say that the "R" word doesn't ever enter their vocabulary and he is right...Trilogy is not a "retirement" community.  Instead it is a community for active adults who love the outdoors (miles of trails, a golf course, tennis courts) love to be active in clubs (over 60 of them exist at Trilogy including a travel club) love to take great courses (offered at the club house by UW) and love to remain active (fantastic health club in the community with spa and massage services!)  So glad my clients have found such a wonderful place to enjoy living!

Incorporated as a city in 1913, Duvall  has about 5000 residents and is located about a 20 minute drive from Redmond, WA.  It is a wonderful community with a mix of affordable new construction family homes, established neighborhoods, homes on acreage and a few farms scattered in between.  Downtown Duvall is a delight with antique stores, coffee shops, restaurants and more.  A bit south of the historic downtown several new hip shopping plazas offer area residents the convenience of city life while enjoying the ambience and tranquility of country living.

From sidewalk art as pictured above, to a very friendly and walkable downtown as pictured below, Duvall offers plenty to do for residents and visitors alike.