Cashmere, WA - Apartment For Rent

Available September 1st:
* $595 / month
* Spacious 2 bedroom, 1 bath
* Central heating & air conditioning
* 2 Parking spots
* Convenient location near downtown


Call Carol for more info or a preview:
509-670-7840

East Wenatchee - Multi-Family

Dear Readers,
Here is some info on a new-on-the-market listing for a multi-family property. It is actually two 4-plex buildings on two tax parcels, selling together:

$449,900
$3800 per month stated income
$125 - laundry income

Taxes: $3468

Please let me know if you're interested in a preview or additional information on this property.

Carol

Help Needed For Buyers

Dear Readers,
I am working with several buyers looking for multi-family income properties. So far we have not found just what they are looking for through the Multiple Listing Service. If you, or someone you know, is interested in selling please call or e-mail me:

* 20+ rental units (prefer brick structure): $ Negotiable depending on income
* Always need: Duplexes, 4-plexes and other multi-family income properties

* Always need: Fixer upper single family residences $ Any price range

On my other blog, I have posted an extensive list of needs for primary residence and land buyers. Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks,

Carol
Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
509-670-7840

Shared Appreciation Home Loans

Dear Readers,
As the real estate markets across the country continue to be hot, lenders are getting creative to compete for the business these days. One thing to remember is that, for the most part, any loan is available in any locale. All the lenders (big and small) work under the same federal guidelines. In other words, if you see an ad on TV for a great loan program, contact your favorite local lender and ask if is available. It has been my experience that the TV ads are not all they're cracked up to be and end up being a big nuisance because you're not dealing with a local lender who knows the local market. So, whether you're buying Wenatchee real estate or real estate in New York City... don't be fooled by a "come on" ad. Do your due diligence and work with a local lender whenever possible.

One of the more recent developments is the 40 year mortgage as compared to the standard 30 year mortgage. This, of course, helps reduce the monthly payment... but stretches out your payments another 10 years. In analyzing some ammortization tables, the monthly reduction doesn't seem to justify the extended payment period but, as always, it's something to be considered depending on the individual circumstances.

A new concept that I had never heard of before is the "Shared Appreciation Home Loan". This is where the borrower gets a reduction in the interest rate in return for agreeing to share a percentage of future appreciation with the lender. I don't know if this type of loan is only available for single family residences or if an investment property would qualify. Neither do I know if the lender shares in the selling costs before calculating "equity".

I will see if I can learn more and report back. Whenever you are shopping for a loan, consider all options then choose the best one for your individual circumstances. One of the keys to doing this is finding a good mortgage officer who will be honest with you and not try to sell you on a loan option that will result in the highest commission to them.

Hope you're enjoying the week-end,
Carol

Multi-Family / Income Properties Available

There are only 9 Multi-family/income properties available
in the immdiate Wenatchee real estate market area, ranging
in price from: $125,000 - $1,050,000



Here is a summary of the properties:
$125,000 - 2 units (one 3-bedroom, one 2 bedroom) $1,000 per mo. stated income
$139,900 - 2 units (both 2-bedrooms) $1,100 per mo. stated income
$149,500 - 2 units (both 2 bedrooms) $ No stated income
$167,900 - 4 units (three 2 bedroom, one 2-bedroom) $1,600 per mo. stated income
$289,000 - 3 units (one three bedroom, one 2-bedroom, one 1-bedroom) $1,570 stated inc.
$399,900 - 3 units + 2 acres of pears and shop $ No stated income
$459,000 - 7 units (4 separate parcels with multiple possibilities) $3,100 stated income
$725,000 - 20 units (14 studios & six 1-bedrooms) $6,678.66 stated income per month
$1,050,000 - 32 units (all 1-bedroom, 1 bath) $12,640 per month stated income

Please call me for complete details and recommendations. You may also search for these and other properties on my main real estate website. Also, visit my other blog for current news, info and trends regarding the Wenatchee and East Wenatchee real estate market area.

Have a great week-end,
Carol

All information is deemed reliable but cannot be guaranteed.

Cashmere: 2.63 Acres - $700,000

Dear Readers,
The most interesting investment piece that's come up in the last few days is a 2.63 acre parcel for $700,000. Seems a little steep at $266,159.69 per acre... but what do I know. I have ceased to be amazed at what's going on in the real estate market.

This particular property is located next to the property currently being developed into the huge new Apple Annie's Antique Mall in Cashmere, along the main highway. I believe this property is owned by the same people developing the mall. With the mall running significantly over budget (and behind schedule), perhaps they are trying to cover some of the costs with the sale of this property. Just speculation on my part.

There have been several articles in the Wenatchee World over the last few months. If you go to the paper's website, go to the "archives" and do a search for "Apple Annie's Antique Mall" or just "antique mall".

This mall, when completed, is really going to be a very fun and interesting place. There will even be bus tours from the West side of the state bringing people in for the day.

Remember to check in with this blog and at my other blog for updates on the mall's progress and Grand Opening.

