Auburn, WA

Sorry for the delay in getting these out this month. Time sure goes by fast!

Hopefully this makes sense. I haven't figured out how to do a good job inserting tables into blogs yet, so all the nifty colors and fonts fall apart making this a bit more difficult to figure out.

It's interesting looking at the activity for various "areas" of Auburn. We're so diverse here. As with most other areas, the lower-priced homes continue to sell well. Gads, there's actually fairly brisk selling going on for homes in the Auburn West Hill neighborhoods. Less than six months of inventory!

Remember, what we're looking at here is to help determine what might happen if you were to list your home ... For example, if you listed your home in the West Hill area for under $300,000 ... you might expect that it would take just under six months to sell it. Well, of course, YOUR home would sell much faster, as it would be the best prepared, the best priced, the best overall! Working with an experienced listing agent (like me!) will help certainly help!

Every single neighborhood, whether on the West Hill, East Hill, Academy, or not even in Auburn, has it's own personality and historical time line. As you evaluate your course of action -- whether buying or selling -- be sure to carefully study what's really happening for homes like yours in your own neighborhood.

Don't hesitate to ask your agent to help you interpret what the numbers mean. That's what we're here for!

State of the Market in Auburn, WA
Residential Single Family Homes with Auburn Addresses
December, 2008
	All prices	$400,001 -	$300,001- $400,000	$200,001 - $300,000	$0 - $200,000	All Prices 10/08	All Prices 11/08
	Auburn Mailing Address
Current Active Listings	456	123	138	152	43	578	533
Sold in 2008	684	121	257	270	36
Sold in last six months	365	55	132	154	24	409	405
Sold in last three months	157	27	53	66	11	213	181
Sold in current month	37	11	9	14	3	73	47
Months of Current Inventory*	8.71	13.67	7.81	6.91	11.73	8.14	8.83
	Auburn East Hill
	(approx N and E of Green River, inc. Lea Hill, Lake Holm, Moneysmith, Washington Nat'l)
Current Active Listings	118	51	35	21	11	160	139
Sold in 2008	153
Sold in last six months	76	25	28	20	5	83	84
Sold in last three months	38	15	11	9	3	40	35
Sold in current month	12	5	2	4	1	16	10
Months of Current Inventory*	9.32	10.20	9.55	7.00	11.00	12.00	11.91
	Auburn Academy/Wabash
	(approx NE of White River up hill towards Muckleshoot & Wabash)
Current Active Listings	10	7	2	1	0	7	7
Sold in 2008	13
Sold in last six months	9	3	1	5	0	10	10
Sold in last three months	6	3	0	3	0	5	6
Sold in current month	1	1	0	0	0	5	2
Months of Current Inventory*	5.00	7.00	12.00	1.00	0.00	4.20	3.50
	Auburn West Hill
	(West of Highway 167)
Current Active Listings	100	23	28	40	9	136	124
Sold in 2008	160
Sold in last six months	93	9	31	47	6	86	89
Sold in last three months	42	3	13	23	3	47	46
Sold in current month	10	2	2	4	2	15	17
Months of Current Inventory*	7.14	23.00	6.46	5.22	9.00	8.68	8.09
	Auburn Valley
	(approx W of White River to Highway 167)
Current Active Listings	96	8	13	54	21	114	108
Sold in 2008	151
Sold in last six months	81	1	15	52	13	93	93
Sold in last three months	31	1	9	16	5	54	45
Sold in current month	4	0	1	3	0	17	10
Months of Current Inventory*	9.29	24.00	4.33	10.13	12.60	6.33	7.20
	Lakeland Area
	(Lakeland Hills -- all)
Current Active Listings	82	16	43	23		102	99
Sold in 2008	114
Sold in last six months	57	10	29	18		79	71
Sold in last three months	18	2	9	7		35	25
Sold in current month	3	1	1	1		13	2
Months of Current Inventory*	13.67	24.00	14.33	9.86	0.00	8.74	11.88
*based on last 3 months sold activity
					Prepared	01/14/09

The city of Auburn is well known for it's appreciation and celebration of the Arts. This year, we are looking forward to a variety of art shows and exhibitions. Here is the line-up so far, what great venues, and we arent even in 2009 yet!

