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Renton, WA Real Estate News

By Sam DeBord, Seattle Real Estate Broker
(SeattleHome.com -Coldwell Banker Danforth)
The inventory of homes for sale recently on Lake Washington has been lower than we've seen in years.  While there have been up to 200 homes available during busier selling seasons, we're down to just 74 homes on the lake listed for sale currently.  That number is under where we were one year ago today, at 83 homes available for sale. With over 2,000 houses on Lake Washington, the current crop of homes for sale represents just 3 or 4 of every 100 waterfront homes being available for sale. Under $2,000,000:   The category of waterfront homes under $2 million is even more significantly strained.  Just 14 homes are listed in this range, considered to be the "affordable" waterfront locations on Lake Washington.  At 0.7 percent of the lake's homes available in this price category, the picking...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
When the news came out that the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) was going to lay off air traffic controllers and eliminate funds for local airport towers including our Renton Municipal Clayton Scott Airport, I was agast. My thoughts went straight to a phrase my Grandpa George would say on occasion, “Where’s the common sense in that?”   I asked myself, “Isn’t it one of the jobs of our elected government to maintain our vital infrastructure?” This being said the talking heads were everywhere on the media overstating the obvious, “Our number one priority is public safety, right?”   I don’t think so. We have no technology in place at this date that can replace a human being, a skilled air traffic controller, who sitting in a tower with a view that can make split second decisions and c...
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By Colleen Fischesser Northwest Property Shop, A Tradition of Trust in the Pacific NW since 1990!
(NextHome Experience)
Real Estate available for sale in the Renton Highlands is becoming harder to find. Ask any home buyer (espcecially in the under $500,000 market) actively looking to purchase now and you'll hear their frustration over the lack of inventory. How a few years changes things. Look at this graph of available months of inventory from 2008. If you'll recall, this was back when NOTHING was selling...   Notice the bar graph in November showing approximately 14 months of Active Listing Inventory? Again, this is for the 98059 zip code only.   Fast forward to 2011....things were getting better. The high point of inventory, in February was just under 7 months. Still technically a buyer's market. So what happened last year? 2012? Ok.... And trending into the 2013?     So if you're a home seller today...
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By Colleen Fischesser Northwest Property Shop, A Tradition of Trust in the Pacific NW since 1990!
(NextHome Experience)
$2,100 per month, 4 bedrooms, 2 full baths, 1 half baths, 2,430 square feet     Colleen Fischesser | RE/MAX Select | (425) 432-5400 13924 SE 156th St, Renton, WA Traditional 4 BR with 3 Car Garage in Maple Ridge Community 4BR/2+1BA Single Family House   $2,100/month Bedrooms 4 Bathrooms 2 full, 1 partial Sq Footage 2,430 Parking 3+ dedicated Pet Policy Cats, Dogs Deposit $2,100 DESCRIPTION Beautiful light-filled 2 story with Territorial views in Maple Ridge community. Numerous windows throughout showcase the lovely landscaped yard. Granite Kitchen w/ Maple Cabinetry, 5 burner Gas cook-top, & Eating bar. Fam. Rm w/ Built-ins, 5 piece Master w/ w-in closet (also w/built-ins) and 3 other BR up. PLUS 3 car att. Garage. Fully fenced yard, deck, patio & fountain. Seller providing seasonal bi...
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By Kendra Todd
(The Kendra Todd Group)
319 Quincy Ave NE Renton, WA 98059 Exquisite 5 bed/3 bath in Renton WA HUD-Owned Home Home Photo Gallery Virtual Tour Property Map Payment Info Request Showing Edition Group Office: 800-600-5819 Website: Visit Website Price : $460,000 Bedrooms : 5 Bathrooms : 3 Square Foot : 3,505 Lot Size : 7,205 County : King Property Type : Detached Year Built : 2003 MLS Number : 456883 click for more information and pictures Property Description This stunning five bedroom, three bathroom home in Renton is a must-see. Built in 2003, this 3,500 square foot family home has vaulted ceilings, hardwood floors and arched entryways. The huge master bedroom has a walk-in closet and five piece en-suite bathroom with jetted tub. There is a gourmet kitchen complete with island unit, custom maple cabinets, walk...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
It’s funny seeing how a once small town like Renton changes character and its personality morphs over the years. Renton for many years was considered a blue collar town. When my Grandparents came here in the early 1900's almost everyone worked in the coalmines, timber, the brick factory, or farmed. Then with the advent of WWII it was Boeing and PACCAR. They needed a lot of workers fast so the labor force was imported from all over the country to build airplanes and tanks and to house them all they built 100's of small homes (later known the as the Projects) on the east hill of Renton in the Highlands. I get a good private chuckle when I see the occasional throwback to earlier days, when we were considered to be a bunch of hicks way out in the boonies. I couldn’t pass up the photo opp se...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
I was in that blissful state of not quite a sleep, not quite awake and dreaming. It was a sci-fi like dream about me being in a big hurry to get to the future first. “It's a race!?” It seemed really really important, then this voice, my voice asks, “where is first in the future anyway?" Then Poof! I’m awake. Games up. No matter how I try I can't get myself back into the dream and it fades away. Kicking a few ideas around this last week and the thought that social media is kind of like driving a car keeps coming up. It’s important to keep your eyes on the road ahead for obvious reasons but don’t forget to be aware of what’s going on around you. Driving through Seattle one morning I looked up in the rear view mirror and saw this truck. The first thing that came to mind was Steven Spielber...
