I am sure as a military member you have heard this phrase about a million times in the last several years.  Interest rates have been so low for so long that home ownership has been easier than ever before for anyone and this especially includes the military population, who until recently didn't feel like they could or should purchase properties.  Never before has the military population owned a higher percentage of homes. The days of base living has changed drastically. With most installations switching over to PPV the climate has changed.  The thought of waiting until retirement to purchase a home has become a scary thought with the way housing prices in most areas have skyrocketed. Now could be the perfect time in the Naval Base Kitsap area to purchase a home since the market has ... 01/13/2008

So often I have been asked if I know of a good handy man. I wanted to let you know I have found a great handy-man, one I can whole-heartedy recommend! There isn't anything this man can't do; he's done it all and does it quite well! (His wife has kept him busy the past 27 plus years building, repairing and remodeling their home.)  As the grandson of a blacksmith, the son of a machinist, Roger Anderson, owner of Roger's Repair is the best there is! He spent his childhood working with and learning from his father, Andy (Roger) Anderson. As a well respected machinist who worked for many years at PSNS, Andy was known throughout the community as the guy to go to for anything needing to be done right the first time. Roger not only learned all his father had to teach, he's built his skills and ... 01/13/2008

"We want to buy a house, and we're probably going to use our VA loan.  Can you tell us how much we can afford?  We'd like to keep our payments below our BAH."I can't tell you how many times I have heard young military couples (and a few singles) tell me this.  It's a good goal, but I have to tell you that, depending on your expectations for a home, it may be difficult, if not impossible, to accomplish this goal.  Don't get me wrong, it does happen, but it usually takes some re-prioritizing and perhaps settling a little.Allow me to explain.....The Basic Allowance for Housing was put in place to pay rent for military service members who either can not or choose not to live in military housing.  That's right, I said rent.  BAH was not designed to allow military personnel to purchase a home... 01/12/2008

When you are a military spouse you count things, lots of things.You count how many days until he leaves, you count how many days until he comes home, you count how many days until the next PCS, you count how many days until he leaves again.  You have to count most of these days in private. You have to be careful about Operational Security or OPSEC. I think it was in 2003 when some soldier or Marine who was stationed in Iraq decided to compose what was and is to this day called "The Donut of Misery".This donut has been emailed and passed along to military families all over the world. My first donut was given to me in 2004 when my husband was in Iraq for the first time.  I was so excited to tell him about it. When he finally called it was the first thing I said and you know what? He had o... 01/12/2008

 - Expired Dump?   I was doing some market research today and decided to really look and look hard at expired listings in my market area. I know the blah; blah; blah...if it isn't priced right it won't sell. I started to look at homes and really thought the price was right or in a range that with a little negotiation there would or should have been a buyer. So why didn't some of these homes sale. I will tell you - BECAUSE THEIR AGENTS WERE LAZY!!! Now, that might sound strong and maybe not sound professional but it is the truth!!  In my market area the NWMLS allows us to upload 15 photos. You can also write a short description that for each photo. I did research on 42 homes in the West Bremerton area and there were only 5 listings with a total of 15 photos. Of those listings with 15 pho... 01/12/2008

I do a ton of research daily watching the trends in the Bremerton Real Estate market.  Sometimes it is hard to decided what is good news and what is bad news - and well you know like the saying goes - No news is good news.  Seriously, all of the numbers really only point to one thing.  If you price your home properly for the market it will sell.  I purchased a home in 2006. The property was probably priced below what the market would allow so there were several offers in the first 48 hours it was on the market.  I had lost out on 2 other homes in "bidding" wars.  Yes, even with all of my knowledge, I lost out. Sometimes you just have to know when to stop and luckily I did.  This 3rd home was really the home we wanted and as the saying goes " if it is meant to be it will happen" it did. ... 01/10/2008

Homes in Bremerton were selling for a YTD median price of about $211,475 at the end of December, up about 6% from a year ago. The December median price for closed sales was $170,750, indicating that prices may be coming down. Kitsap County median prices were up 6% over the past year. The YTD number of closed sales is down 26% from a year ago (compared to a Countywide drop of 18%), and the YTD number of pending sales is down 24%. The number of active listings (260) is up 47% from a year ago. The listing inventory is falling now as homeowners take their properties off the market for the Holidays. The inventory turnover (total homes on the market divided by number sold last month) is 8.1 months. Bremerton is a buyers market. 01/09/2008