Get ready to mark your calendars:

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AUBURN, Wash. - December 11, 2008 - Auburn Arts Commission is proud to announce the full schedule of exhibits by professional and emerging artists from the Puget Sound area to be featured in various City of Auburn locations. The City of Auburn oversees three exhibit spaces that feature rotating exhibitions; City Hall, Cheryl Sallee Gallery Wall at Auburn Senior Center, and the Auburn Avenue Theater. All locations accommodate two-dimensional artwork that rotates on a regular basis. This year, the galleries will feature artists utilizing a broad range of mediums, styles and techniques.

Artists are selected by a selection panel consisting of Auburn Arts Commissioners, professional artists and community members. The selection panel aims to choose work that parallels Auburn Arts Commission's mission to foster cultural growth and enrichment within the community. The selection panel honors variety, vitality, technique, and diversity in medium and subject. The result for 2009 is a wide-ranging lineup of work that is stimulating, thoughtful and encompasses both traditional and contemporary artistic values.

In addition to the many Auburn artists showing this year, other artists were selected that bring original artwork from cities such as Lacey, Bellevue, Poulsbo, Seattle, Renton, Tacoma, Kent, Port Orchard, Normandy Park, Edmonds, Gig Harbor, Maple Valley, Redmond, Federal Way, Bonney Lake, Olympia, Puyallup and Auburn.

For each exhibition, the public is invited to visit during the open hours as well as attend artist opening receptions. To receive notices of these special events please visit www.auburnwa.gov/arts, and sign up to receive regular notices and invitations.

Auburn Galleries are presented by Auburn Parks, Arts & Recreation. For more information about the Auburn Gallery program, to receive a Gallery brochure, or to learn about opportunities for artists please visit www.auburnwa.gov/arts or call 253-931-5043.

2009 EXHIBIT SCHEDULE

City Hall

The gallery is located in the main lobby of City Hall, 25 W. Main St. Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

• Jan. 5 - Jan. 16: Reflections, PTA Student Art Competition
• Jan. 20 -Jan. 30: City of Auburn Staff Exhibition
• Feb. 2 - Feb. 27: Angel F. Matamoros, Acrylic/Mixed Media; Susanne Werner, Mixed Media
• March 2 - 31: Michelle Knowlen, Acrylic/Mixed Media; Tia Matthies, Encaustic
• April 1 - 30: Billie Andrew, Acrylic/Collage; Sharon Carr, Oil on Canvas
• May 1 - 29: Stephanie Atlee, Stained Glass; Dennis Harrison, Marquetry; Ellen Witebsky, Photography
• June 1 - 30: Mary McInnis, Oil; Gretchen Hansen, Watercolor
• July 1 - 31: Ann Maki, Textile assemblage; Grace Willard, Textile/Paper Mache/Thread
• Aug. 8 - 31: Auburn Good Ol' Days Juried Art Show
• Sept. 1 - 30: CR Bryant, Oil; Douglas Williams, Pen and Ink
• Oct. 1 - 30: Maylee Noah, Photography; Stan Raucher, Photography
• Nov. 2 - 30: Cheryl Hoople, Watercolor; Frances Velling, Watercolor
• Dec. 1 - 30: Jennifer J. Hermanson, Photography; Jan Wieser, Photography

Cheryl Sallee

This gallery is located at the Auburn Senior Activity Center, 808 Ninth St. SE. Hours are Monday and Tuesday, 8 a.m. - 9 p.m. and Wednesday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

• Jan. 7 - Feb. 26: Gigi Paranada, Watercolor
• March 4 - April 24: Mike Dilbeck, Photography
• May 4 - June 26: Joanne Osband, Watercolor
• July 6 - Aug. 28: Mark Jacobs, Photography
• Sept. 3 - Oct. 29: Bonnie Miller, Oil on Canvas
• Nov. 4 - Dec. 29: Senior Art Show

Auburn Avenue Theater

Auburn Avenue Theater is located at 10 Auburn Avenue. Hours of operation are varied on evenings and weekends, based on building activity.