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By Kendra Todd
(The Kendra Todd Group)
Here's a single-family 3 bedroom home for sale in a great neighborhood of Renton, all ready to move into and will undoubtedly attract a great deal of interest. An early appointment to take a look at this 3 bedroom home for sale in a great neighborhood is recommended to avoid disappointment. This property was last sold back in May 1994 when it went for $2,425. It's truly a rare and awesome deal that anyone can't miss! Since then, the 3 bedroom home for sale in a great neighborhood has been well maintained and updated by the present owners. Measuring about 1,880 square feet of living space, this 3 bedroom home for sale in a great neighborhood of Renton stands on a large lot of approximately 20,294 square feet and is almost at the end of a dead-end street. This charming 3 bedroom home for...
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This spacious 5 bedroom 2.25 bathroom home for sale in scenic Renton is a special find that expects to attract a great deal of interest from eager buyers. This spacious 5 bedroom 2.25 bathroom home for sale is situated in Washington State’s highly coveted Kings County just off Coal Creek Parkway and Sunset Boulevard. Built in 1968, this spacious 5 bedroom 2.25 bathroom home for sale in scenic Renton has been improved by its owners, who remodeled aspects to maximize comfort for everyone. This spacious 5 bedroom 2.25 bathroom home for sale is a single-family house encompassing 2,080 square feet, and it sits on an expansive lot measuring 9,347 square feet. Two custom brick fireplaces nurture the warm, traditional atmosphere of this spacious 5 bedroom 2.25 bathroom home for sale in lovely,...
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By Kendra Todd
(The Kendra Todd Group)
This Forest Trails 4 bedroom 3 bathroom home for sale in Renton is expected to attract a great deal of notice. Built in 1989, this appealing Forest Trails 4 bedroom 3 bathroom home for sale was last sold in October 2008. A single-family home that measures 2,070 square feet of living space, this Forest Trails 4 bedroom 3 bathroom home for sale is nestled on a huge lot of approximately 7,220 square feet. This Forest Trails 4 bedroom 3 bathroom home for sale in Renton has an attractive stone-built covered entryway, with matching stone work along the front wall. This Forest Trails 4 bedroom 3 bathroom residence features a cozy living room with fireplace and a fully fitted kitchen with stainless steel appliances plus granite counters. Additional features of this Forest Trails 4 bedroom 3 ba...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
As far back as I can remember books have been an integral part of my life. I love to read. It really got going in my late teens. I became a big fan of Henry Miller, Carlos Castaneda, Kurt Vonnegut, Ken Follett, John le Carré, J.R.R. Tolkien, Tom Robbins, Castaneda and I loved biographies and autobiographies of and by famous writers, musicians and composers. Then I dove into the past and followed the writings of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, and Samuel Johnson. Then a ride into amazing futures with Arthur C. Clark, Frank Herbert, Robert Heinlein, William Gibson, Ray Bradbury... The cool thing about being young I'd guess, is I had no idea where it was all going but I was headed there at light speed. What evolved was something I hadn’t anticipated. As the years went by the authors and m...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
Yesterday on my way home the afternoon sun is waning and the shadows are growing long. I stopped for a few groceries when I spotted this VW Bug in the Safeway parking lot. My first car was a 1966 bug and it still ranks right up near the top of my favorite cars. It was just so much fun to drive. I try to get a photo when I see one. This one is really straight and in remarkably good shape for being 40 years old. I think it's a 73 or 74. The shot was taken with my iPhone 4s using the Camera+ App… It's my default camera app and I love all the tools for taking photos, editing and applying special effects. More on VW Bugs and Camera+ from previous posts... Slug Bug! Smack! No Hit Backs! and Camera+
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
I’m getting a couple of old PC’s out of the closet and ready for recycle. I took a look through the hard drives for anything I might want to keep before I nuke them.  I found a PowerPoint slideshow I used in 2006 as a backdrop for some of the social media talks I did traveling around Oregon. Going through the slides (it seems like a hundred years ago now) some things have come and gone yet many remain, though their roles may have changed. Notice Activerain launched in 2006 and it's in the design! I’m a visual guy and love sketching out ideas so I can picture The Plan. This slide is about creating and visualizing your online presence. Funny, Twitter also started up in 2006, but not in the mix yet. One thing that was apparent was the tremendous growth of Google and how we were all becomin...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
My heart sank when I heard the news that Renton Western Wear was closing its doors. It caught me off guard. After all, since the first of the year it seems like all I hear is good news about our recovering real estate market, job growth, and the economy. Yet, last week driving through downtown was in stark contrast to all the media merriment. What happened? It seemed every other storefront was empty. Downtown Renton was experiencing such a wonderful renaissance just before the recession hit. Since then it’s been a revolving door of small businesses coming and going. I sincerely admire small business start ups, especially those brave souls who took the jump over the last five years. You put so much on the line to reach for that American Dream, owning your own business. It was painful lat...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
My Uncle Pete Delaurenti was the kind of guy every kid would love to have as an uncle. A tad eccentric, self-taught, creative, a musician, and almost always cheerful with a warm smile, he was one of the family’s entrepreneurs. Delaurenti Music Store was in the front half of his home on Rainier Avenue in downtown Renton when I was growing up. Always the promoter and marketer, Pete went to great efforts to promote the accordion and those who played them. These pictures were taken at Liberty Park on August 22nd in 1936 (maybe 1937). That’s Uncle Pete upfront with his baton. This was a special day, a picnic to celebrate the Accordion Club of Renton. That’s my dad in the back row in the middle, he would be have just turned 15 or 16.    I often think if he were around today, he’d have been al...
