Year: 2006

Seattle has basically reached the saturation point of unaffordability. How do I know this? Because people that want to buy a home are mostly interested in the South Sound. Thurston County’s three largest cities were among the most popular destinations for home buyers in the first quarter of the year, according to data released by…

Props to reader seattle price drop for spotting this story about Ameriquest Mortgage skipping town: A banking giant shut down all of its branches in Western Washington on Tuesday, leaving thousands of local customers in the lurch, KIRO 7 Eyewitness News reported. Ameriquest Mortgage is closing 229 branches nationwide, including 26 branches in Washington state….

Thanks to the bubble, there are real estate agents lurking under every rock, and web sites slowly creeping in on the home sales action as well. As a result, the sacred 6% commission is not so hallowed anymore: Here’s another trick of the trade: When you sell your house, tell the agent you want to…

Slowly but surely the downside of exploding house prices is being highlighted in our local media. Maybe not so much in Seattle proper, but at least down in Tacoma (where houses are quite a bit cheaper than in King County) the issue is being given some attention. The price of a home may be relatively…

I heard an ad for a mortgage company on the radio this morning that had the following line: We can approve you from your car (i.e. – over the phone). Getting a home loan should be as easy as ordering pizza. It’s because of companies with that kind of philosophy that we’ve gotten into this…