• Jan. 7 - Feb. 26: Jesse Schwartz, Oil; Anne Leppo Cameron, Oil
• March 4 - April 24: Brett Ramsey, Photography; Wendy Ray, Oil; Sherry Shipley, Acrylic and Gouache
• May 4 - June 26: Jay Galvin, Photography; Linda Hatcher, Photography; Dan Wright, Photography

# # #
City of Auburn Arts Commission
910 Ninth Street SE
Auburn WA 98002
253-931-3043
www.auburnwa.gov

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Enjoy a wonderful and artistic 2009!

Julianna Hind, http://www.auburnsuperhomes.com

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas season, but if you're like me, it's time for the kids to take all their toys to their rooms, take out the last of the Christmas wrapping recycling... (which will hopefuly be picked up soon) and say goodbye to that natural pine tree you chose this year. No artificial trees for you, right? You're a traditionalist! (Me too!) The good thing is, your tree can be recycled and mulched free of charge.

Here is what you need to know:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 22, 2008

AUBURN, Wash. - December 22, 2008 - Residents who live within the city limits of Auburn and have Waste Management or Allied Waste Services for garbage service can recycle their Christmas trees and organic wreaths for no additional cost.

Murrey's Disposal customers who live within the city limits of Auburn and who have yard waste service may place their Christmas tree into their yard waste cart at no additional cost.

Pick up dates and guidelines are as follows:

Waste Management pick up will be the week of Jan. 5 - 9, 2009, on your garbage day for single family, duplex and mobile home parks residents. Trees must be on the curbside by 6 a.m.

Multi-family residential pick up will be the weeks of Jan. 5 - 9 and Jan. 12 - 16, 2009. Property owner or site manager must call Waste Management at 800-592-9995 to schedule a pickup day and pick up site.

Allied Waste Services single family and duplex residential pick up will be the week of Jan. 12 - 16, 2009 on your garbage/yard waste collection day. Trees must be on the curbside by 6 a.m.

Multi-family residential pick up will be the week of Jan. 12 - 16, 2009. Property owner or site manager must call Allied Waste Services at 206-652-8832 to schedule a pickup day and pickup site.

For Waste Management and Allies Waste Services customers, tree trunks should be no wider than 4-inches in diameter. Trees taller than 7-feet must be cut in half and weigh less than 65 lbs. each piece. Please remove all garland, tinsel and ornaments. No flocked trees or other debris will be accepted. Limit 2 trees per household.

Murrey's Disposal customers must remove all garland, tinsel and ornaments, cut tree into 3 pieces and put in yard waste container and place container out during the month of January 2009 on your yard waste collection day. No flocked trees or other debris will be accepted. Limit 1 tree per household.

Residents must have yard waste service to participate. Those who do not have yard waste service can participate for a fee. Contact Murrey's Disposal at 253-414-0345 for details.

If you live outside of the Auburn city limits, contact your garbage and recycling hauler for Christmas tree recycling information.

# # #
City of Auburn Solid Waste & Recycling Division
25 W. Main St.
Auburn, WA 98001
www.auburnwa.gov

Have Fun Making Room for a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Julianna Hind, Realtor®, IRIS®

Real Estate and Design Specialist

Keller Williams Auburn

1002 15^th ST SW Suite 106

Auburn, WA 98092

Office: 253-249-2500

Mobile: 206-679-4768

Fax: 206-774-0404

julianna@kw.com

http://www.juliannahind.com

Hard to believe a month has passed since I began accumulating and analyzing the Auburn area market, which is where I live. Like many agents in the greater Seattle/Tacoma area, I've always managed to work throughout the Puget Sound area. Last month I became an active member of the Auburn Chamber of Commerce and decided I really needed to be sure I knew what was going on in my own home town!