Over the last several months I have written many articles about the City of Bremerton's revitalization plans and progress.  I chose to live in Bremerton based on its Comprehensive Plan.  I enjoy living in an area that values the quality of a Downtown Core Area.  So please take a look at the Mayor's 2007 Harborside District Report and read how much progress has been made on the waterfront now called the Harborside District.  This is the reason that Bremerton has been given the name "Metropolitan Center of the West Puget Sound". The best part is there are still some amazing projects to come.Bremerton Boardwalk, Park & Sewer Project Downtown Regional Center Sub Area East Park ProjectWest Park Project Check Out My Most Recent Blogs about Bremerton Revitalization. Bremerton | Metropolitan Ce... 01/09/2008

RTTUZYUW RUCCBWFO805 1580027-UUUU-RHMCSUU.ZNR UUUUUR 061321Z JUN 06 ZYBFM COMNAVPERSCOM ENLISTED ORDERS MILLINGTON TN//PERS404/PERS466//TO CSSD TWELVEPERSUPP DET EVERETT WA//JJJ//FIRST MARDIV HQ DETPERSUPP DET BANGOR WA//JJJ//BTUNCLAS //N21426//MSGID/GENADMIN/COMNAVPERSCOM//SUBJ/BUPERS ORDER// Look familiar? If so you are on your way to a Military PCS Relocation.  Baby, We Have Orders! Welcome to Kitsap County on the Beautiful Kitsap Peninsulabetween the Olympic and Cascade Mountain ranges in Washington State.  The Kitsap Peninsula area belongs to Navy Region Northwest with Naval Base Kitsapwhich includes Bremerton, Bangor and Keyport.  Naval Hospital Bremerton of Navy Region Northwest is also located in the region.  If this is the first time you have been stationed in the Puget Soundar... 01/09/2008

OH THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS FRIGHTFUL!!Where the heck do I live?!! I had no idea that living here in Bremerton would be so filled with snow days!! This is the 3rd YES, the 3rd snow fall of the winter season!!! I live on a very steep hill so when it snows I am out with my boots and mittens on shoveling away! I shovel my whole street. Yes, I am that crazy lady who plows by hand. Hey, today I was out shoveling and I was up at the intersection and along come one of the city's snow plows, not the large ones but the ones on the big pick-up trucks. The guy in the truck looks at me and off he goes. I think I might have said a word right there!  It would have taken him about 25 seconds to go down my street and turn around and go back up. I know there are only 5 houses on the dead-end part of the r... 01/08/2008

If you are in the United States Military and receive BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing) it is. This is a huge financial opportunity that not many Military members take advantage of for fear of the real estate market and the lack of education concerning real estate ownership. The average homeowner receives tax breaks associated with home ownership.  The yearly property taxes and yearly interest payments are tax deductible on their yearly tax return.   The average Military homeowner receives tax breaks associated with home ownership.  The yearly property taxes and yearly interest payments are tax deductible on their yearly tax return, also. However, the Military member receives all of these tax breaks with tax free money since the basic housing allowance (BAH) is tax free.  Wow! What an in... 01/06/2008

I lost  my crystal ball!! No, really I did!!! I have been looking for it all over! I look several times a day. In fact I look for it every time my phone rings.     A client will call with those "real estate questions", you know the ones. "When will it be a Seller's market again?", "Are interest rates going to go down?", "If I buy now can I still sell without having to  wait years and years and still make a profit?"  Every time I hear these questions I politely ask If I can put them on hold explaining that I need to go get my crystal ball.  I run around my office, looking everywhere and then once again I realize, oh that's right - I Don't HAVE A CRYSTAL BALL!!!  I pick the phone back up and start talking Sense Real Estate 101! Some days I can be a little sassy with my answers.  Here is ... 01/04/2008

As I am sure we all suspected when Puget Sound Energy released its "merge" information - Puget Energy Signs Merger Agreement with Consortium of North American Infrastructure Investors it wouldn't be too long before we would see a request for a rate increase.  We were all right! Puget Sound Energy in a press release December 3rd has started the process for an increase.  Infrastructure investments, higher costs prompt Puget Sound Energy to request general rate increase for late 2008. This could result in an average increase of approximately 9.5% for electric and 5.3 for gas.  With this kind of information you better start thinking about adding some more energy saving plans to your up and coming home projects.  Let's start by discussing five easy ways to reduce your home heating bill NOW! ... 01/02/2008

