LOAN MODIFICATION SCAMS IN WASHINGTON   Numerous Washington state residents have fallen victim to the mounting housing market crisis, with the majority of these homeowners undergoing hardships, including medical bills, divorce, loss of job, and unaffordable home loans.  Avoiding loan modification scams should be the least of these borrowers' troubles.   However, with a rise of dishonest and fraudulent operations, as well as increasing mortgage loan modification fraud, many homeowners do not know where to turn!  [MSNBC, 5/28/2009] Unfair or deceptive loan modification scams have plagued the mortgage industry, and deterred countless homeowners from seeking help.  In lieu of such scandalous practices, the Federal Trade Commission is contemplating whether it should ban such for-profit compa... 06/21/2009

Unfortunately, my husband fits into this category... I am constantly trying to change that, but regardless this commercial from Pemco Insurance in Seattle was filmed in a house I sold last year!  This gorgeous view home was vacant while on the market and located in Edmonds overlooking the Puget Sound - one of the very coolest houses I have sold!  The new owners even found a time capsule in the garden!  This commercial was very popular at the time that I sold the house and it continues to air quite often - even with my TIVO I bump into it at least once a week.  I smile every time:)   Are you interested in Seattle real estate?  Edmonds Real Estate?  06/17/2009

Edmonds has a wide range of waterfront homes.  There are affordable houses on Lake Ballinger and Lake Serene, and everything from small cabins to luxury villas on the Puget Sound.Prices start around $500,000, so there is ample opportunity for Puget Sound waterfront home buyers.  The views from Edmonds on the waterfront are sweeping.  The Olympic mountains, islands in the Sound, ferries, and occasional orca whales make water views in Edmonds hard to beat.  Edmonds Water View Real EstateEdmonds Waterfront Real Estate Sam DeBord and Brian WiegandSeattleHome.com (206) 431-5900Seattle Waterfront Real Estate Brokers - RE/MAX ConnectedSeattle Waterfront Homes - Seattle Water View Homes - Seattle Floating Homes - Seattle Houseboats - Seattle Condos - Seattle Luxury Homes - Seattle Homes For Sale 05/28/2009

The city of Edmonds will be having its annual waterfront festival this weekend, May 29-31.  Edmonds, about 20 minutes North of downtown Seattle, has a quaint, small-town feel in its downtown on the Puget Sound.  The family festival has a nautical theme, with art exhibits and plenty of entertainment. For children, there are arts and crafts, free trout fishing, rides, and food vendors.  For adults there is a beer garden, live music, dancing, and a 5k run.  The events run from 3pm-10pm on Friday, and 11am-10pm on Saturday and Sunday. Edmonds Homes For SaleEdmonds Waterfront HomesEdmonds Water View Homes 05/28/2009

Edmonds Washington - Beach fun! I love beaches and really love low tide.  My son was a little sick last week so we took some time and went out in the gorgeous sun and fresh air at Edmonds Beach - Brackett's Landing specifically.   Here are some shots, but if you haven't been out there it is a great place to go hang out - there are restrooms, picnic tables, and more plus it is along the waterfront walkway that runs all along Edmonds next to the Puget Sound.  Dogs are not allowed at this beach, but it is still worth a trip!  While you are here check out the floats all out on the water - this is an underwater dive park!  Also the ferry loading dock for the Kingston-Edmonds run is right here and fun to watch as the cars and people load and unload.  We found amazing and colorful starfish and... 05/10/2009

This is a wonderful view condo in Edmonds, but prior to staging, there wasn't much to look at in this unit to distinguish it from all of the other "vanilla boxes" in this community. The condo has a great room, which includes the kitchen, dining area and living room.  Potential buyers often have difficulty figuring out how to arrange their furniture in spaces like these.  Also, these spaces always appear smaller when vacant.  Amazing but true!  Here is the condo's great room prior to staging: And here are the "after" staging photos: By showing potential buyers how they can use this space for living and entertaining, this condo stands head and shoulders above the other "plain vanilla boxes" in the complex. Give your listings the advantage of professional home staging.  Contact us today fo... 03/05/2009

We just completed our first 2009 occupied staging.  As you can see in the before photos, all of the basic elements were there.  Our job was to enhance these spaces with color, lighting, some additional furniture pieces, artwork and accessories.  This home went from "ho-hum" to "warm and inviting".  Here are the before and after photos:   Living room before:  The basic furniture pieces are all here, but not much else.   Living room after:  We rearranged the furniture to better fit the architecture of the room and create a conversation area.  We also added a coffee table, side table, artwork, lighting, colorful toss pillows and accessories.   Living room before:  Another angle of the living room showing the fireplace.   Living room after.   Master bedroom before.   Master bedroom after:  ... 02/12/2009