It's been an interesting month. Instinctively, I've felt that homes were selling a wee bit faster, and the numbers prove that for most areas of Auburn, that's appears to be true. Similar to much of the southeast King County and Pierce County areas, homes at the upper end of the residential price points are selling far slower than homes in the $200,000 to $300,000 range, which appears to the real "sweet spot," in residential home sales and purchases. First time home buyers are snapping up distress and bank owned homes, which are seen heavily in those price ranges. There are some real bargains out there right now!

Buyers are obviously in short supply in the Auburn West hill area for homes priced above $400,000, which currently sports over 49 months of inventory (whew!). Interestingly, compare that same price range to the Auburn East hill and the inventory drops to about 14 months.

Statistically, every neighborhood is different; it's critically important that you know what's going on in your own neighborhood and for homes similar to yours as you analyze your home's sale ability. Similarly, as you shop for a new home, you'll want to know how the home you are considering shapes up to the homes within a half-mile or so.

Looking at this carefully, it's obvious that homes ARE selling, but it's ever so much more important that a Seller's home be aggressively priced, impeccably prepared, and effectively marketed.

State of the Market in Auburn, WA
Residential Single Family Homes with Auburn Addresses
November, 2008
	All prices	$400,001 -	$300,001- $400,000	$200,001 - $300,000	$0 - $200,000	All Prices 10/08
	Auburn Mailing Address
Current Active Listings	533	154	180	171	28	578
Sold in last six months	405	55	159	167	24	409
Sold in last three months	181	24	61	82	14	213
Months of Current Inventory*	8.83	19.25	8.85	6.26	6.00	8.14
	Auburn East Hill
	(approx N and E of Green River, inc. Lea Hill, Lake Holm, Moneysmith,Washington Nat'l)
Current Active Listings	139	63	49	20	7	160
Sold in last six months	84	25	36	19	4	83
Sold in last three months	35	13	12	8	2	40
Months of Current Inventory*	11.91	14.54	12.25	7.50	10.50	12.00
	Auburn Academy/Wabash
	(approx NE of White River up hill towards Muckleshoot & Wabash)
Current Active Listings	7	4	1	1	1	7
Sold in last six months	10	4	1	5	0	10
Sold in last three months	6	2	0	4	0	5
Months of Current Inventory*	3.50	6.00	6.00	0.75	>6.00	4.20
	Auburn West Hill
	(West of Highway 167)
Current Active Listings	124	33	42	44	5	136
Sold in last six months	89	7	31	45	6	86
Sold in last three months	46	2	13	28	3	47
Months of Current Inventory*	8.09	49.50	9.69	4.71	5.00	8.68
	Auburn Valley
	(approx W of White River to Highway 167)
Current Active Listings	108	8	23	62	15	114
Sold in last six months	93	3	17	59	14	93
Sold in last three months	45	1	10	25	9	54
Months of Current Inventory*	7.20	24.00	6.90	7.44	5.00	6.33
	Lakeland Area
	(Lakeland Hills -- all)
Current Active Listings	99	21	49	29	0	102
Sold in last six months	71	10	38	23	0	79
Sold in last three months	25	3	12	10	0	35
Months of Current Inventory*	11.88	21.00	12.25	8.70	0.00	8.74
*based on last 3 months sold activity
					Prepared	11/30/08

Like all agents,, I keep track of what's going on market-wise in the area I regularly practice. Defining that area can be a bit tricky, however. My working "area" is pretty large -- I actually work throughout southeast King County and well into Pierce County. That's a LOT of statistics.

However, I live in Auburn, and that's my "watch point." But Auburn's a big area too. Lots of neighborhoods. Lots of diversity as far as housing goes. Some areas tend to have less expensive homes, while others currently focus on big, perhaps newer houses.

