Think of it as Interior Curb Appeal . STAGING. How a house is presented to potential buyers and those first few impressions can make all the difference when selling a home. How your home is marketed and DISPLAYED will have an effect on a buyers perception and how they see themselves in your house.

I use the word display because as Webster describes it you do want " to exhibit to advantage". Just like dressing up a mannequin, your home now needs to be "dressed", but let's put it another way, " dressed down" if you will. If your house looks lived in, i.e. dishes piled up in the sink, paperwork splayed on your dining room table, too much furniture, clutter, clutter, clutter, buyers will be overwhelmed. The true bones and space of your home will not be visible. A buyer needs to be able to visualize themselves and their furnishings in your home. When you scale down your furnishings, giving a hint of the possibilities, consider color scheme, focal points, flow and floor-plan, even utilizing rooms for different purposes, i.e. the dining table in the living room to capitalize on a view , allows a buyer room to imagine and explore.

Did you know that you may be eligible for the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit that is part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. This tax credit is designed to encourage first-time home buyers to purchase their first homes. Combine this tax credit with the fact that home prices are relatively lows and interest rates are at historical lows, it may be an ideal time for many first-time home buyers to purchase homes. How the law works....

1. The tax credit is available for homes purchased between April 9, 2008 and July 1, 2009

2. The tax credit amount is 10% of the price of the home not to exceed $7,500

3. A first time home buyer is defined as anyone who hasn't owned a home for the past three years

4. To qualify for the full tax credit single tax payers can have incomes of up to $75,000 and married couples up to $150,000. Single tax payers with incomes between $75,001 and $94,999 or $150,001 and $169,999 (joint returns) are eligible for a partial tax credit. Single tax payers with incomes greater than $95,000 or $170,000 (joint return) are not eligible for this tax credit.

5. The tax credit is like an interest free loan and must be paid back over a 15 year period beginning the second year after the tax credit is taken, normally at $500 a year 15 years.

This is a tax credit and not just a tax deduction.

Since the credit has to be repaid, it is more like an interest free loan:

6. If a buyer claims the credit in 2009 on their federal tax return for a closing that occurred in 2008, then the credit is received in 2009, then repayment begins in 2010 with an annual repayment amount of approx. $500/year.

7. If the homeowner dies, their heirs are not required to pay back the remaining balance.

8. If the home is sold before 15 years have passed and the it's appreciation is less than the amount needed to be paid back, the loan is forgiven.

9. If the home is converted into a rental or investment property, the pay back balance is due in the year.

If you'd like any info about the First Time Home Buyer's credit or any info about Bellingham Home's or Condo's you can give me a call at 360-739-6981 or drop me a line by email.

Labels: First Time home buyers, Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, Tax, Tax credit

The season for watching bald eagles has arrived. They come down from Canada and Alaska every winter to feed on the abundant salmon available to them in the Nooksack and Skagit Rivers. 

I saw an eagle just the other day flying over Fairhaven.  A great place to see the Eagles is along the Skagit river along Highway 20, the North Cascades highway, between Concrete and Marblemount. There is a great lookout just above Rockport.

            
This weekend January 24th and 25th is the Upper Skagit Bald Eagle Festival where you can learn about Eagles at the interpretive center, hear speakers, get entertained, and watch eagles.  If you're really adventurous you can take a float trip down the Skagit.

Bald eagles are abundant here. They eat the chum salmon from the gravel bars. They sit in trees sometimes with their wings spread to dry their feathers after a morning's feeding.  After every bend in the river, you can look for their white heads  ("balde" is Old English for "white"), sitting among the cedars, firs and alders.

I did a few years ago it was awesome experience.  We saw lots of the lots of Eagles, several trees with 5 or 6 eagles sitting in them.  Be prepared for the cold weather if you do decide to do a river trip.
I did raft trip about 20 years ago on the Nooksack river on New Year's Day.  We counted over 200 Eagles that day, about 100 of them were in a half a mile stretch of the river and we saw one tree that had at least 25 Eagles sitting in.  It was truly amazing.

Image courtesy of flickr.com by by Velo Steve

Bellingham's Heritage Flight Museum is moving into their new home at 4165 Mitchell Way, near the Bellingham Airport on Saturday, 17 January 2009. There will be a formal program scheduled to begin at 1:00pm.

The museum was founded in 1996 by Maj. General William Anders an Apollo 8 astronaut. The Heritage Flight Museum is dedicated to the preservation and flying of historic military aircraft. The Museum began at Bellingham International in 2001. The new facility will allow the addition of displays highlighting elements of the US Space Program, mainly the Apollo program.