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By Gary McNinch, Broker, Renton WA Real Estate
(Better Properties Real Estate)
Buyer's remorse - what is it? Have you ever experienced it? Have you have decided to sell/buy your home and relocate to a larger home? Smaller home? Assisted living facility? No matter your individual circumstances there is a high possibility that at some point during this transition you will experience what is called "buyer's remorse." A second guessing of your decision, a skewed memory of your prior circumstance (remembering only the best parts and glossing over your original reasons for this change), and a mourning for "what was" can result in a full blown case of "buyer's remorse."    At the Gary McNinch Team we discuss every aspect of your decision to sell/buy your home with you in our efforts to help you be aware of the possibility of "buyer's remorse" and to handle it effectivel...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
I caught myself the other day impatiently waiting for the next age. You know, the one after this one. “That’s interesting,” I thought to myself, and a bit ironic given the fact that I go through most days scrambling to get through that ‘so much to do in so little time’. Technology had me in its grip this day, a totally frappéd state of fast forward and if you’ve ever played with a reel to reel tape recorder you know exactly what I’m talking about. If you’re not super careful that fast forward button can send your tape dreams flying off one or both reels and spooling into a giant blob of tangled ribbon caught, pinched, snapped, stretched, and twisted into every moving part of your machine. You’re done! Get the razor blade, cut the tape, start over. What was gnawing at me was the fact I w...
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By Rene Fabre, Practicing Philosophical Eclectic of the Arts
(ARFCO Media)
I’m a fan of Gary Vaynerchuk... and I credit the title of this post to him. It’s a line he uses in many of his talks when he’s making points on being asked about (or confronted with) the ROI of social media. Gary’s a ‘take no prisoners’ kind of guy and I love watching his YouTube videos. I can relate to this funny turn of phrase because I’ve been asked the same question many times. “How much of this stuff do I have to do before I see a deal?” I don’t know. What and how much are you going to do? The ROI is having a relationship with your current customers and your future clients. I highly recommend watching Vaynerchuk on YouTube give the keynote address at the RE/MAX annual convention in 2011. You’ll also find him doing the keynote speech at Inc 500 Seminar 2011, Web 2.0 Expo NY, and #So...
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By Colleen Fischesser Northwest Property Shop, A Tradition of Trust in the Pacific NW since 1990!
(NextHome Experience)
Renton Washington Short sales for 98059 zip code totaled 71 in 2012 which was ____ more (less) than in 2011. The highest priced closed short sale per NWMLS data, was $1,000,000, while the lowest priced property sold for $117,000. The average sales price was $311,773 and the average days on market was 78 (activation through pending status). The total number of short sales in 2012 increased 33% over closed sales in 2011 (58), which can be interpreted either as more short sales coming on market, or...in my opinion, a higher success rate. In addition, an encouraging sign is the decrease in average market time. In 2012, Renton Short Sale Listings were on the market an average of 78 days. In 2011, that number was 25% lower. Higher totals and shorter market times are positive signs.   Get answ...
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By Gary McNinch, Broker, Renton WA Real Estate
(Better Properties Real Estate)
Where Do You Like To Write And Why? Creative juices are funny things. Sometimes they flow so fast it's almost impossible to keep up and get it all down on paper before a thought vanishes. Other times they are elusive. One thing that helps is a "place" that is conducive to writing and this can vary widely person to person.  My favorite place to write is in my home office at our townhome in Ashburn. Upstairs looking through the Empress tree with the sun coming in the window. Watching the hummingbirds stop and hover and drink from the feeder and seeing the puffy clouds move through the sky (a summertime view).   My wife has numerous favorite places to write. She loves window seats surrounded by comfy pillows, her computer & maybe some scratch paper and a pen as well as headphones playing s...
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