Bremerton Real Estate in DecemberTotal Homes on Market: 574 Homes Listed in December 81Days on Market15Median Price$259,900  Homes went Pending in December41Days on Market74Median Price$229,900  Homes Sold/Closed in December50Days on Market86Median Price$215,000  Number of Homes Expired/Off Market in December92 Number of Homes Cancelled/Off Market in December  57 If you would like to find out the value of your home please feel free to contact me via phone or email. I would be more than happy to supply you with a FREE Market Analysis. If you would like to purchase a home in the Bremerton WA Real Estate Area please give me a call or contact me via email. We can discuss your future plans and I can set you up on an email campaign to receive the hot new listings quicker than YOU can find the... 01/01/2008

The good news is that BAH rates went up for every paygrade in Kitsap County in 2008.  The bad news?  Well, it didn't go up much for some paygrades.For enlisted with dependents, BAH went up an average of 10%.  Officers with dependents saw an average increase of about 12%.  Don't get too excited, though.  One paygrade saw an increase of less than 1%.Check the chart below for the 2008 BAH rates.2008 BAH for Enlisted with DependentsPaygrade2008 BAH2007 BAHIncreaseE1 - E4112798415%E51233104218%E6127812274%E7133112933%E8138913662%E9150214474% 2008 BAH for Officers with DependentsPaygrade2008 BAH2007 BAHIncreaseO11238106316%O2127712234%O314221408>1%O41709154411%O51910163817%O61926165217%O71948167117%The increase in BAH indicates that the military and the government expects rental rates to incr... 01/01/2008

The slogan and the campaign have been around Washington State for several years. During the Holidays there is always an emphasis on prevention of drinking and driving. I am a strong supporter of zero tolerance for DUI offenders.  There were 3,350 drinking driver involved accidents in Washington State in 2006 which includes 229 fatal crashes resulting in 252 deaths.   So Please over this Holiday weekend if you or someone you know has been drinking, DON'T DRIVE!  Use a designated driver, call a friend, call a taxi just don't drive.  If you see someone who might be under the influence please call 911 immediately and report it - you could be saving a life!   If you have any questions about real estate in Bremerton Washington, contact Jo Soss with Skyline Properties, Inc. at (360) 990-1433 o... 12/31/2007

  Back in October I was walking down on the Boardwalk checking out all of the completed revitalization projects the City of Bremerton had completed over 2007 and was mesmerized by the construction of the new Port of Bremerton Marina.  I had the opportunity to talk to a couple of workers who informed me that the project should be complete by April 2008.  Well looks like that date has really been moved up. The major part of construction will now be completed by February 2008!  This is so much earlier than the Port of Bremerton expected that they have started to take reservations for slips at the end of November.  This 22.9 million dollar project has been  controversial for the residence of Bremerton. There will now be 45 visitor slips and 229 permanent slips.  There will no covered moorag... 12/30/2007

 It is now official!! On December 19th, 2007 the Bremerton City Council approved the Downtown Sub Area Plan.  This plan gives much needed direction to the core downtown area of the City of Bremerton.  The City of Bremerton has over the last several years implemented several revitalization projects in the Downtown Area.  The Bremerton Downtown Area now has a clear direction when it comes to design standards, zoning, and the over all streetscape.  The plan addresses traffic and pedestrian friendly alternatives. The Downtown Sub Area Plan becomes effective January 2008. The Sub Area Plan will implement the policies that were approved in the 2004 City of Bremerton Comprehensive Plan with a more specific direction of plan implementation.In 2001 the huge task of The City of Bremerton Revitali... 12/30/2007

Bring in the New Year with a Laugh! Come out to the Admiral Theater and Laugh in the New Year with the "Best of the Seattle Comedy Underground".  Share a toast at midnight and dance until 2 a.m. on the Admiral Theater stage.  Admiral Theatre515 Pacific AveBremerton Main Floor Reserved $35Loge Reserved $25Balcony Reserved $25 Sponsored by: TeleTech 12/29/2007

I had no idea of the plans to bring a replica of "The Lone Sailor"here to the Bremerton Marina! How exciting!! I was browsing the local newspaper The Kitsap Sun and came across the article, ‘Lone Sailor' Bound for Bremerton Marina.  The title intrigued me because I am the spouse of a USN sailor.  As soon as I opened the link I knew what this was about. I have been to the U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington D.C. I have stood next to this "Lone Sailor"!  The "Lone Sailor" is one of the many focal points at the U.S. Navy Memorial that opened 20 years ago.  The Bremerton statue will be the 11thduplicate of the original in D.C.  The Navy League is planning on a dedication ceremony on Memorial Day.  How exciting to have a "National Monument" here in Bremerton.  The Navy League is asking for citi... 12/28/2007