Maple Valley, WA

The first month of the new year recorded 19 single family properties within the Tahoma School District close sales…a slight drop from last year’s 23 and 21 in the same month in 2008.

The majority of sales still fall within the “regular” category, rather than mostly being made up of short sales or bank owned foreclosed properties.

Interesting that our average Sales price for closed homes in 2010 rose by approximately 8.5% although finished down 11% from those which closed in January 2008

The strength of the Tahoma School district has many families, both local and out of state, focusing on the Maple Valley area as a possible place to put down roots. A common question I am asked from those who do not currently live in the area, is what types of sports programs are available.

As the mother of three boys, I am very familiar with how important this can be in the relocation decision making process.

My husband and I have shuttled many carpools, and cheered as Football/Baseball/Lacrosse/Wrestling and Soccer fans. It was a blast and we met many wonderful people along the way.

The long answer to the short question is YES!

Maple Valley has many youth sports programs for both boys and girls.

Here's a quick reference:

Soccer:

Maple Valley Soccer Association: I can tell you from first hand experience this is a very active organization. It is well run and offers teams for many different skill levels.

Tahoma Little League: When my boys were growing up, the closest Little League Organization was in Kent. So they played Pony until moving onto Select teams. I know Tahoma Little League is very popular with area families.

Baseball:

Maple Valley Pony Baseball: All three of my sons played Pony ball and we have lots of fond memories-especially the famous Triple Play at Hobart Field!

Softball:

Maple Valley Pony Fastpitch Softball

Football:

Maple Valley Raiders: Football for the little guys through 6th grade.

Wrestling:

Maple Valley Wolfpack: Not just for the guys either! Through 6th grade and then Junior High Wrestling is available.

Lacrosse:

Tahoma Lacrosse (Formerly Maple Valley Lacrosse Club). A fast growing, VERY fast-paced sport. My youngest played for 7 years and had a blast!

Gymnastics:

Summit Gymnastics!

Cheer Squad:

Raiders Cheer Squad

I'd love to add to this list if anyone has some other contacts they'd like listed, just comment below or email us.

I'd love to make this as comprehensive a list as possible!

The debate over banking reform rages as President Obama's efforts to reign in the "too big to fail" institutions are endlessly debated. Capitalism vs. over reaching government is the debate of the day.

A comment on the topic by a friend brings some focus to me as to why I became a Short Sale Specialist and launched StopForeclosureinMapleValley.com.
The question posed was "Why do people hate the rich? Would you give up 1/2 your income in order for all to be equal?". My response is I would not give up 1/2 my income to make every one equal. The possibility of becoming wealthy keeps me striving to become more than I am. In that endeavor I serve more people and society benefits as a whole. It's the essence of Capitalism.

I'll confess that my primary objective is to provide for my family. My intention is to do very well. However, I could not engage in the daily battle that is involved in short sale transactions without the deeper more altruistic commitment to bettering the community I live in. I am absolutely committed to stopping foreclosure in Maple Valley. Why? The why is in the eyes and souls of the people I meet with every day. Foreclosure and financial hardships are a terrible thing. It tears apart families and marriages, creates despair, anxiety, stress and generally makes life miserable for those involved. It's Painful. Bringing relief to those good people when they are most in need is deeply satisfying.

Everything I have created from the video series on financial hardship, to the reports on how to talk to your lender, the homeowner loan modification kit, and the creation of our team is all to diminish and minimize the pain the our clients are feeling. All if the loan modification reports, homeowner kits, the loan modification calculator, or any of the videos are free for the general public to use and I highly encourage them to be used. Why was so much time and energy put into creating them? I get a great deal out of them if you use them to better your life. Service to the community is a rich reward and that is why I want to hear from you who have used these tools and found them helpful.

Short sales provide the same benefit. Hire me, and my team takes over. We take the calls from the bank, no more trying to figure out what to do, you have a lot less stress from day one because we are on the job, and now you can kick back and let us work. For short sales our service is completely free to our clients. From day one their lives are better, less stressful, and more certain than before. For that I am grateful. Maybe that's why our customers are so happy with our service. Excellent service is never appreciated more than when you are most vulnerable and need it urgently. To be sure there is still some stress because of the gravity of the situation but the stress of not knowing what to dois gone since you are doing the most you can by engaging experienced professionals.

I have a great team, we provide a great service and if you are reading this and have questions, please, call or email. Our commitment to bettering your life will quickly become evident as we take the first steps towards financial stability together.

Ken Crotts
Broker
Windermere Real Estate
Certified Short Sale Specialist

This market report is for home sales in the Valley Green Community in Maple Valley; specifically the single family homes in Division 1, 2 and 3. It does not include the zero lot line "Townhomes". We will run that report separately.

The Average Sales Price of homes sold in Valley Green is down approximately 19% from 2007, with the majority of that drop happening this past year. The average sales price in 2008 was $328,332 and in $2009, that number fell to $273,375....driven largely by foreclosures.

Average market times also increased, while total number of sales are down approximately 57%.

While watching President Obama's news conference I found myself feeling a deep sense of satisfaction. The President outlined a new tax on large banks who he referred to as being the primary cause of the current economic crisis. With news reports of multi million dollar bonuses being paid out to executives who's lending institutions were bailed out by the taxpayers many Americans feel they were being taken as fools for helping save these companies. After seeing the devastation in the eyes and homes of average average American I am one of them who felt a sense of betrayal.

Negotiating daily with lenders and experiencing their indifference towards their customers and the attitudes and actions they engage in suggests they feel immune to paying any consequence for their actions. Telling customers to stop paying their mortgage in order to get a loan modification severely damages credit, and the banks care not. Taking a short sale approval all the way to closing just to disapprove it at the last minute damages the customers credit and finances for 10 years, and the banks care not. Nor do they appear to carryany liability for their actions. Apparently the attitude of indifference and immunity we experience on the front lines with bank negotiators starts at the very top levels of the institutions.

The free market capitalists on CNBC and other news stations are likely to decry the big government intervention into the free market. The cries from Wall Street over limitations on executive pay have been continuous ever since the president appointed pay Czar, Kenneth Feinberg. This appointment, in response to news of huge new bonuses to bailed out bank executive, was intended to stem the outcry from tax payers to the practice of rewarding failure. Again the banks attitude of indifference and immunity keeps them from getting the message. I really thought they were the smartest people in the world, the best of the best, the greatest America had to offer. Now? Not so much. Such a smart group not getting it at this stage of the game.

I am a free market believer myself. That is to say that each individual in a free market may not have the capacity move the market but given the collective intelligence of millions of individuals operating independently the best solutions and innovations occur. Unfortunately the banking system is not a free market. It hasn't been since The Federal ReserveAct of 1913. More recently big banks have had their way withcongress as well. Really. When the head of the House Banking Committee is sharing a bed with a high level banking exectuve what do you expect? And that is not to say that Barney Franks love life is at fault. It points to a larger picture where big banks and big government scratch each others backs. For the banks they get the advantage in the market place and for the big government types they get more money and more power. They all had so much power that they thought they were immune....until the free market caught up with them.

So while I am still a free market believer I am taking a great deal of satisfaction in knowing that the fat cats that broker their influence with congress are getting piched by the very instituion they went to to gain billions in profits. Maybe they will get the picture this time and the attitudes will improve but I doubt it. It took decades for this to wind up and will decades to wind down, if ever. For the Wall Street gang there's a moral to the story. When you sleep with dogs you wake up with flees. Happy scratching.

Ken Crotts