Question: What do you do when you learn your only grandson thinks it's been a while since you and he have done something  "alone together" ? Answer: You start thinking about doing something fun. When grandma is the one reporting this grandfatherly difficiency, you really get right on it. You cast an eye around your memory/inventory of great things seven-year-olds would love doing in your town. High on that list should be Miniature Golf If you live in Eugene-Springfield-Lane County, Oregon you should know that here thinking about miniature golf means going to:    Camp Putt's 36 holes are the best miniature golf in Western Oregon.  The course is well-designed for just the right amount of variety and challenge.   Both eighteen-hole rounds are meticulously maintained.  The staff is always... 08/10/2009

08/08/2009

  Kelly Tran and I have two things in common: we both left Da Nang, Vietnam a long time ago... and we both love her authentic Vietnam Restaurant  in Eugene, Oregon. I left that city, then a United States military stronghold in the Republic of Vietnam, in early 1969, when the US Army's First Signal Brigade transferred me (from the Da Nang Signal Battalion to a higher headquarters in Saigon) for the remainder of my tour during America's long, unfortunate war in Southeast Asia. In 1991, Kelly left Da Nang, her home city, to seek new life and fortune in America.  She's been in Eugene, Oregon for twenty years. Kelly opened her current business, simply named Vietnam Restaurant, in 2002.  I was introduced to her establishment this year by my son and daughter-in-law, Josh and Carroll Hale.  It ... 08/08/2009

  In recent weeks, we've noticed favorable market factors at the lower end of the price/size range for homes for sale in Eugene, Springfield and Lane County, OR. We've also picked up signs that housing inventories are declining and prices beginning to turn upward in many parts of the country -- as evidenced by information posted on the Active Rain real estate network by agents from a variety of regions. Now comes the first truly positive national numbers of any real reliablility:  the May report of  the Case-Shiller Index as reported by Standard and Poors (and the Wall Street Journal). This important housing index experienced the first month-on-month increase in nearly three years. This monthly report is derived from year-on-year sale of the same homes.  It's not an arithmetic mean (ave... 08/03/2009

Faerieworlds Festival 2009 - World Class Entertainment and Fun!   Relocated to Mt. Pisgah from Secret House Winery, Faerieworlds Festival promises to be the best to date!  This evenet starts out with Good Faeries Day on Friday, July 31st is Good, continues with Bad Faeries Day on Saturday, August 1,  and concludes with Family day on August 2.  Making a premiere headliner preformance this year is FAUN.  Music, Clothing vendors, Food Vendors and some of the most fabulous craftsmen from around the country are on hand to visit.  My girls and I have been going to Faerieworld for several years and we love the mood, food and the music.      We have met Author Gris Grimly and Artist Amy Brown to name a couple.  We are big fans of the Froud Family.  Brian, Wendy and Toby, keep us coming back!  W... 07/31/2009

http://www.careersrealestateschool.com Contact: Linda Forbes Email: Careers@eugeneoregonrealestate.com Phone: 541-984-5439 10 Weeks or 10 Months?           What would you rather do?  •A.    Spend $2500 PLODDING ALONG for 10 months to get your real estate license using an expensive outdated format offered at some community colleges  OR  •B.    Spend ¼ the cost getting classroom instruction and completing requirements in 1/5 the time (just 10 weeks!) with a nationally known author and instructor, Linda Forbes, whose students have a 95% state test passage rate on the first attempt! 07/21/2009

Which homes are selling best in Eugene, Oregon's FERRY STREET BRIDGE  RMLS  Market  Area? The table below compares actual closed sales of single family, detached homes in the month of June, 2009 to the inventory available in the FERRY STREET BRIDGE area as of July 10, 2009.   Square-Footage Range Closed Sales June, 2009  Active Listings July 10, 2009 Available Inventory (in months) All 28 109 3.9 The overall ratio of active listing divided by closed sales in June yields 3.9 months of  available inventory, much lower than the inventory level in the neighboring Danebo RMLS market area. 3000 plus 1 14 14.0 2500-2999 5 18 3.6 2000-2499 9 26 2.9 1800-1999 1 21 21.0 1600-1799 1 11 11.0 1500-1599 7 ∞ 1400-1499 3 5 1.7 1300-1399 3 4 1.3 1200-1299 3 3 1.0 1100-1199 1 6 6.0 1000-1099 2   ∞  900-9... 07/10/2009

