Last May (2011) I got involved in a farm that the owner wanted to sell. Didn't need to sell but made sense from a business point. It was a large organic farm of about 200 acres though only about 150 was planted. Got the basic information and provided it to a buyer. About 30 days in I met the buyer and their rep at the property and we spent an afternoon touring the site and talking to some of the staff. Then followed more requests for information. Finally an offer was delivered but it was $800,000 under the asking price. Sellers blew it off. In retrospect this offer started both parties on a path of not trusting each other and ascribing ulterior motives to their actions which almost killed the deal.

From May to September the potential buyers kept coming back asking for more information on this and other properties and came back and looked a couple times more too. All this time I was keeping the seller informed of the activities. Finally, about the end of October, things picked up again. In fact an offer came in $300K under asking but all cash, no feasibility and a very quick close.  Due to travel and other issues it took my seller about two weeks to respond. My party countered 100K over the offer and asked to extend the closing thirty days as harvest was not yet finished.. There was also a potential environmental issue (or at least the wording of the disclaimer) and a couple fairly minor things that could be easily agreed to. Buyers stalled and asked for more information. More back and forth and trust was slipping on both sides. 

Middle of November I left on much needed vacation. Kept checking in to see if any movement etc. Returning on December 1st nothing has happened except a couple more visits to the property and the seller had wrapped up his crop year. I called the seller and was instructed to tell the buyer that in five days the counter would be withdrawn and property off the market. No response.

End of December I had another client that had an interest, we wrote an offer but again it was not high enough and the offer was refused. 

January 5th I get a call in the afternoon from the first buyers agent, they wanted to know if they could come back in with a new offer... so I called my seller and got a go ahead. Offer comes in at the price of the counter that was cancelled back in the first part of December and all other terms are agreed to. Seller says great but not so fast we now want you to buy all the equipment which is worth 200K more. More back and fourth... both parties attorneys are also involved. In fact the negotiations have moved into the legal arena... in large part to do with the trust thing. A week a and a visit and an inventory  and a price of 100K is agreed to. Finally a new counter from the buyers agreeing to everything, all cash and close in under ten days. OOOPS... this is a farm and there is a growing crop... we gotta get paid for that too.... ohhh boy... eventually we are down to less than $10K on a deal totaling almost $2.1MM... at five pm when both parties are ready to pack up and go home we solve the last 10K we now have a deal and are moving forward to close in mind Feb! WHEW... to the credit of my seller he knew what he wanted, was not afraid to ask and could justify what he wanted and had a great accounting system that could produce good data. The buyer was strong and also knew what they wanted . So now the fun part starts... closing here we come!

Well they are, but here is an interesting chart from a friend at Peoples Bank (Darel Ansley who blogs here) that shows a very interesting perspective on rates... take a look.

By current standards rates are low... but they have been lower... in the late 40's to about 1950 they were lower and helped fuel the growth that was to come later on. Also i remember doing mortgages during the 80's when the rate spiked... water cooler conversation was "gee if rates would just get back down to 12% we could really do some business"... and we did

Throughout all of this we adjust. Regardles of rates and economy there are always people that need to buy and sell... our job is to take care of them!

When I first got into this business many "older" agents told me you could pretty much take late Fall and December off as not much happened. Well I guess you could but why...with all the other agents taking time off it leaves more opportunities for those that stay and keep hitting the ball! So I find that it is one of my favorite times to help buyers and sellers come together. Whether listing a house for sale in Wenatchee or presenting an offer on a Chelan County or Douglas County home it is a great time of year to buy and sell homes and other properties in and around Wenatchee. Recently I wrote a post to my web site blog about this topic (Buying and Selling Homes in the Fall) 

I enjoy the work and the people. With the Holidays around the corner motivation on both sides seems to increase... it can truly be the Best of Times!

As you learn in real estate, markets are largely local! One region, state or city my be in the dumps and another may be rocking along. Buying or selling home is happening all over the country including Wenatchee and East Wenatchee Washington.

The Wenatchee real estate market is really no different. We are close to Seattle and so, to a certain extent, what happens in the Seattle metro area eventually transfers to Wenatchee and Chelan or Douglas County real estate. But the inverse is also true. But even so we still have our unique housing market... different from everyone else. Many of the same national real estate trends and politics eventually get down to the local level. 

Recently I was interviewed by the local paper The Wenatchee Daily World regarding real estate and how the local housing market was responding. We sometimes hear so much negative press we assume everything is negative. But that is not true. No we are not in a runaway market...no way but the market, given what is going on is not that bad. In fact in many ways it is ok... a little shaky perhaps but far from dead and or dying. So in my interview I address some of these questions... here is a link to the article and if you need more information you may try my web site www.wenatcheehomeswithperrin.com or drop me a line here!

Have a great 4th and take a minute to remember what we are really celebrating!

Here is a recent article I wrote for the Wenatchee World. Hope you enjoy it!

It is fun, from time to time, to turn away from pure real estate and talk about other matters and ideas. We all have a treasure trove of information in our closets someplace if we only ake the time to stop and look and listen. At 101 my dad can't be expected to be around too much longer so it is especially important to me to take a few minutes every so often.  But it is more than just time. It is who we are... as a people and as a society. So enough with the commentary... enjoy the article and the trip back..

