A commenter on this week’s poll requested a graph of the total monthly dollar volume of all NWMLS-reported closed sales. So, here it is: Since prices are still higher than 2000-2004, I was actually not expecting this year to show up so low. I also found it interesting how closely 2005, 2006, and the first…
PSBJ: Local Banks Feeling the Regulatory Squeeze
Over at the Puget Sound Business Journal, reporter Kirsten Grind posted an interesting story today on their recently-launched BizTalk blog: Crackdown on HomeStreet Bank comes as a surprise Washington state regulators don’t seem to have much patience these days for our struggling community banks and are increasingly slapping them with cease-and-desist orders to force a…
National Interactive “Stress Index” Map from AP
The Associated press published an interesting interactive map recently that is worth checking out. They took a handful of economic measures such as the unemployment rate, the foreclosure rate, and the bankruptcy rate, and calculated an “Economic Stress Index” for every county in the country. Here’s a snapshot of their March 2009 map (click to…
Poll: Guess the maximum 1-month total closed SFH sales in King Co. for 2009
For reference, 2008’s maximum was 1,592 in June. Here’s the monthly chart since 2000: Please vote in this poll using the sidebar. This poll will be active and displayed on the sidebar through 05.23.2009.
Failed / Stalled Mixed-Use Developments Around the Sound
From today’s Olympian: Housing project in foreclosure Thurston Highlands, one of the largest proposed mixed-use developments in the state, has emerged as the biggest example of how the economic crisis has had a corrosive effect on development. Through its trustee, the project’s primary lender, Frontier Bank, has started foreclosure proceedings on the 1,250-acre property after…