Marty Van Diest, Your Alaskan Realtor

Alaska is slowly becoming a leader in Alternative Energy solutions. There are several factors that tend to bend Alaska in that direction.

One of the reasons Alaska is moving out in front in the alternative/renewable energy field is the many different options that are available. We have rivers galore, tidal and wave action in the oceans, geothermal possibilities all over the place, wind and more wind, and believe it or not we get a lot of sun. Actually, we get a lot of sun in the summer…not so much in the winter.

The fact that hydro-fuels are so expensive in many communities makes people wonder if there are less expensive ways to make power than burning $ 8 per gallon diesel. The high cost of energy is the number one reason Alaskans keep tinkering with alternatives. Although the environment is always a consideration, the cost of the power is at the forefront of peoples minds. If the cost of alternative energy is expensive, then it is impractical, and Alaskans are practical people.

For the rest of this post go to valleymarket.com

I got an Iphone today. It made me aware of how much technology has changed the way we do business.

I remember my first experience on the Internet when I was the tech worker at the University of Alaska library in Fairbanks back in 1981. I kept the copy machines running, microfilmed old books, operated the only fax machine on campus, and sent an occasional message on a computer over the Internet for some VIP on campus.

Then we got cell phones, digital cameras, and more.

Now I can update my blog from my Iphone.

If you would like me to use technology to send you the deals of the week that just went out yesterday, drop me an email.

Btw..this Iphone is nice but I think I’ll type my next update from a regular keyboard.

You get more house for your money…that’s why!

Anyone who shops homes in Anchorage and then comes out to the Valley can see that there is a significant difference in prices. I thought I would quantify it so that you know how much more of a home you get in the Valley compared to Anchorage.

I narrowed the Valley down to the Wasilla and Palmer core area. This excludes most of the land mass of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough but includes at least 80% of the population. If I would have included the whole borough the contrast would have been even more striking.

Real estate professionals often refer to the “3,2 and 2″. That is a description of the most common house sold. It has three bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a 2 car garage. I decided to compare these homes in Anchorage to the Valley.

Below is the chart that shows all the sales on the Alaska MLS system of these homes in the past year.

3 bed, 2 bath
2 car garage Total Sales
4/11/2008-4/11/2009 Median Price

Wasilla-Palmer	249	$209,900
Anchorage	349	$265,000

You will notice that only 100 more of these homes sold in Anchorage even though Anchorage has a population at least 4 times larger than the Palmer/Wasilla core area.

Significantly, the median price of a typical three bedroom home in the Wasilla and Palmer areas is $56,000 less than it’s counterpart in Anchorage. Not only is this true, but the homes in the Valley tend to have more land, are newer, and are more energy efficient.

They have more land because the Wasilla/Palmer area is more rural so most of the lots are at least 1/2 acre in size. They are newer because the Valley has grown more in population than has Anchorage in the recent past. They are more energy efficient primarily because they are newer. That is not to say that you cannot find newer, energy efficient houses with some land in Anchorage. You can, but if you do you will spend even more for those houses.

I took a look at what would happen if you compared the two locations with a 3,2, and 2 and at least 1/2 acre of land.

Wow!…what a difference that made. Only 25 homes sold in Anchorage while the Valley sales only went down by 13. In addition, the median price in the Valley rose by only $100 but the price in Anchorage went up by $68,000. Now there is a difference of about $123,000. That is huge.

3 bed, 2 bath
2 car garage Total Sales
4/11/2008-4/11/2009 Median Price

Wasilla-Palmer	236	$210,000
Anchorage	25	$333,000

So if you want at least 1/2 acre of land with your house you will pay dearly for it in Anchorage.

Since 1992 Alaska Housing Finance Corporation<(AHFC), has required new homes that hope to receive financing through them to meet certain energy standards. If you buy a home that does not meet those standards you can work with AHFC to bring improve the energy efficiency. Up to a point AHFC will even pay you to do that.

Most of the homes built since 2000 used good energy efficient building methods. Of the 349 sold in Anchorage only 25% were built since 2000 while 48% of the houses in Alaska were built since that date. Almost 1/2 of the 3,2,2 homes sold in the valley were built since 2000.

So, to sum it up…

You get a newer, more energy efficient home with more land, for less money, if you buy in the valley as opposed to Anchorage.

Hopefully this will be the coldest day of the year!

Community Councils…Get Involved Or Don’t Complain.

We just had a presidential election in which about 60% of the registered voters in Alaska participated.  Some people think that is a pretty good turnout, I think it’s pathetic.  BUT, what people don’t think about is that local government actually has more effect on your everyday life.

It seems that the more local the government becomes, the less participation we see.  In the Mat-Su Borough we generally have these levels of government:  state, borough, city, community council.  There are many opportunities to become involved at each level.  Of those four, the community councils are the most local.

The amazing thing is that although everyone can be involved in their community council, the only people that show up are the activists that want to change the status quo.  All the people that are happy with the way things are remain at home and complain when their world changes around them.

For example, in the Chickaloon Community Council area the minimum lot size is five acres.  This was passed by the community council and now has the effect of law. If you had purchased 5 acres with the intent to subdivide a portion off for a family member you are now out of luck. 

I believe that community councils are an excellent way to get residents involved in local government, but it needs community participation to function well.  I attended the Lazy Mountain Community Council tonight.  It was held at the Lazy Mountain Bible Church on Clark-Wolverine Road.  At this meeting there was a sparse turnout, but Chairman Jim Sykes reported much better participation earlier in the year.

The Lazy Mountain Community Council has their own website here.  On it they show the agenda and report on each meeting. This is an excellent way to keep the community informed.  Here is a copy of their comprehensive: Lazy Mountain Comprehensive Plan,  On their website I noticed a plan for the Wolverine Lake Trail Access.  This trail may go right next to a fantastic lakefront property I am marketing.  

Not only is it normal to have low community participation in the community councils, often the council will restrict who can vote.  For example, I received a report today that the Meadow Lakes Community Council restricts voting members to residents of the area.  So you could own a rental property in the area but not be allowed to vote.  However, your renters will be able to vote to determine what you can do with the property they rent from you.  Doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.  Here is the Meadow Lakes Comprehensive Plan.  You will notice that it is over 300 pages, while the Lazy Mountain plan is 72 pages.  If you live there, you might want to read it carefully.

I searched the web for other community council websites but only found a defunct site for the Butte Community Council. .  If you want to know what is going on in your area you will need to dig.  You can start with the Borough’s list of community councils here.

The final step for the community councils is some sort of zoning.  Meadow Lakes Community Council is in the middle of that right now.  The borough will eventually have zoning over all of it’s millions of acres of land.   The question is, will you have a say in the rule changes, or will you let someone else make the rules for you?