We are in the beginnings of another challenging year in the real estate industry. 2011 has gone leaving only in the dust a rather flat local real estate market. We did see the number of sales slip slightly from 2010 along with the overall sales volume throughout the tri counties. However we remain very optimistic for 2012 as RE/MAX Select Associates did finish 2011 off as the #1 real estate office for total sales volume as reported through the North East Washington Association of Realtors; a 24% increase from the prior year. This we could not have done without the confidence of our valued customers, clients and friends like you.

I am excited to announce a new company I have opened in an effort to satisfy the growing demands of our customers: Select Property Management, Inc..  In December of 2011 we added a new name here to work under our roof in an effort to better serve you. Select Property Management will specialize in the management and leasing of residential and commercial real properties throughout the tri counties. Since 2007 when the market seemed to simply “shut off”, we almost instantly started to notice the number of landlord/tenant calls rapidly increasing nearly to the point where we were getting as many if not on some days more “rental” type calls than we were getting real estate calls. So after long thought and many days of hard work Select Property Management was born. Select Property Management will be run independently from RE/MAX Select Associates and will be there to assist our clients with their rental & leasing needs.

Jen Mauer, who many of you have met, is our lead property manager. Jen brings extensive knowledge and enthusiasm from the fast paced property management market on the coast, home to Colville, to assist in serving you with your needs.

Select Property Management offers the following services:

 -Full background & screening checks on ALL potential tenants.

 -Professional leases & addenda that meets CURRENT Washington Law.

 -Timely collection of monies.

 -Full accounting & accountability.

 -Maintenance, repairs, snow removal & yard services.

 -Assists with loss mitigation and timely notices to tenants.

 -All providing YOU with QUALITY & QUALIFIED tenants.

If you are currently a landlord or want to be one, let Select Property Management earn your business today. Please feel free to contact our team; we will be happy to take the burden off of you.

“Select Properties Managed by our Expert Team”

The newsletter is always worth sharing so I’m going to give you the link before I have a chance to read everything. I’m particularly interested in the article about the influx of new residents to the Tri-County area. I’m also interested in the article on the Government Management Accountability and Performance (GMAP) toolset, which is an online tool set to help measure government accountability and performance.

If you haven’t visited the Northeast Washington Trends site, it’s worth a look. Just in case you missed the link to the newsletter here it is again. Northeast Washington Trends Newsletter Winter 2010.

Compared to the same time period in 2010
Residential sales are down 10%
Residential inventory is down 1.7%
The average sales price is up 4.6%
The median list price, that price with an equal number of listings above and below remains the same.

Compared to the same time period in 2010
Vacant land sales are down 18%
Vacant land inventory is down 18%
The average sale price for land is up 56% this increase could be the attributed to one large sale.
The median list price, that price with an equal number of listings above and below is down 4%.

Data is from the Northeast Washington Association of Realtors® Mulitiple Listing Service Database. Information is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed.

Part One

Rob McKenna, WA State Attorney General

Part Two

Marc Cote, a Certified HUD Housing Counselor

Part Three

Rob Dickson, Lawyer and Short Sale Negotiator

Washington State Attorney General’s Office Foreclosure and Mortgage Assistance This website has collected most of the links for the information you need to make a decision regarding your next steps. The descriptions are clear and the resources are explained before you follow the links

The average list price is down about 6% to 236,500.

The median list price is up about 3 to 195,000.

The average sales price is up about 2% to 159,800.

The median sales price is down by about 4% to 139,350.

The average days on market is has changed just over a percent.

The median number of days on market is down about 11%.

The most active price ranges in the market are below $300,000.

Land sales continue to slow.

Comparing year to date statistics for the Land Market;

There have been 65 vacant land sales in the 1st half of 2011, almost a 40% decrease compared to 2010.

The absorption rate is down 23% to 47 months, this drop could be attributed to a reduced inventory, 19% less, and fewer new listings coming on the market, 27% less for 2011.

The average list price is down about 4%.

The median list price has changed less that 1%.

The average sales price has increased about 12%.

The median sales price has remained the same.

The average days on market has increased about 40%.

The median days on market has increased about 41%.

The most active price ranges in the market are below $80,000

For more information on the local real estate market contact one of our REALTOR® / Brokers.

The new rules are intended to address what the Federal Housing Finance Agency describes as “identified problems in mortgage servicing” stemming from the large volume of delinquent loans requiring attention. Read the full article by Carrie Bay here.

If you haven’t visited the Northeast Washington Trends site or haven’t heard of them yet please stop by and take a look. The site tracks several indicators in eight categories. From the home page of Northeast Washington Trends;  ”The goal of this site is to create more vibrant communities in the ferry, Pend Oreille and Stevens Counties of northeastern Washington, by providing easy access to current data to anyone at any time. The trends should promote more informed decision-making by individual and organizations.”

Take a moment to stop by Northeast Washington Trends!