I always look at the statistics printed in the newspaper and reported by our MLS with a bit of caution. Not that's it's not good stuff. It's just that I know I'll get a call from a client, citing the statistic they read and wondering why their house hasn't sold, or appreciated, or depreciated at the rate posted. But comparing the entire "area" statistic for Auburn, for example, doesn't really help you in your own neighborhood.

Well, let's examine these stats just a bit. Here you'll find information about all houses identified with "Auburn, WA" as their mailing address. That doesn't necessarily mean that these are exactly within the City of Auburn limits. Some areas are unincorporated, but still sport the Auburn address.

Within "Auburn, WA," there are several areas that are somewhat definable. Homes in the Auburn valley sell differently than, say, homes in the Auburn Academy area

Why is that important? Well, suppose you want to buy a home in Lakeland, but your budget is only $200,000. As you can see from these stats, that's just not going to happen. Nothing is currently "Active," in Lakeland under $200,000 that's a detached single family home. Hmmm. But take a look at the Auburn Valley. Not only are there eight active listings under the $200,000 mark, 11 homes in that price range sold in the last six months, eight of which that sold in the last three months. That means that if you find the house you like, you really should move right along and make the offer. Houses in that price range in the Auburn valley area are selling at the rate of 1 per month.

Now, as you take a look at these statistics as a whole, notice that it would take approximately 8 months to sell all of the homes currently on the market. But when focusing on the Auburn East Hill, it would take a full year to clear the inventory. Just for clarification, I typically look at Absorption Rate (how many months of inventory on the market) by comparing the last three months of sales to active listings. This market has changed so rapidly that, in my opinion, the more current and "close to now" the information, the more realistic it is.

Another really great piece of information for you to know, as you both sell or buy in the current market, is how many days homes are actually staying in the market before marked as Pending (DOM). I'll include that data next month.

These statistics will vary again for your personal neighborhood, for homes that look like yours, and depending on the time range used to prepare the information. As you evaluate working with a particular agent to assist you in marketing your home or in purchasing your next home, be sure that your agent is up to date on information such as this. And be sure that your agent is fully prepared to gather this basic information for your unique area. It'll help you understand exactly what's going on!

State of the Market in Auburn, WA
Residential Single Family Homes with Auburn Addresses
	All prices	$400,001 -	$300,001- $400,000	$200,001- $300,000	$0 - $200,000
	Auburn Mailing Address
Current Active Listings	578	178	208	172	20
Sold in last six months	409	62	162	162	22
Sold in last three months	213	32	73	94	14
Months of Current Inventory	8.14	16.69	8.55	5.49	4.29
	Auburn East Hill
	(approx N and E of Green River, inc. Lea Hill, Lake Holm, Moneysmith,Washington Nat'l)
Current Active Listings	160	73	57	22	8
Sold in last six months	83	25	34	21	3
Sold in last three months	40	14	11	12	3
Months of Current Inventory	12.00	15.64	15.55	5.50	8.00
	Auburn Academy/Wabash
	(approx NE of White River up hill towards Muckleshoot & Wabash)
Current Active Listings	7	5	1	0	1
Sold in last six months	10	3	1	4	2
Sold in last three months	5	1	0	4	0
Months of Current Inventory	4.20	15.00	6.00	0.00	3.00
	Auburn West Hill
	(West of Highway 167)
Current Active Listings	136	33	53	48	2
Sold in last six months	86	10	30	40	6
Sold in last three months	47	6	14	24	3
Months of Current Inventory	8.68	16.50	11.36	6.00	2.00
	Auburn Valley
	(approx W of White River to Highway 167)
Current Active Listings	114	11	29	66	8
Sold in last six months	93	3	14	65	11
Sold in last three months	54	1	8	37	8
Months of Current Inventory	6.33	33.00	10.88	5.35	3.00
	Lakeland Area
	(Lakeland Hills -- all)
Current Active Listings	102	24	56	22	0
Sold in last six months	79	12	46	21	0
Sold in last three months	35	6	17	12	0
Months of Current Inventory	8.74	12.00	9.88	5.50	0.00
				Prepared	10/31/08