Eastern Washington University has put together a web page entitled Chelan Douglas Trends. It is a very good attempt to provide information about the area surrounding Wenatchee Washington. The site includes a lot of data covering everything from Housing to economics, people, culture, housing, public safety, environment, and several other areas of interest as well.

People interested in living in Wenatchee or the surrounding area or buying a home in Wenatchee or East Wenatchee may find the data both informative and very useful. If you are interested click this link to the site and scan the information you are interested in. Then if you hop over to my web site under my blogs, you will find a list of sites and companies providing additional information about living in North Central Washington and Wenatchee and East Wenatchee in particular.

So if you are interested in buying or selling a home in Wenatchee or east Wenatchee or just curious how your area stacks up take a look! 

Year end and lots of data starting to flow. It gets confusing and sometimes hard to interpret... after all real estate is local... but it is also influenced by national trends!

We all know pretty much what is going on in the interest rate world...still very low though higher. The Mortgage Bankers Assn seems to think they will top out in 2011 around 5.5% and FNMA is guessing 5.75%. But even with that kind of an increase still very livable!

Consumer confidence, which may be equally important, has shown some life though there was a recent down tick and looks like retailers had a pretty fair Christmas season. All good news! Employment isn't quite as good and depending on where it goes could be the final word on whether or not 2011 will be the year for the turnaround for real estate and for the economy. 

But pretty much everyone agrees that for things to happen real estate has to move. Kind of a chicken or the egg type situation. Real estate needs good rates and employment...but employment needs real estate too as do retail and other segments.

So I stumbled across a report from FHA/HUD regarding the current state of the real estate market. This report is blatantly political in title and first few panes (my opinion) BUT it does get better and has some pretty good data. In fact there is a lot to read. While the report is not wildly optimistic it does paint a much better picture of real estate and the housing market than you may see elsewhere. Now it says little about the housing market in Wenatchee or any other local area. But the national figures are good and valuable. Possibly beats slaughtering a goat to read its entrails...lol

Anyway I hope it is of some help. If you are interested in my blog come on over and see what I say there too. 

Perrin Cornell, Broker, ABR

Century 21 Exclusively, Wenatchee, WA

Web Site

Wow, coming down to the wire! Christmas and New Years around the corner. budgets, sales and family and then there is the meaning of Christmas.  So going back in time here is a link to a six minute video that is as worth watching today as it was when it came out in the '60's! Especially as we go froward take a minute to reflect. The hustle, bustle, shopping, stress, are all important and fun.  But never forget "Tiny Tim's Roast Hot as a Chestnut Ought...now with xk24 added..." My cards going out this week will be reminiscent of those proposed by the guy that owns the Spice Company in West Orange... so take a listen and a nostalgic ride back to the past...

Stan Freeberg Green Christmas 

... but probably not in the way you are thinking!

It snowed last night and this coming week we are supposed to see temperatures in the single digits! As a REALTOR in the Wenatchee/East Wenatchee area this creates a whole new set of circumstances we have not thought of since last February.

For example tomorrow I am doing an open house from 1-3. If the house is vacant this weekend I need to be sure and show up early to clear the driveway and a path to the front door. Also turn the heat up so the house is comfortable. While I am at it I'll also take a look around to be sure no pipes have frozen or leaks have occurred.

Last Thursday I called all of my clients, that have listings with me, to remind them that with cold weather they may want to be sure their house is ready too. If vacant perhaps get it winterized. If occupied keep walks and steps clear Check outside faucets to be sure they don't freeze and if any have a hose connected get it disconnected and stored away.

When showing houses to clients, I will put a shovel in the back of my car (amazing at how many people do not clear their walkways) be sure I have a flashlight as vacant houses may be winterized, have electricity turned off and it gets dark early.

Point is a little forethought this time of year for those of us that live in snow/cold can pay big dividends or at the least make you day more enjoyable.

Perrin Cornell, Broker, ABR

Century 21 Exclusively, Wenatchee

Web Site

perrin.cornell@gmail.com

Interesting, banks (or so I have read) are sitting on about One Trillion in excess reserves. The Fed is trying to put additional cash into the economy and risking inflation. Banks are quick to point out that there is a) low demand and b) credit risk is too high. But as any real estate agent can tell you on the lending side, banks are doing everything they can to virtually discourage lending plus if they have a chance to get paid early on a short sale forget it. So I am sitting having a cup of coffee and thinking about these weighty matters along with whether or not Mr Sheehan is a nut cake (hey I said weighty matters). when I came upon the following site

  http://dfi.wa.gov/cs/pdf/2009-payday-lending-report.pdf

WOW look at the explosion in that type of lending (in just one state), let alone the pent up residential demand we know about. Sure they are not the same things... and sure the risks are different but... aww I think I'll go back to Sheehan...this is too deep and the meaning escapes me.

Perrin Cornell

Broker

Century 21 Exclusively

Perrin's Web Site