Bellevue, WA

Senior Move in Bellevue, Washington. A couple years ago, some dear friends, Mary and Ben (not their real names) were preparing to move from their Bellevue home of 50 years and into smaller quarters. They were excited to make this transition, and looked forward to not having yard work and house repairs to deal with. The thought of living on a single level also appealed to Mary who had had a knee replacement. What they were not prepared for was actually facing the amount of “stuff” they had collected over the years.

Mary and Ben most definitely were not hoarders. One afternoon as we were beginning the process, Mary commented that they really didn’t have “that much” stuff to deal with. Every spring she had filled up several donation bags for charity. She always had plenty to donate to the church rummage sale, and willingly disposed of broken items. However, over the years, they had managed to fill every closet, cupboard, and piece of furniture with treasures! File cabinets were full of travel brochures and memorabilia. Tax forms and receipts for the last 50 years were carefully filed in other cabinets. Drawers of the children’s treasures filled their now abandoned bedrooms.

This is fairly typical of a senior move in Bellevue, Washington.

Boxes of very usable things reached the ceilings of each closet. Mary had always been a careful shopper, purchasing linens only when they were on sale. She had a collection of very nice items that were intended for gifts. Well cared for clothing filled the closets. The problem was that through the years she and Ben had accumulated way too many of these belongings!

It took months for their committed family and friends to go through these possessions and help them decide what to take, what to donate, what to discard, and what to pass on to other family members. When the job was finished, they hosted a little party for the loyal workers. Ben thanked everyone, and got a bit teary when he concluded that he just didn’t know what they would have done without these wonderful people.

We all want to think that we can handle this sort of project. After all, it is “our stuff” to deal with. In reality, a senior move in Bellevue, Washington, is usually more than we can handle alone. Mary and Ben were fortunate to have a large number of family and friends to help them sort, move and dispose of their things. Not everyone is that lucky! Families are scattered over the country these days, and friends are often already spread too thin. That’s where Moving Forward comes in. Call us to learn how we can help your family cope with a senior move in Bellevue, Washington (or anywhere in the Seattle metro area). Senior move in Bellevue, Washington.

(contributed by Colleen Squier)

Good morning! I hope you're well! It occured to me that I hadn't written a blog in a while.

I'm still Active here. Perhaps I couldn't think of anything intelligent to write about! That being said here are my thoughts for 2012.

I think things are slowly improving. Yesterday I was at a clock hour class for real estate agents about becoming an REO broker. The 12 agents there were learning about the ins and outs of REO's. A couple had a good game plan to go after the REO market and I think they'll be successful if they stick with it.

I also have had some good contacts with builders recently. Here at The Legacy Group we work with quite a few builders. This is primarily because their banks don't want to any more. The Seattle area was never hit as hard as other parts of the country but we weren't immune. REO's, short sales and foreclosures still make up 40-50% of the market here depending on the area. What this says is there is opportunity. The builders and real estate agents who realize this are starting to do well.

Will it be an easy year? The answer is things are still challenging. Loan originations are projected to be below the $1.2 trillion of last year due to refinancing running its course. But, again, there are plenty of people doing well in a tough market.

There you have it! Hopefully I can be a little more regular on the blog front this year. Have a great day!

Decluttering in Bellevue, Washington. “Build it and they will come” doesn’t only apply to baseball fields. It could easily apply to self-storage units, “Build them and stuff will come.“

But does it really make sense paying to store things you aren’t using? For many of us, self-storage units represent a temporary solution that turns into a permanent financial drain; a large monthly leak from our bank accounts.

Consider some of the reasons a person would rent storage:

1. “I don’t have room for it in my house, but it’s worth money. I can’t just donate it or throw it away.”

2. “I paid good money for it. I can’t just donate it or throw it away.”

3. “I might need it someday.”

4. “I’m keeping it for my children. They might want it someday.”

5. “I’m moving and I don’t have time to sort everything out. I’ll just put the extra in storage for a couple of months, until I get around to dealing with it.”

However, does paying for storage really make financial sense? We sometimes get emotionally caught up with how much money we paid for something or how much it might be worth someday, while forgetting about the money that is quietly draining away every month we auto pay to keep the stuff.

Beware the storage unit!

Consider the real cost. In Bellevue, a modest 7’ x 10’ storage unit rents for about $115/month. Get on their web pages and read, “Great deals! Discounts on units of every size! First month free! ” Let’s include the specials at “only” $100/month with the first month free; that’s $1,100/year!

Can you say, “Time to declutter in Bellevue, Washington?”

How much are those things you want to store actually worth? Are they worth $1,100? What if you store them for 2 years, would they be worth $2,300? (Remember, that first month was only free once.) Beware the storage unit!

What are you really paying for? Are you paying $1,200/year to avoid facing the emotions of letting go? Perhaps you need the gentle, non-judgmental help of a professional organizer.

Can’t afford it?

Can you afford to ignore a leak that drains $1,200/year from your bank account?

Decluttering in Bellevue Washington

I was speaking with a tenant that was living in a home that one of my clients just purchased in Glendale. She had expressed to me that she wished she could purchase a home and specifically the home they were renting. She told me that she thought her credit score was over 700 but didn't think she could get a loan because of job history and no large down payment.

I let her know that FHA loan financing allows a person to go to school for one year and have it count as job history. This person had worked before she went to school and already had job offers for when she graduated. So she won't have job history issues. I also reminder her that FHA only required 3.5% down payment and closing costs could be rolled into loan. On a $100,000 purchase that is only $3,500 down and with rates where they are at, they payment would be about $400 less that their rent payment.

There is still other factors to consider, but the moral of this story is that I realized how many people operate off of a lack of information or bad information. I speak to so many people who believe you need 20% down to buy a home these days. I realize that as real estate professionals, we have to continue to reach out and educate so those who desire home ownership truly know what their options are.

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Kimberly Anderson, Designated Broker
Guardian Realty & Investment Group
cell - 480.201.4185
fax - 480-287-9354
www.TheGRTeam.com