About Bothell's Thrashers Corner

Just dropped the price for a quick sale. Hyde Park is a secluded and gated community off of 180th in Bothell. There are only 28 homes on 38 acres. There is a very nice park in the middle of the neighborhood where you can play, picnic, run with your dogs... Easy access to Hwy 9/405 and shopping. Mill Crreek Town Center is only 5 minutes away.

Remodeled kitchen w/granite slab, travertine tile in dining room, heated floor in master bath... this home is immaculately maintained and deatails throughout. Over $60K spent for landscape (including expanding the grass area, new patio, raised bed garen, full fence and more...) summer 2008. Greenbelt in front and back. Please contact me for a private viewing!

MLS #: 29041700

There are many buyers that are on the fence. They might be waiting for the market to hit the bottom, or waiting for the interest rates to go lower. Whatever the reasons, there are many people that are waiting for something. If you are not sure if you are ready or not, please ask to yourself...

1. Why do you want to move? Why are you waiting? If we found the perfect home today, is there anything that would keep you from buying it?
2. How soon do you want to move? How long have you been thinking of moving?
3. How do you feel about this move? If you have kids, how do they feel about the whole thing? What are your kids school requirements?
4. What price range are you looking at? And how did you come up with the number? What monthly payment would you feel comfortable with? Have you talked with a loan officer?

Find out your motivation level, emotion concerns and financial consideration... If you are a first time home buyer, I am sure it is a huge commitment and a scary thing, but I know you can find the way to make it happen if you are serious about it. Especially you know most likely you will take advantage of the $8K tax credit if you can buy it by 12/1/09. Yes, there is much to learn and many to keep in mind, but your agent will walk you through step by step and make sure that your transaction will go as smooth as possible. If you currently own a property, do you have to sell your home in order to buy a next home? I know it could be very stressful to have a contingency. Been there done that twice before becoming an agent myself. So I think it is fair for me to say that I know how you might feel. At today's market, it might take a few months to sell it. But the pending numbers are going up... It is slow but it starts picking up. So what do you feel? Do you feel ready to make things happen? Any questions?

Typical average sellers don't have the budget to do a total staging like you see on one of those RE staging shows on HGTV. And not all agents pay the cost for staging your home.. But there are ways to improve the look of your home to be more sell able without breaking your wallet. And here are 5 tips...

1. Remove your family pictures from the walls and shelves. "De-personalize" your home.
2. If some of the rooms have too strong color, paint it to mutual color. Many buyers will get overwhelmed with the color and don't remember anything else when they leave the house.
3. Remove all the clutter from each room. The closet should be 3/4 full. Don't over-pack your closet. The potential buyers will think your closets are too small.
4. Clean the driveway and the front porch. This area is the first place your potential buyers will see. If there are moss on the driveway and weeds in the front yard, they have very little expectation already to the house. Give the best first impression you can give. Plant Bright Yellow and Red flowers by the front porch. If you don't have a space to plant, then put a couple pots with bright colored flowers.
5. Make sure the living room furniture is arranged in a way that will give a nice flow. Don't block the buyers to go to dining room/hallway. That will give them an impression of your living room being very cozy (aka, small!)

These are the least you can do to improve your home without spending too much money. When you list your home on the market, you really want to make your home look the BEST one in your neighborhood. Inside and out! If you/your agent have a budget for 'staging', professional stagers can 'transform' your home and you can even rent some furniture/pictures etc from them until you sell your home. If your home is well staged, you can sell your home at higher price than others. But if you don't have any budget to work with a stager, you can do at least those things I listed above! I have seen many homes w/so many family pictures on the wall, too many kids art on the fridge... they are cute but they need to be removed while your home is on the market. Make your home as 'de-personalize and simple' as possible. Remove anything that might distract potential buyers eyes.

Now we are getting into a busy season. We will see more listings from now to July. If you want to sell your home in a couple months, you will have to roll up your sleeves and start working!

Just dropped over $41K a couple days ago!

Elegant John F Buchan home in the secluded gated community of Hyde Park.

Remodeled gourmet kitchen w/granite slab , beautiful travertine tile in dining room, heated tile in luxurious master bath, beautifully refinished hardwoods, vaulted ceilings, upscale lighting and more. This home is immaculately maintained and has details throughout. Over $60K spent for landscape (including a beautiful patio, raised garden beds, full fence etc...) completed in summer 2008. Greenbelt in front & back. Just about 5 minutes drive to Mill Creek Town Center. 2009 HOD paid.

MLS#: 29041700

Please contact me for a private viewing!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/album.php?aid=84513&id=61889037476

I went to one of the Biznik events "Social Media" last night. It was so powerful. I learned so much last night. When consumers want to know about services/products, they go to the "Internet(about 50%), word of mouth (17%) and papers (5%). 83.8% people trust user reviews (such as yelp and citysearch) over critics. So get into the Social Media!

• What we need to have are: Brand reputation, Visibility, Search engine ranking, Partnerships, & Annuity.
• Traditional marketing is "casting large nets, push model, & Pay for everyone" vs. Social Media is "pinpoint accuracy, pull model & search engine".
• Social Media, such as Twitter, Facebook, Google, Plaxo... they are all FREE. So spend more time on them.
• When you tweet at Twitter, write about ONLY your biz. Nobody cares when you had the first cup of coffee. People want to see what you are doing for your biz today. Post 10 minutes a day!
• The importance of 'blogging' When you blog, keep in mind about "content! User generated content, search engine optimization, RSS etc..."

Of course, I believe in the power of 'networking' in person and the importance of 'meeting people face to face, but this has its limits. "Social Media" allows me to "network" with strangers - that can end up in face to face meetings. Now I know I have to spend much more time at Twitter... and talk only about Real Estate related things. And will start writing blogs more. Social Media is not everything I should be doing but it works. And it's FREE, so why not!?