About Spokane County, WA

ON NOVEMBER 29TH 2008 There will be an incredible, unforgettable evening to benefit the Spokane WA chapter of the STARLIGHT CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION at the Bing Crosby Theater, Spokane WA.

"EMERALD LEGACY" An evening of music with the O'Neill family:

Festivities begin at 5:30 with a silent auction, small bites and wine till 7pm.

Then at 7:30 there will be a concert given by the O'Neill-Long families. This will be a concert great for all ages, as there will be a wide variety of music performed from the O'Neill family, made up of several professional musicians.

The event tickets are available online through the Starlight web site: www.starlight-wahsington.org

Price: 50$ ea for both events, OR- 20$ ea. for just the concert.

The O'Neill family will begin by opening the concert with a bit of Irish Music, as a tribute to their heritage. The evening will progress somewhat chronologically as the music moves through time, and ends up showcasing several family soloists and songwriters.

PLEASE JOIN MY FAMILY FOR THIS WONDERFUL EVENT AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF SERIOUSLY ILL CHILDREN and their families.

BethAnn Long, Realtor and Musician 509-362-4607 bethann@tb.com (e-mail)

www.bethannhomes.com (web site)

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy ranked California, Connecticut and Oregon at the top of a list of states improving energy efficiency to respond to high prices, energy security and global warming.

A report released Monday rated Idaho as the most improved state in this category, moving from 25th two years ago to 13th. California, Connecticut and Oregon were followed in the Top 10 by Vermont, New York and Washington state. Also, Minnesota and Massachusetts were tied, and New Jersey made the top tier of states.

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy rated the states on "a wide range of the proven effective and readily available efficiency strategies." Among areas examined were building codes, transportation and land-use policies, utilities' efficiency programs, financial incentives and support for research.

The West is doing something right in regards to Energy Efficiency! With 3 of the top 6 states in the nation and Idaho making the biggest jump in 2 years, it looks like we are taking the necessary steps to improving our future.

A couple of items in today’s Spokesman-Review article on WaMu’s collapse offers clues not only to WaMu’s demise but to the current lending mess in general.

The first item is WaMu’s purchase of American Savings Bank and Great Western in the late 1990’s. I worked for a competing bank during those years and I had frequent conversations with borrowers who wanted to refinance their home loan for NO other reason than to get away from WaMu’s loan servicing department. It was common knowledge in the industry that WaMu was totally choking on the integration of the other banks’ loan portfolios with their own. I remember thinking to myself, “WaMu is going to ruin their business by trying to acquire too many other banks all at the same time.” I guess I was wrong by about 10 years.

The second item, and the one that goes to the heart of the entire lending mess, is the statement that WaMu’s former CEO Kelly “Killinger clearly understood how mortgages worked.” I want to be clear the following has nothing to do with Killinger himself, but more my opinion on how thousands of executives like Killinger drove their businesses into trouble.

Just because lending executives “understood how mortgages worked,” that does not mean their companies acted in a responsible and ethical manner. I personally think there is a broad range of reasons for the lapses of judgment used by these executives – everything from intentional fraudulent behavior to just naïve ignorance of the products they offered and the manner their employees offered these products.

WaMu is just the most recent example of how understanding mortgages doesn’t mean you will be successful as a mortgage lender. Gone from the media, but the all time biggest flop, is the demise of Countrywide Home Loans. While they may have “merged” with Bank of America let’s not gloss over the fact that it was CW’s use of the Option Arm and no income documentation loans that caused them to spiral into the ground. CW’s founder Angelo Mozilo was considered a visionary of the mortgage industry and Countrywide itself was the largest lender in the U.S. for many years running. I’m sure Angelo “understood” the mortgage business, but he’s out of business now.

Let’s not confuse understanding something with behaving in an ethical and responsible manner.

Yep, you read that right. Most people know by now that the Spokane Real Estate market has not experienced the steep decline in values that many other locations have seen. Although listing inventory is high and total sales have declined, we've held fairly steady on prices. But that doesn't mean there are not great buying opportunities here.

One of Spokane's largest and most reputable home builders, Sullivan Homes, went into court receivership in early August. Spokane attorney Nancy Isserlis was appointed as the receiver of Sullivan Homes' assets, which included 32 homes and 72 building lots, with a combined list price of $20.7 million.

Here's a link to the story that ran in the newspaper: Sullivan Homes Files to Liquidate: http://www.spokesmanreview.com/breaking/story.asp?ID=15928

My husband and I recently represented the purchasers of one of Sullivan's new construction homes in the new Bidwell Park development. While the offer process took several extra days than what is typical, after a few back and forth counters we signed around a deal at $318,000 on a beautiful home that was listed at $364,900. That's $46,900 or 13% off the asking price, (which originally started at $379,850). How's that for built-in equity?

Sullivan has always built a good home, with quality materials and workmanship. So if you are looking for new construction, this is a great opportunity. There are still dozens of Sullivan homes available in some of Spokane's nicest developments - Legacy Ridge, Canyon Bluffs, Morningside Heights, and Bidwell Park to name just a few.

If you would like a list (or a tour!) of the homes that are still available, just let me know. Because there are several different lenders holding the paper on these homes, there are no guarantees on how each will respond to offers. But it is a great opportunity to get a screaming deal on a new house.

Spokane has been chosen one of the 100 Best Communities in America for young people, as judged by America’s Promise Alliance.

What an encouraging endorsement of our community!

Unfortunately it’s buried on page B4 of The Spokesman-Review so most people probably missed it. Why is it we give such little attention to really important stories like this?

I’ll be including this information in all my presentations to out of town buyers.

If you missed the original Spokesman-Review article, it can be accessed by CLICKING HERE.

The story also led me to discover the wonderful organization – America’s Promise Alliance – founded by Colin Powell in partnership with his wife Alma. They are doing great work in support of our children – CLICK HERE to check out their organization.