While most homes we stage are vacant, many home sellers are still living in their homes while they are on the market.  Here are some staging tips for the occupied home: Make sure there is enough light in the room and that it is evenly distributed.  Arrange furniture for spaciousness and to accent the features of the room. Feature the focal point:  here the focal point is the fireplace. Add greenery to bring life to the space and bring the outdoors in. Colors don't need to "match" but they should blend well with one another. Furniture should be the appropriate size for the room. Artwork should enhance the space and be hung at eye level. Rooms should feel comfortable, not cluttered with distractions. Buyers need to see this home as a place in which they could relax. Everything needs to be... 02/03/2009

"Are you two really sisters?"  Sometimes refered to as "the sisters" by clients and friends, Diana Young and Alisa Landreth are the real life sisters of SISTERS Interior Redesign.  Only 15 months apart, Diana and Alisa grew up in the Edmonds area with their parents and identical twin sisters, Brenda and Glenda. The sisters and our parents:  Alisa, Diana, Dad, Mom, Glenda & Brenda During our growing up years, our dad was a sales rep for an electrical manufacturer and our mom was a homemaker and tennis coach.  Having four teenaged s in the house for several years was a challenge! Our dad was definately outnumbered by all those women!  He did get his "boys" eventually... Here is the rest of our extended family, many of whom play an active role in our staging business:  Diana, daughter Juli... 02/01/2009

I just read the blog post at Edmonds Undressed about the Unocal pier being torn down.  This was news to me, and after reading the Enterprise article about it, I understand why. The $2 million project is necessary, said Joy Goldenburg, with Washington State Ferries. The agency is paying for the work as part of early environmental mitigation for future improvements to Edmonds' ferry terminal. The pier's creosote-treated timber pilings are rotting, and the pier is starting to fall apart. That poses both environmental and safety hazards. As work progresses, the pilings are broken down and transported to a landfill in Oregon, said Shawn Devine, a spokesman with WSF.  Full Article Sort of a bummer to be losing a good dive site, and it won't look the same down there, but it makes sense that th... 01/16/2009

With the new year comes, for us parents , the shuffle to get the following Fall kindergarten schooling set up for our kids.  To help get parents acquainted with the Edmonds kindergarten program, the Edmonds school district is kicking open the doors and letting parents have the opportunity to come in and meet with with teachers and staff on Janarty 10th. The Edmonds School District is hosting its annual District Information Fair from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday January 10 at Lynnwood High School, 3001 184th St. SW, Lynnwood.  With kindergarten registration across the district opening Monday, it's a chance for families to find out more about registration, meet people from their neighborhood school and learn more about districtwide programs and opportunities.The fair is not just for kindergart... 01/05/2009

My Favorite Seattle Suburb Self Dog Grooming Place: Edmonds Scrub-A-Pup  180 W Dayton St #101 in Edmonds down by the waterfront.  425-775-7152 These guys are open 9-7 M-F and 9-5 on Sat for Dog Grooming, etc. with the last wash one hour prior to close (two hours in our case most likely).  They open at 7AM M-F for doggie daycare.  I noticed on their site that they offer dog classes, too. Here is the Best Part: $20 $20 and they give you all you need!  A raised tub with convenient doggy walkway to get into it, soap, brushes, towels, and what we lack at home the most: giant blowers to get our BIG dogs clean.  So far, only David has visited there, but we plan to make our other Newfie a regular, too! OK - I love this place!  I should tell you why I am so thrilled:  I have not one but TWO gian... 01/01/2009

Point Edwards is really coming along!  This planned community in Edmonds Wa was once the site of giant oil tanks, but what a great improvement this is!  Point Edwards is in the Southwestern corner of Edmonds WA just touching Woodway.  This neighborhood offers sweeping views of the Puget Sound and Olympic Mountains plus a nice salty sea breeze year round.    Are you interested in Edmonds real estate?  realestate@cooperjacobs.com 09/01/2008

