Kirsten Mohan's Blog

Home Decor Volume I - Holiday Decorating

Kirsten Mohan - Seattle Real Estate (John L. Scott) — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 00:21:23 -0800

Even though my blog’s main topic is Seattle Real Estate, I’d like to venture away from home sales, marketing information, and my own opinions for a moment to share with you my newest feature. Each month, I’m going to be posting at least one article about a local home, sharing with you ideas for design and décor from some of the Seattle area’s most interesting (at least to me!) homes. To kick things off, I decided to begin with some amazing holiday decorations from the Bothell home of Vickie and Jim Kahlke.

Each year, Vickie starts early and fills her home with creative and wonderful decorations for all of her guests to see at her legendary Christmas Eve feast. This year her home was filled with beautifully decorated trees and she turned her dining room into a snowflake-filled winter wonderland. Many of the decorations are handmade, and she puts it all together into such a beautiful package that I thought it would be a wonderful day-after-Christmas start to my newest blog series.

Let’s start with the trees. Yes, I said trees. By my count, there were at least 4, but I may have missed one somewhere… The main tree is in the living room, set back in front of a set of bay windows. It’s decorated with holiday bears, cute little holiday signs, and tied all over with bows. And of course, the presents under the tree all match the theme.

Because the Kahlkes are wine aficionados, there are two more trees – decorated in wine theme. One for white wine, one for red, placed on either side of the living room. The lights are grapes on the vine, and ornaments are all themed to red or white wine.

The living room decorations create a warm and festive environment, but it’s the dining room and especially the table centerpiece that really caught my attention. Because we’ve had record snowfall in the past week leading up to Christmas, she decided to add some very snowy decorations. With two feet of snow outside, she said “I’m not going anywhere, and it’s a winter wonderland outside, so I may as well make on inside, too!” Based on some garlands she’d seen decorating a store, she took fishing line and white pom-poms and made beautiful snowy garlands to hang from the chandelier. She took more, smaller pom-poms and threaded wire through them to make some very clever napkin rings. Placemats were made with sparkly white felt and cut in the shape of snowflakes. Other snowflakes were scattered around the center of the table, making the table festive and fun.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this first in the series, and that each and every one of you have had a wonderful holiday. Have a safe and wonderful 2009!

Next month’s featured home: a custom condo with modern finishes in Seattle’s Queen Anne neighborhood.

9508 167th Ave NE, Redmond, WA 98052

Kirsten Mohan - Seattle Real Estate (John L. Scott) — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 02:26:28 -0700

Welcome home to luxury! Beautiful updated fixtures give this home a stylish sensibility you'll love to live in. Enjoy your own private retreat in your sumptuous, cozy master looking out at the lushly landscaped private yard. Or entertain guests in the well-appointed kitchen and open floorplan. Later, take the party to the enclosed sunroom or out on the patio to enjoy all this beautiful home has to offer! Incredible use of space, impeccable style and impressive location make this home a must-see.

Beautiful landscaping, fresh paint, and cedar shake accents mean undeniable curb appeal!

Formal living room has newly refinished hardwood floors, beautiful neutral colors and a great use of space. Perfect for entertaining!

Open floorplan features a dining area off the kitchen, which then opens to the family room. Beautiful slate floors enhance the entire area.

Great space for entertaining in the family room off the kitchen. Details like the built in shelves make this the perfect space for any gathering.

Relax in the beautiful master you deserve with designer colors, refinished hardwoods and a gorgeous ceiling fan.

What a beautiful main bath! Everything is updated, including the subway tile, new vanity, and gorgeous tile floors.

Bring the party out here! Enjoy a cool drink in the enclosed sunroom, or head out to the patio to take in the sun. This home is truly an entertainer's dream!

Two level yard has wonderful spaces for entertaining, and the brand new fence gives this home a wonderful level of privacy.

Great video about driving traffic to your blog via comments

Kirsten Mohan - Seattle Real Estate (John L. Scott) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 17:28:24 -0700

Just in case you needed a reminder about insightful, valuable comments being a great way to drive traffic to your blog, here's a great video from problogger showcasing some great clicktracking software called CrazyEgg. The software generates a heatmap of a webpage to show where people are clicking, so you can see what catches people's attention, and what doesn't. Very interesting to see where people are clicking when they are reading blog comments... Enjoy!

