misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Pay Off Your Mortgage Early
- 11/28/08 09:54 AM
How would you like to save 7 1/2 years of mortgage payments from your thirty-year fixed mortgage. That means you can pay off your home in 22 1/2 years instead of 30.
It is easier than you think. All you have to do is make one extra payment per year.
One very easy way to do this is to make bi-weekly payments. Some banks and credit unions will set up bi-weekly payment systems for you.
When I had my loan with the Whatcom Educational Credit Union, they were very obliging and set me up so that payments would automatically be made … (1 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Fairhaven Kicks Off the Holiday Season
- 11/26/08 02:57 PM
This weekend will be the beginning of the holiday season in Fairhaven's historic district. Fairhaven's century old buildings and streets will be lit up and decorated for the season. Some of the shops will have their windows painted by kids from the Fairhaven Middle School Art Club.
The weekend festivities in Village Green will include musicians, carolers, a Victorian Santa who will arrive at 1 PM in a horse drawn carriage on both Friday and Saturday. At 4:30 PM on Friday you can come dressed up as Ebenezer Scrooge for the best Scrooge contest on the Village Green stage.
There will … (1 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Highland Heights Park Neighbors Care
- 11/24/08 11:39 AM
The Alabama Hill neighborhood has two parks, St. Clair and Highland Heights. The neighbors and users of Highland Heights Park have recently started a blog to try and get others interested in helping to get the city to make some needed upgrades to the park.
It seems like some of the park equipment has been breaking down and is being removed by the city. The good news is that the city has said that new playground equipment and professional service and design for the park are part of the 2009 city budget. The actual construction phase is in the 2010 budget. … (1 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Sudden Valley's Awesome Golf Course
- 11/22/08 05:43 AM
The Sudden Valley golf course was designed to be the centerpiece for the private community of Sudden Valley. It is rated "Four Stars" by Golf Digest. Sudden Valley has been the site of many major Northwest tournaments including a Washington State Open, four Washington State Men's Amateur Championships, a Master-40, a Washington State Senior Women's Championship, the Men's Mid-Am and numerous PNWPGA Pro-Amateur tournaments. There is a full service pro shop for all of your golfing needs, a bar & Grill that is open 7 days a week and an all grass practice facility that is maintained with same degree of … (2 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: The Padden Mudfest - Sunday, Nov 9.
- 11/07/08 09:08 AM
The Padden Mudfest takes place Sunday, Nov 9.
It is a 7 mile trail race taking placealmost entirely on horse trails above the Lake Padden. It is a very hilly course with the exciting potential for muddy and sloppy condition.
This unique race offers some of the muddy conditions and challenging hill climbs usually found only in ultra runs.
If you like a mix of trails, mud, and hills, this run is for you.
… (2 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Bellingham receives 2008 Green Power Leadership Award
- 10/31/08 07:19 AM
Bellingham has received a 2008 Green Power Leadership Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and was one of only five organizations nationwide to be chosen as a Green Power Partner of the Year.
Bellingham has been honored with this prestigious national award twice now. EPA Green Power Partners distinguish themselves through their purchase, leadership, overall strategy, and impact on the green power market.
Bellingham is presently purchasing 81 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually from Puget Sound Energy, enough green power to meet 11 percent of the community's purchased electricity use.
Bellingham's green power purchase is equivalent to … (0 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: The 4th Bellingham Juggling Festival - October 31 - November 2nd
- 10/31/08 06:59 AM
The Zombies of Juggling
The 4th Bellingham Juggling Festival is taking place this weekend Oct 31 - Nov 2. if The annual event will take place at the Dream Science Laboratory in downtown Bellingham.
This is also a great place to learn how to juggle. professional jugglers will be teaching round the clock so the you can learn to juggle all weekend at the Bellingham Juggling Festival (zombies of juggling), it's Halloween so costumes are welcome. Anyone is invited to showcase their unusual talents, like juggling, unicycling, rope tricks and acrobatics during open gym times throughout the weekend.
The suggested $10-20 for the juggling weekend … (0 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Halloween in Historic Fairhaven
- 10/29/08 08:18 AM
Fairhaven is a great place to take the kids for Halloween.