Have a great day!
Carol

Fruitful Bus Stop

Dear Readers,
Here is a link to a post about the most interesting bus stop I've ever seen! Scroll down to the "watermelon". Perhaps we could increase ridership on our Link transit system in Wenatchee with a variation of this idea in apple country.

Cheers!
Carol

Flood Insurance

Dear Readers,
I've been working with a young couple who is relocating to Wenatchee from Sparks, Nevada. After spending several weeks looking at Wenatchee real estate, including existing houses and a slew of options in new construction, they've more or less settled on having a home built in a new subdivision in Wenatchee. The one drawback to this particular subdivision is that it's in a designated flood zone. It's not that we're particularly concerned about flooding BUT you never know and it IS in a flood zone, so we have to deal with the consequences.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) controls the regulations overseeing this issue. The consequence of being in a blood zone means the builder has to work with certain Federal regulations AND the buyers have to secure flood insurance. Flood insurance rates will depend, among other things, on the insurance company and the type of construction of the home (whether it has a basement or not and how deep the crawl space is if there is no basement). It's actually better not to have a basement in a flood zone because, if there ever is a flood, the crawl space would get flooded not the basement where it would cause actual damage to the interior of the home and the contents.

If you ever consider purchasing a home or investment property in a designated flood zone, do your insurance rate research before finalizing a Purchase and Sale Agreement.

Not all flood zones are created equal... so do your due diligence and make an informed decision.

Have a great week!
Carol

509-670-7840
Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
Be sure to check out my residential blog too!

My Favorite Mortgage Info Site

Dear Readers,
I really like Bankrate.com as an overall resource for mortgage information. But, beyond mortgage information, they have a lot of information on money matters in general. I saw this article titled "Top 10 Mistakes of Novice Home Investors". If you have any interest in becoming a real estate investor, this article is worthy of a few minutes of your time.

If you have questions about investment opportunities in the Wenatchee real estate market area, please call or e-mail me. I can also give you information on my experience with who, in our local market, is a good contact for actually comparing loan programs that meet your specific needs.

Yours for success,
Carol

News On The Street

Dear Readers,
On my other blog, I posted an article about setting up a "Neighborhood News" category for the various areas of Wenatchee and all surrounding areas. Please visit, "Neighborhood News" and send comments and feedback about how I can make this most useful, informative, and fun... definitely fun!

Have a great day!
Carol

Tax Strategies For Investors

Here's a post I read recently on Karen Mason's blog out of Titusville, Florida. Thought it was worth passing along:

"Thousands of savvy realty investors have sold their rental properties, such as apartments, commercial property, or a business property, and made IRC 1031 tax-deferred exchanges for single-family residences of equal or greater cost and equity. To qualify for the IRC 1031 exchange, the acquired property must be..." full text

Have a great week,
Carol

Castles For Sale

Dear Readers,
My husband and I will be travelling to England in October, so thought I'd better do some preliminary research on what's for sale in the way of castles.

Click on the above link and take a look. If any of them look interesting, let me know and I'll arrange a showing for you (after proof of financial pre-approval, of course). :-)

The closest thing to something I could afford is a 3 bedroom apartment in the back of a castle in Ringwood, Hampshire.

Sigh...
Carol

Local Electric Power Rates

Dear Readers,
On my "other blog", I have posted some information about our local power rates, projected fuel costs for summer... and some other miscellaneous stuff. Hope you have time to check it out and find it useful.

Have a great day!
Carol

Latest Foreclosure List

I have posted the latest foreclosure list for Wenatchee, East Wenatchee, Cashmere, Rock Island and Leavenworth. You may access this post by clicking here.

Hope you have a great day!
Carol

Follow the Link

Dear Readers,
Hope you have time to read through the "archives",
then click here for current posts. I will keep you
posted on all the latest listings, news, info and trends
relating to Wenatchee real estate... and the surrounding
areas.

See you there,
Carol

Tugboat House For Sale

Dear Readers,
Ever wanted to live on a tugboat? I came across this interesting listing on Craigslist. Part of the ad reads: "1939 wooden tugboat was originally built in Ballard, worked the waters of the Columbia River and the Alaskan Coast for years..."

It has seven 500 gallon diesel tanks. Can you imagine how much that would cost for a fill up???

Have fun,
Carol

God Bless America!

Thought I'd try out the new and improved picture uploading feature of blogger by uploading an American Flag... afterall it is still America's birthday week!

Hey... it worked!

Have a great week-end,
Carol

Tri-Plex Value

Dear Readers,
I was out showing real estate most of the day... to three different sets of buyers. I started with showing two 20 acre parcels up the Chumstick (10 miles out of Leavenworth), then to show one of my listings in East Wenatchee, then a tri-plex in Wenatchee.

The tri-plex is what I want to post about this evening. The buyer specifically inquired about this property, but looking at the income vs price it didn't seem to "compute" to me. I mentioned to the listing agent that the price seemed high for the income generated and she just said they haven't raised the rents for a long time and the income "should be" higher.

This creates a problem when the owner wants to sell. For appraisal purposes, the "rental history" is based on the "actual" income, and most likely the property will not appraise for the value the owner wants (in the unlikely event they did find a buyer to pay that price).