It never hurts to have a little reminder that valuable participation will help your blog so much in the long run.

Kirsten Mohan | Seattle Real Estate

Great article about real estate markets across the country

Kirsten Mohan - Seattle Real Estate (John L. Scott) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 02:10:41 -0700

Here's a great article from the Wall Street Journal about the national Real Estate Market. With all the varying opnions and articles out there, it's nice to see a chart with some cold, hard facts. Take a look!

*This article is particularly of note to Seattle buyers and sellers. I speak with people all the time who aren't aware of how much better the market is here than in other parts of the country. Our real estate market and job market outlook is strong, which means that for some people, this market can be a great one in which to buy. For sellers out there, it's important to know that properties that are priced right and marketed very well still sell in a timely manner.

Where Housing is Headed

Kirsten Mohan | Seattle Real Estate

Oh Market Downturn, How Do I Love Thee?

Kirsten Mohan - Seattle Real Estate (John L. Scott) — Sat, 17 May 2008 17:49:50 -0700

Let me count the ways...

No, seriously folks, there are a lot of good things that come out of a slower market.

First, I must point out that I'm writing about the Seattle area, which hasn't been hit nearly as hard as many parts of the country. Our foreclosure rate in March was 1 in 705, not 1 in 204 as it is was California for the same month. And people have been hit hard here, some of them clients of mine, who I care for deeply and work my fanny off trying to help every way I can. But if we can set that aside for a moment, I'd like to talk about something not many people are talking about: the reasons why a market correction can be a good thing.

If you are looking to buy, be it a home for yourself or an investment property, now is a great time! When have we ever had tons of homes on the market to choose from, and low interest rates combined? Never! Obviously, we're in a very wierd place with all the mortgage problems, but if you have good credit and can actually afford to buy a home, you can get a really great deal! The same is true if you want an investment/rental property. There are some really motivated sellers out there and some deals to be had that many will wish they had taken advantage of in a year or two.

If you need to sell, you're not necessarily trapped, you just have to be more savvy than before. You need an agent who knows what they are doing, and who knows how to market your property. Here's some advice: if you are looking to sell, find an agent who has some good listings and aggressively markets them. They don't have to be the highest producing agent in your neighborhood or city (in fact, you might not want an agent with too many listings, since their time and money is likely to be tied up in the 20 other listings they need to sell before yours does...), but they do need to have experience and skill. They need to use professional vendors and know enough about current market and marketing trends to do what's necessary to get your home sold.

And selfishly, as an agent, I love that many part time, inexperienced agents are getting out of the business. Everyone thinks they can sell real estate, but it's truly a complicated process. An agent has a responsibility to protect their client as best they can, and how well can you protect someone if you're at another job 40 hours a week, or haven't ever actually read a contract start to finish? Consumers are way better off in a market where the agents that survive are typically more seasoned, experienced, and have a record of client satisfaction.

It really is an exciting time, if you can see past the doom and gloom of the headlines!

Kirsten Mohan | Seattle Real Estate

All photography courtesy Bryce Mohan, Seattle Photographer.

11705 NE 98th St, Kirkland WA 98033

Kirsten Mohan - Seattle Real Estate (John L. Scott) — Thu, 08 May 2008 23:48:45 -0700

Stunningly remodeled home in Kirkland Highlands!

Kitchen features gorgeous cabinets, granite countertops, stainless appliance package, and bay window perfect for your fresh herbs!

Beautiful open floorplan with vaulted ceilings, hardwood floors, upstairs bonus room and more!

Relax in the large master suite which includes a walk-in closet, and master bath is fully appointed with granite countertops, double sinks, and incredible tile floors. Additional bedrooms are spacious and light, and you won't believe the closet space! Truly a must-see home!

And be sure to check out the video tour of the home to get an even better feel for how this gorgeous home looks and feels.

Kirsten Mohan | Seattle Real Estate

Proudly providing exceptional service to buyers and sellers in Bellevue, Kirkland, Issaquah, Seattle, and all surrounding areas.

All photography courtesy Bryce Mohan, Seattle Photographer.