All sorts of goblins, princesses, ghosts, wizards, and other creatures--will be walking the streets of the Historic District . Most of the shops are decorated for the holiday, and there will be treats for the youngsters at most of the merchants.
Fairhaven Pharmacy will be taking pictures of the costumed visitors, so put them on your list of places to see.
The Bellingham Storytellers Guildwill be busy in Fairhaven on Halloween spinning tales in the Readings Gallery at Village Books from 4-6pm and later at Fairhaven Library starting at 7:30pm, for the … (1 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Unveiling of Bronze Statue for C.X. Larrabee - Saturday, Oct 18
- 10/17/08 06:44 AM
A bronze statue honoring one of Fairhaven's founding father's will be unveiled Saturday, Oct. 18 at 3 pm, between Flats Tapas Bar and the Rustic Coffee Bar on 11th St. at the entrance to McKenzie Alley, followed by a free reception in the Waldron Building.
The same sculptor who created the Dirty Dan Harris statue on the Village Green, Bob McDermott, has created a bronze bust of Fairhaven builder C.X. Larrabee. Dirty Dan may have started Fairhaven, but it was who Larrabee helped build it.
He was building Fairhaven from 1889 until 1915.
Larrabee and his wife, Frances are well know for donating the … (0 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Want to learn about mushrooms - come to Bellingham's Wild Mushroom Show
- 10/13/08 07:29 AM
The Northwest Mushroomers Association will host its annual Wild Mushroom Show at Bloedel Donovan Park, from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 19.
The Northwest woods are loaded with mushrooms, more than 1,000 species. Many of them will be on display at this annual event. You can learn to identify commmon mushrooms, see displays of locally collected mushrooms, and a cultivation demonstration.
Come out and learn about what is edible and what's not, and taste mushroom foods from a sample kitchen. You can even bring mushrooms from your own backyard or nearby woods for identification by local experts.
image courtesy flickr.com by KdB1
… (0 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Good Faith Estimates -- Knowing the basics - A must read !!!
- 10/13/08 06:58 AM
Consumers need to know what they are getting into. It is hard to believe but sometimes they don't get all the right information but it does happen. Buyers beware, if your shopping for a loan you need to know what it is going to cost you, and the best way to compare rates is to look at your Good Faith Estimate.
Here is a great explanation why! by Jeff Belonger, a 15 year veteran of the mortgage industry and the FHA Mortgage Expert from Cherry Hill, NJ
Good Faith Estimates -- Such an extremely vital part when shopping for … (0 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Curb Appeal - An unususal way to green up a lawn
- 10/09/08 07:53 AM
Nick Terlouw from Stockton, CA, has launched the Greener Grass Co., a service in which he sprays dead lawns with a deep green, water-based dye that makes the lawn look good enough for a golf course or a professional football stadium.
He uses a motor-powered 50-gallon insecticide sprayer designed for treating orchard trees. He says that he got the idea for the new business from football games.
"They paint logos on football fields," he said. "Why can't we do the same for homes?"
Terlouw is marketing his service to real estate agents and property managers. With home foreclosures on the rise he is expecting … (0 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Latest on Bellingham's Waterfront Redevelopement
- 09/30/08 10:32 AM
Mayor Dan Pike has just released a new report called "The Waterfront Connections Plan."
The city of Bellingham and the port of Bellingham have taken on the task of redeveloping 137 acres of prime downtown waterfront real estate that for many, many years was the home of the Georgia Pacific Co. pulp and paper mill. This piece of real estate will change the face of Bellingham and make it a vibrant waterfront city
"This fall, Port and City officials are bringing to the public the results of extensive work during the past year, including reports detailing environmental impacts of waterfront redevelopment … (0 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Protect Your Credit Score and Opt-out of Unsolicited Offers
- 09/26/08 06:16 AM
Would you like to stop receiving unsolicited offers for credit cards? You can.
Loan officers and processors must run credit reports to see what kind of a loan you qualify for to buy your dream home. All one needs is a name, address and social security number.
But as soon as the credit report is run, it triggers the credit bureaus to "provide" (sell?) that information to subscribing lenders who will then telemarketer the person.
I have even been told by a loan officer recently that these inquiries do lower your credit score slightly for each time one of these companies … (2 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: New Video celebrates Downtown Bellingham's revitalization
- 09/24/08 07:16 AM
Downtown Bellingham has returned to the thriving, vibrant center it was years ago, before the era of the mall. With the new downtown waterfront in it's future Bellingham's downtown can only get better.