In addition to the income discrepancy, there was a lot of "deferred maintenance", which would have added significantly to the cost basis of the property.

This one didn't make sense for my out-of-state buyer, so we're looking at more viable options, of which there are many.

The moral of this story is: If you have income property you plan to sell in the realtively near future, get the rents up to market value before you put the building on the market.

Have a great week-end,
Carol

Latte Funded College Education?

Dear Readers,
I like coffee as well as the next person, but I'm always amazed at the constant lines I see at every corner expresso stand in town. This isn't just in Wenatchee, but everywhere I go. These stands aren't there for you to order a 50 cent or $1 cup of Folgers to go... but rather a coffee with some hoity toity fancy schmancy name (that costs $2.75 and up each)! Who would have thought???

Anyway, I got to wondering, if a person buys one of these lattes every single day of the year, how much are they spending? Even more interesting, what kind of a savings could be built over the years if they forgo the spendy coffee and, instead, opt for the "old fashioned" coffee of yesteryear?

I found a simple savings calculator, and punched in the numbers (using $2.75 per day). I discovered, at the end of 18 years, you would have saved $29,011.70 (at 5% interest, compounded monthly). Now, if you invested this money in some high quality mutual funds or, I'm obligated to mention, real estate who knows what could happen.

I used 18 years, because I wondered what could happen if a person started saving the day a new child was born. Would there be enough in the fund for college? Well, maybe not much of a college fund for the future, but perhaps if it was invested in the mutual funds (or even better, real estate)... then there would be some serious money to work with.

Here's how the savings accumulation looked:
Year / Balance
1 $ 1,099.73
2 $ 2,169.00
3 $ 3,292.97
4 $ 4,474.45
5 $ 5,716.38
6 $ 7,021.85
7 $ 8,394.10
8 $ 9,836.57
9 $ 11,352.83
10 $ 12,946.67
11 $ 14,622.05
12 $ 16,383.15
13 $ 18,234.34
14 $ 20,180.25
15 $ 22,225.72
16 $ 24,375.83
17 $ 26,635.95
18 $ 29,011.70


By-the way, did you know the founder of Starbucks, Howard Shultz, owns the Seattle Super Sonics basketball team? What does that tell you about the profitability of the espresso business? I once worked with a couple who wanted to buy a house in Wenatchee. They operated a little espresso stand in the Eagle Hardware store (which is now Lowes). I couldn't believe what they said their income was from that little stand.

And... one other side note: I do buy a latte once in a while... but generally only on "double punch" day, so I get my FREE one twice as fast. :-) Hastings (book and music store) has double punch days on Tuesday and Thursday and a small local independent burger joint has double punch day on Wednesday, so I'm pretty well covered. I can get a free one on Monday, Friday or the week-end.

O.K... let's get real. Suppose you can't go without the latte EVERY day. How about joining two other family members, and getting a latte every three days? The possibilities are endless...

Just a few rambling thoughts of mine.

Have a great day!
Carol

Scott & Laci Peterson's Home Is Sold

Dear Readers,
According to my Inman News feed, the 3 bedroom home owned by Scott (and the late Laci) Peterson has been purchased by a Modesto, California realtor for $390,000. The Peterson's paid $177,000 for the home in 2000.

For the complete article, click here.

Have a nice evening,
Carol

P.S.: For more information, visit my other blog, specializing in Wenatchee, Washington residential real estate... and real estate in general.

Tax Breaks For Those Not On Title?

Dear Readers,
The tax benefits are a big part of the real estate investing mystique. Even if an investment is not generating "cash flow", the tax benefits create profit. This is true whether you're investing in Wenatchee real estate or anywhere in the U.S.

Surprising to some people is that you may be entitled to tax breaks on a property even if you are not on title to the property. For more details on this issue, read this article.

Have a great day!
Carol

Happy Birthday, USA

Happy 4th of July!

Wanted - 1951 or 1955 Chevrolet Pick-up Truck

Dear Readers,
I have a friend whose husband is turning 55 next year. She would love to find a 1951 (the year he was born) or 1955 Chevy pick-up for his birthday. Any leads for me?

Thanks!
Carol

Realtor, ABR, e-PRO, GRI, RECS, REI
Serving all of Washington State
Specializing in Wenatchee & Surrounding Areas
Phone: 509-670-7840 * Fax: 419-818-4009
website: http://TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
residential blog: http://CarolsWenatchee.com
investment blog: http://RealEstateSuccess.blogspot.com
e-mail: Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com

Want To Be A Real Estate Tycoon?

There was an interesting quiz on AOL today about real estate investments. Some of the questions and answers were over simplified, but it's a good primer. Here's the link to take the quiz.
Have a great week-end,

Carol

Realtor, ABR, e-PRO, GRI, RECS, REI
Serving all of Washington State
Specializing in Wenatchee & Surrounding Areas
Phone: 509-670-7840 * Fax: 419-818-4009
Website: http://TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
Residential blog: http://CarolsWenatchee.com
Investment blog: http://RealEstateSuccess.blogspot.com
e-mail: Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com

Current Posts

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