Volunteer opportunities for individuals and youth groups such as the Civil Air Patrol are available. The  Museum Staff have served as Culminating Project Community Advisors for graduating seniors from Bellingham and Squalicum High Schools, and as supervisors for History majors on internship from Western Washington University.

Visitors to the museum can get an up-close look at the collection of memorabilia and artifacts, and a selection of flying World War II, Korean and Vietnam era airplanes including a P-51 Mustang, Douglas Skyraider, North American T-6, Boeing Stearman, L-13 Grasshopper, Link trainer and others.

Image courtesy of flickr.com by StuSeeger

Bellingham's Community Food Co-op, our natural cooperative grocer is opening their new store on January 15. The 'second store' will serve the north side of town, located in the fast growing Cordata neighborhood. It is conveniently located across the street from Bellingham's new Cordata Bus Station and down the street from Whatcom Community College. It is not the prettiest building I have ever seen, but it is functional, within budget and green. The new store was built to meet the standards for LEED certification, a national rating system for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.

The Co-op began in 1970 in Fairhaven as a single 900-square-foot store with fewer than 10 items and has grown to a 12,000-member-strong natural grocery store chain of 2 stores. I first joined the co-op in it's early days in the mid 70's when you could work in the store for your membership and discount. I remember spending time in the old co-op (which was located in the Good Earth Building, in a space equivalent to it's current produce department. where the Artwood Gallery is today), cutting weighing and packaging cheese and cleaning up the store.

The Co-op has a large selection of organic produce, meat and seafood, wine, an awesome deli with lots of delicious home made salads, an espresso bar, great house wares and fun stuff, bulk items, natural and organic grocery items, baked goods, dairy, supplements and wellness products. The Deli is one of my favorite lunch spots. They are big on supporting local suppliers and farmers and offer a wide array of local vegetables and fruits and many other locally produced items.

The Average Bellingham Home sale price for 2008 is down 4.2% compared to 2007. The Median Sales prices is down 5% compared to 2007. The number of sales is down by 342 or 28% compared 2007

 

• Sold in 2008: 883
• Average Sales Price: $359,231 Days on the Market: 93
• Median Sales Price: $299,500 Days on the Market: 63

• Sold in 2007: 1225
• Average Sales Price: $374,991 Days on the Market: 94
• Median Sales Price: $315,000 Days on the Market: 63

Condo Analysis for Bellingham

• Sold in 2008: 337
• Average Sales Price: $227,087 Days on the Market: 163
• Median Sales Price: $192,000 Days on the Market: 86

• Sold in 2007: 473
• Average Sales Price: $212,670 Days on the Market: 163
• Median Sales Price: $193,000 Days on the Market: 86

The Average Condo sale price for 2008 is up 5% compared to 2007. Median Condo Sales Price is down 0.8% from 2007. The number of condo sales is down by 136 0r 28.7% compared to 2007.

If you have any questions or want to see any Bellingham Property feel free to email me at or give me a call at 360-739-6981

 

The following is a quick analysis of the Residential Bellingham real estate market for December 2008.

• Currently Active Listings: 418
• Price range of active listings - $119,900 - $3,575,000
• Average List Price $532,500      Days on the Market: 137
• Median List Price: $399,000      Days on the Market: 112
• Sold in December: 49
• Average List Price: $337,994
• Average Sales Price: $322,399
• Ratio of List to Price: 95.4%      Days on the Market: 190
• Median List Price: $279,000
• Median Sales Price: $259,900    Days on the Market: 79
• Ratio of List to Price: 93.2%
• Pending Sales Last Week: 6     Total pending sales: 70

Condo Analysis for Bellingham

• Currently Active Listings: 220
• Price range of active listings - $99,900 - $1,565,000
• Average List Price $295,792    Days on the Market: 223
• Median List Price $199,900      Days on the Market: 138
• Sold in December: 17
• Average List Price: $209,691
• Average Sales Price: $200,792
• Ratio of List to Price: 95.8%     Days on the Market: 128
• Median List Price: $184,900
• Median Sales Price: $184,900
• Ratio of List to Price: 100%      Days on the Market: 143
• Pending Sales Last Week: 4      Total pending sales: 19

There are some great values in the Bellingham market right now, and interest rates are extremely low. You might want to take a look at what it would cost you to purchase one of these homes at today's rates. You might be surprised at what your monthly payments would be, maybe less than your paying for rent right now if you are renting a comparable sized house.

If you have any questions or want to see any Bellingham Property feel free to email me at or give me a call at 360-739-6981