The successful revitalization of downtown Bellingham and the partnerships that have made it possible are shown in a new video available to view on-line and on Bellingham own TV station, BTV10.
The video celebrates the successes that revitalization has had, it includes re-development of one of the centers of town, the corner of Railroad and Holly Street, the home of Bellingham's Farmer's Market - Depot Market Square, new businesses and facade improvements, historic … (1 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Bellingham's new Barkley Branch Library
- 09/16/08 11:03 AM
Bellingham Public Library opened its first new branch in 84 years with a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at the Barkley Branch on Saturday, September 13 .
The 1,400 square foot branch has been generously donated by the Barkley Company, who constructed and outfitted the space as a library and have given it to the Library rent-free for 42 months. The Barkley Branch will have 4 public Internet workstations in addition to WiFi access, a browsing collection of library materials, and holds pickup and drop off capabilities. The library will hold children's story times on Saturdays beginning in October.
The new Barkley Branch will be … (2 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Fairhaven Runners Waterfront 15K Race - Saturday, Sept 15
- 09/11/08 05:26 PM
Saturday, September 13: 8:30am - Fairhaven Runners Waterfront 15K Race
One of the biggest annual running events in Bellingham will take place Saturday. It is too late to enter
This 9.3-mile loop race is on Bellingham Bay's beautiful waterfront trail, with views of the bay, San Juan Islands, Olympic Mountains, and Mount Baker.
The race ends at Fairhaven's Village Green, where the post-race party will be held, one block from the start.
It is too late to enter, but you can still enjoy cheering on your favorite racers and enjoying the party.
The race is presented by Fairhaven Runners and Walkers in partnership with Bellingham Parks … (1 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: The Fairhaven Salmon Barbeque
- 09/05/08 12:55 PM
Saturday, September 6: - The Fairhaven Salmon Barbeque
I remember the days of the old Fairhaven Salmon BBQ every fall, in the 1980s and even 1990's, It was a great event in one of the empty lots on Harris Ave. After Sea-to-Ski, it was the biggest party of the year in Fairhaven. Great Music and a great salmon dinner............Yum...................................... and now it's back after a hugely popular return last year!Now, the Village Green, will be where the event is held. The menu includes Pacific Northwest salmon--cooked by local fishermen who know the best barbecuing secrets.
The cost includes the salmon, with some sidedishes, like salad, bread, … (1 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Bellingham author Clyde Ford presents a new concept - a Book Video
- 09/01/08 07:45 AM
Bellingham author Clyde Ford is an innovator.
At 7pm Tues., Sept. 2, at The Leopold Crystal Ballroom, Ford will begin his national book tour of Precious Cargo and will be preseting a 20-minute special features video narrated by Morgan Freeman and features readings by Ruby Dee and by Roscoe Orman, who's best known as Gordon on "Sesame Street," and by Swil Kanim, the Lummi actor, storyteller and violinist who starred in Sherman Alexie's movie "The Business of Fancydancing."
The video isn't a movie version of the book. It is something new and innovative.
Ford wants to encourage readers. "We're in danger of losing … (2 comments)
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misc ramblings from your bellingham real estate pro: Fairhaven Events For Aug 29 -30
- 08/29/08 10:24 AM
Friday, August 29, 7-9pm - free - Sycamore Square - 1200 Harris Ave., corner of Harris & 12th Street.It's the last Friday of the month event, Sycamore Square business owners present lively entertainment--musicians, hula hoop and belly dancers, performances--on the landing outside of Coda Musical Instruments and the Archives. Tonight's show features Reid Kerr, Ms. B Hooping Allure, and other special guests. 9pm - free - Live Music at Skylark's: Meredith Connie
Saturday, August 30, 8:00 pm: the Firehouse: Julian MacDonough, Mike Allen & Sean Cronin in concertA performance of interplay and swing with Julian MacDonough on drums, Mike Allen on tenor sax, and … (0 comments)
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How would you like to save 7 1/2 years of mortgage payments from your thirty-year fixed mortgage. That means you can pay off your home in 22 1/2 years instead of 30.
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