As I survey the current real estate landscape I can't help but be fascinated by how people are and in many cases aren't adapting to the new rules of the game. Surely as Sellers have come to find that positive equity is no longer a given, many of them are asking, "what the heck am I getting for the commission dollars I am being asked to pay?" A very fair question and unfortunately, not a lot of good answers have been forthcoming. I have been trying to come up with some legitimate answers for most of a year now, answers I can share with my fellow Realtors through the ROCS Alliance as we begin the work of regaining the position of trust and confidence our industry fought hard to engender for many years. We somehow managed to piss it all away in short order when the free money started flow... 08/24/2008

You are probably eager to sample the different cuisines offered up at the various booths.  Maybe order a gyro or a kabob and chase it down with a slice of pizza or maybe a rack of ribs. Sure, and that is what The Taste is all about.    But were you aware that Edgar Winters is Back!    I didn't even know that he had left, or was ever here before. Heck, I didn't even know that he was still alive!  Judging from his picture, I'm not sure that he still is.  He always did look like he had one foot in the grave even back in the seventies, and I rememeber him really freaking me out when I saw his picture on album covers as a little kid. As I further peruse the above picture, I'm not so sure that it's not really Chris Elliott in a bad wig warming up for a return to the Late Show with David Lette... 08/07/2008

Edmonds Wa is lucky enough to have Kafe Neo (best Edmonds Greek food!!!!)  My husband and I have been buying Greek food here for about a decade.  They even cater and I had them cater our reception WAY BACK WHEN.  It is a family owned restaurant with sit down dining or quick take out.  If you are having a party or even a small dinner, give them a call and have them make the food for you.  It is unbelievably good and worth it! Lots of choices... I like Kafe Neo for its great vegetarian choices, but the restaurant is just as set up to please all of my carnivorous family members.  Edmonds has a lot of great restaurants - especially in the downtown Edmonds area, but Kafe Neo is not to be missed.  Kafe Neo is my pick for best Seattle suburbs Greek Food! Bonus?  Dinner and live music every Sun... 07/29/2008

Edmonds WA is such a great city if you are considering relocating to a Seattle suburb.  I like Edmonds Bowl because it has a nice combination of views and location as well as pretty good schools.  Single family residential inventory in the Edmonds WA community of Edmonds Bowl is up a bit at 48 listings with an average days on market time of 74 days.  The median price of these active listings in Edmonds is $689,100. To give you an idea of how high this is let's look at the other stats in the neighborhood. There are 3 pending properties in Edmonds Bowl which are waiting to close.  Since the beginning of 2008, 19 houses have sold with an average days on market time of 72.  The median price of these sold homes in Edmonds is 595,000 with prices ranging from $375,500 to $1,395,000. Are you in... 07/29/2008

PCC the nation's largest consumer owned natural foods cooperative is coming to Edmonds, and aside from a little oopsy over cutting three trees down to make way for a water cistern without a permit, things are on track for the store to open this fall in the Westgate neighborhood.  They are taking over and renovating the building previously occupied by an Albertson store on the corner of 100th Ave. W. and Edmonds Way (SR 104).  Somehow I think PCC willl be a good fit down in Edmonds! The existing structure is being renovated to incorporate a wide range of eco-friendly features to position the store for LEED® Platinum Certification, a distinction awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council for excellence in building design and operation. In fact, the trees that were cut down without a permi... 07/09/2008

Okay, it's happened again.  After staging an absolutely beautiful view home (new construction, too!) I didn't want to leave and go to my "real" home, which is in the process of a long-overdue remodeling project and pretty messy at the moment. One day my home will be finished, furnished and "staged" to live!  But for now, I'll just create comfortable, warm and inviting living spaces for people like me to dream of owning and enjoying with friends and family. Enjoy this photo gallery of what my home might look like someday! Living Room - Wall of windows has a wonderful water view (Puget Sound) and territorial view. Dining Room - The views from this room are of the charming older home and well kept garden of the neighbor. Kitchen - Stainless steel Viking appliances, granite counters, tile b... 06/19/2008

School is out around Puget Sound through the Seattle suburbs and Edmonds School District #15 ended their 2007-2008 school year today.  Congrats to all the graduates around Lynnwood, Edmonds, Brier, and Mountlake Terrace!  Have a safe summer! Relocating between the the school years is pretty convenient for families with children - the transition into a new school can be much easier after settling into a new house.   I moved around a lot as a child and there are some tricks to helping children make those adjustments successfully.  Finding special activities to do during the summer is part of it.  My mother was always pretty good at making sure I got out there and met friends before school started.  If that isn't possible, then there are great activities going on at the library and parks. ... 06/18/2008