Which homes are selling best in Eugene, Oregon's SANTA CLARA  RMLS  Market  Area? The table below compares actual closed sales of single family, detached homes in the month of June, 2009 to the inventory available in the Danebo area as of today, July 10, 2009.   Square-Footage Range Closed Sales June, 2009  Active Listings July 10, 2009 Available Inventory (in months) All 28 109 3.9 The overall ratio of active listing divided by closed sales in June yields 3.9 months of  available inventory, much lower than the inventory level in the neighboring Danebo RMLS market area. 3000 plus 2 6 3.0 2500-2999 4 9 2.3 2000-2499 3 23 7.7 1800-1999 3 15 5.0 1600-1799 3 14 4.7 1500-1599 2 12 6.0 1400-1499 2 10 5.0 1300-1399 3 6 2.0 1200-1299 4 ∞ 1100-1199 1 3 3.0 1000-1099 3 2   .7  900-999 1 2 2.0 Bel... 07/10/2009

   Which homes are selling best in Eugene, Oregon's DANEBO  RMLS  Market  Area? The table below compares actual closed sales of single family, detached homes in the month of June, 2009 to the inventory available in the Danebo area as of today, July 10, 2009.   Square-Footage Range Closed Sales June, 2009  Active Listings July 10,2009 Available Inventory (in months) All 22 124 5.6 The overall ratio of active listing divided by closed sales in June yields 5.6 months of  available inventory. 3000 plus  1  ∞ 2500-2999 10  ∞ 2000-2499 1 16 16.0 1800-1999 1 11 11.0 1600-1799 2 15   7.5 1500-1599 4  8   2.0 1400-1499 3 11   3.7 1300-1399 1  6   6.0 1200-1299 3  6   2.0 1100-1199 3  8   2.6 1000-1099 2 17   8.5  900-999 2   6   3.0 Below 900   9  ∞   Starter homes  (near the median size) (1100 ... 07/10/2009

Come view the USA Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon with Realtor Karen Church of RE/MAX Integrity.  Lane County is a terrific hostess.  Walk or run the Prefontaine Trails in the morning and then spend the day in the sun watching our amazing United States Athletes compete to see who will make the World Championship Team.  Go to www.usatf.org to get a schedule.  I will look for you at Hayward Field.  I will be the one cheering the loudest!  06/25/2009

Data-wise, what could be better than knowing the median home selling price for SANTA CLARA or any other Eugene, OR neighborhood (RMLS data area)? The median home sales price (see my last blog entry) is a great measure of central tendency -- a way to know what a whole class of data is doing. But there is just no substitute for knowing what size of home is really selling better than others. Accordingly, below is a compilation of homes closed in May, 2009 in SANTA CLARA (North of Belt Line Road), grouped according to the range of the square footage of the home. You can see how many homes sold in each size range during the month...and how many homes within that size range were for sale (i.e. active listings) on June 16. (This data excludes homes that were reported as manufactured or tandem ... 06/20/2009

In May, 2009, the median sales price for homes in Eugene, OR's SANTA CLARA neighborhood (RMLS area) was up from this April but down from May, 2008. SANTA CLARA's median residential price for May was $226,700.  That is lower than the median for May in any the past four years -- putting this measure of central tendency back to approximately where it was at the beginning of the housing boom.   One half of all homes sold for more than the median, one half sold for less.   The median is perhaps the more accurate measure of what is happening in the market place.  The mean price (arithmetic average) is easily distorted by a few high or low values.   This trend echoes data in an earlier post on this blog which reported that the Case-Shiller index for the Portland Metro Area showed home prices t... 06/20/2009

In May, 2009, the inventory of homes for sale in Eugene, OR's SANTA CLARA neighborhood declined dramatically from the high recorded in May, 2008. The number of active listings declined 34% from 2008 (and was also 23% lower than in 2007). This is great news for SANTA CLARA sellers.  A decline in inventory is a necessary first step toward stabilized prices (and, later, increased confidence and increased sales) .     However, this trend was partially mitigated by the fact that the number of closed sales in the SANTA CLARA neighborhood stayed level in May, compared to the prior year. Of course, the inventory level (number of active listings) remains higher than during the unprecedented 2004 - 2005 boom period. SANTA CLARA home sales in May (23) were well below the average for the 2002-2005 ... 06/20/2009

Quiet parklike setting but the convenience of great shopping and the busline a few steps away. Slider off living room opens onto a patio and a beautiful lawn. Balcony off master bedroom looks out onto the treetops. Good storage, stacked washer and dryer and refrigerator included. Wood burning fireplace. Low HOA dues of only $120 per month. Property Staged by The Notably Well-Dressed Home and offered by Peggy Saleeby / Keller Williams Realty / 541-520-9779 Mature and well-maintained landscaping throughout this condo community: Living room leads to back patio and shared greenbelt: Kitchen with eating bar for two: Master bedroom: Master bedroom includes niche for reading as well as enclosed deck:   Second bedroom with built-in bookshelves: More photos of beautifully landscaped grounds: 06/18/2009

Interestingly, while doing some web surfing trying to find out who my competition is in the blog-o-sphere, I wasn't entirely pleased with who was out there. I wanted to know who else was writing about the place I call home and who was writing about lending, mortgages and loans. It is interesting what I found. Like this site, for example. Neighborhood Expert Online is a place where you can come and find someone that is actually in your Neighborhood to help you with whatever you need. Granted, the availability is kind of limited right now, but it is a fairly new site and as such, will take some time for the various neighborhoods to be represented in the various fields. Right now, I want to focus on the Eugene/Springfield Oregon Neighborhood. Who are these guys? As an veteran searcher, I u... 06/17/2009

Realtor Karen Church, your Eugene, Oregon "Go To" Gal at www.eugenehomesgal.com, wants you to be aware of what is out there on the internet.  This came to her via our tech person here at RE/MAX Integrity.  Be sure to share it with friends and business associates: I know many of you use facebook & MySpace, BUT there is a virus running around right now that has trying to infect users of these 2 social networks. You may have noticed you McAfee AV software popping up with the alert of: (USERNAME/WORKSTATION) has Virus detected and removed W32/Koobface.worm.gen.e This means the virus tried to infect your machine but deleted it. You are protected by our McAfee on your WORK computer. I would suggested not going on to these websites on your work machine and if you have to be very careful of wha... 06/10/2009

Karen Church with RE/MAX Integrity is very excited about our new technology called MLS Now!  This "Go To Gal" at www.eugenehomesgal.com is busy putting up signs on her listings so you can hear all about them here in Lane County. The MLS NOW! system is a new technology that allows home buyers to call one phone number and get info on any listing in multiple. Not just info on the listing they are calling on or Just Integrity listings but all the listings in mls. The consumer simply dials the MLS NOW! phone number (302-4800 in Lane County or 918-4040 in Linn and Benton County) and enters the street number of any listed home. The system will read the caller the pertinent info on the listing and then give the caller the options of; getting the property info text to them; being instantly conne... 06/05/2009

Karen Church with RE/MAX Integrity of Lane County in Eugene, Oregon wants to share with you the impact of interest rates on buyers: Everyone Wants a Lower Price, But What About the Impact of Interest Rates? When shopping for a home, the natural tendency of any buyer is to want to pay the lowest price possible. It's important to keep in mind, however, that the sales price is not the only factor that determines what the monthly payment will be. In fact, the impact of higher interest rates can easily nullify any benefit of waiting for a lower price. Why Should I Rush to Buy?While you may have heard discussions in the media about the decline of property values in many markets, the rate of decline appears to be stabilizing. That being said, it would not be unreasonable for buyers to want to ... 06/05/2009

Window Live Writer Now I am sure that the experience bloggers out there already know about this or else they are very comfortable writing in HTML. However, since I think HTML is a little harder to learn than Klingon and just a bit easier than Romulan, I found this a very helpful product. It is called Windows Live Writer and you can write with it using just normal word time action and not worry about the extra HTML code that Word seems to throw into a post just for grins. Download and Use You can download Writer here and it is really easy to use. You can add hyperlinks like I am doing, you can ad photos and you can add maps and tables like this one.  So far, I have tied Writer to my three blogs, Eugene Loan Guy, FHA Loans Oregon and No Money Down OR WA CA. The absolute nice thing about t... 05/31/2009

In constrast to the weak housing boom of the North Gilham neighborhood (RMLS market area), Eugene's River Road (RMLS market area) looked a lot like Santa Clara, its neighbor to north and Bethel-Danebo, its neighbor to the west.   (Here monthly available inventory is computed by dividing the number of listings active at the end-of-month by the number of sales closed during the month.)     River Road experienced 33 months with an inventory level below 2.5 months of remaining homes for sale (as shown in green above). By comparison Santa Clara saw 34 months such months; Bethel-Danebo had 26. Of those 33 months, River Road had 18 months below the even hotter 1.5-month level of available inventory. Santa Clara had 14 such months; Bethel-Danebo saw 15. Arguably, during the boom, River Road was... 05/30/2009