Info/Community

CURRENT MARKET SUMMARY FOR STANWOOD/CAMANO ISLAND AND SNOHOMISH COUNTY, AS OF March 12, 2008

As many of you know, the housing market has grown to a record inventory and buyers are at an all time low.  Due to many factors, Stanwood and Camano Island have been in a "buyer's market" for the last eighteen months.  Because of this, there are some TREMENDOUS buys!  Many home owners have reduced their prices to be competitive in hopes of appealing to a potential buyer. 

CAMANO ISLAND: Area 780

Currently there are 343 residential homes available on the market, of which 29 homes are under contract (STI) or pending.

Entry level homes listed under $300,000...  89 active/17 Pending.

Listed homes between $301,000-400,000... 82 active/6 Pending.

Listed homes between $401,000-600,000... 90 active/5 Pending.

Listed homes between $601,000-999,000...  69 active/1 Pending.

Listed homes from a Million and over...  13 active/0 Pending.

STANWOOD: Section of Area 770

Currently there are 244 residential homes available in the Stanwood area, of which 39 homes are under contract (STI) or pending.

Entry level homes listed under $300,000... 57 active/16 Pending.

Listed homes between $301,000-400,000... 76 active/14 Pending.

Listed homes between $401,000-600,000... 77 active/9 Pending.

Listed homes between $601,000-999,000... 27 active/0 Pending.

Listed homes from a Million and over... 7 active/0 Pending.

SNOHOMISH COUNTY (Including Stanwood): Area 770

Currently there are 1294 residential homes available in Snohomish County area (from Everett north to Stanwood).  There are 236 homes STI/Pending and 652 homes sold since September 14, 2007.

*We will be updating this information regularly.

Real Estate Info

Real Estate Brokerage: When it comes to real estate, working with the right brokerage can result in the type of experience you will have. The broker is the real estate company you have chosen to go with. In every company there is a Designated Broker who must satisfy more stringent educational and experience standards than their agents. That broker supervises of all that happens within that brokerage. In a crisis, your transaction’s success may depend on back-up support from your agent’s broker. At Camano Properties, LLC, Joan Wilson is our "Designated Broker". She is also one of the founders/co-owners of Camano Properties. She is extremely professional and reliable when that crisis does occur and has what it takes to get the transaction resolved.

Real Estate Agents: A real estate agent’s responsibility depends on the job description they were hired for. There are two types of agents as there are two sides to a sale: a listing agent and a selling (buyer’s) agent.

Listing Agent: The listing agent’s main responsibility after the home is listed is to get it marketed. A listing agent has the job of preparing a comparative market analysis (CMA) to factually base the figure he/she feels the home should sell for. This number is derived from a couple of variables. By taking your home and comparing it to other similar homes, that realtor can take the current market trends and adjust the numbers to appropriately tag the listing price. Once that price has been decided between the agent and the seller, the agent then has the job of getting that home visible to the public. Most agents will be active in advertising; often times their own company will also provide exposure.

At Camano Properties, LLC our marketing plan is continually changing depending on the market trends. We offer advertising in the local newspaper, internet sites, cable TV, special promotions, open houses, and much more. Our efforts have made Camano Properties listings move on the market quickly.

Selling Agent: The selling agent is the agent who is representing the buyer(s). They are not involved in the listing side of the home (unless the buyer’s agent is also representing the listing side and then becomes a dual agent – be careful! More on that to come…). The main responsibility of this agent is to help the buyer find the home the buyer is looking for. The agent must understand exactly what parameters the buyer has and what price range they are qualified for. He/she must be the negotiator and be for the best interest of their client, the buyer, at all times.

Dual Agents: This is when you have a listing agent that brings in a buyer he/she is also representing, thus creating a dual representation for both sides. Often times, this becomes very difficult for the agent to stay neutral to one side or the other and jeopardizes the best interest of one or the other side. An example of how this happens is when buyers drive around looking at homes in an area that are for sale and they call the agent on the listing sign to ask for more information. One thing leads to another and they want to write an offer on that home with the listing agent. This agent has now become a dual agent. He/she must disclose this information to the sellers, as they are the agents’ first priority. It is best to have a separate buyer’s agent representing you as you search for that perfect home. It can work to have dual agency representation, but it gets tricky.

Lender: The very best advice to pass onto people looking at buying a home is to get Pre-Qualified or Pre-Approved BEFORE you start your search. The difference between the two is the Pre-Qualified is a real vague over view of your income, job, assets, etc. There is no credit report pulled, no actual paperwork proving your income or job, and no final review. This allows a buyer to know the price range they are most likely to buy. A Pre-Approval is when the lender/mortgage broker actually pulls your credit, looks at where you are financially, what your job status is, your current living situation, and more to find the maximum loan you can afford, meaning they are willing to go forward and give you a loan based on the information they have pulled. The lender will then write a Pre-Approval Letter that will be required for most transactions in a purchase and sale. The best thing you can do as a buyer is be prepared. Have this letter with you when you write up an offer on a home or land.

Another really important key is to not purchase anything major before buying a home or property. This includes furniture, automobiles, appliances, flooring, electronic equipment, jewelry, vacations, expensive items… When a lender reviews your loan package for approval, one thing they are concerned with is the source of your funds. They most likely will ask for your bank statements for the last two or three months. This includes checking & saving accounts, money market funds, CD’s, stock statements, mutual funds, and even your retirement accounts. If you have bought anything major through one of these accounts, the lender will require a paper trail, which could get very tedious. This is to ensure quality control and eliminate potential fraud. Leave your money where it is; don’t change banks either, until you have the home!

Highly Recommended Local Lenders:

Mike Hansen, Financial Edge Mortgage, Stanwood, Washington, contact phone 360.629.0583 or http://www.financialedgemortgage.com/.

Richard Garcia, Golf Savings Bank, Stanwood, Washington, contact phone 425.673.8295 or http://www.rpgarcia.com/.

Appraisal: An appraisal will be ordered by the lender and will be paid by the buyer. The cost ranges from $300-500, depending on the home. The appraiser goes into the home and measures, visually inspects, and walks the property to then put together a cost analysis different but similar to the original CMA that the listing agent performed. Most of the time, the appraiser has no problems coming up with the price the seller and buyer have agreed upon, however, there are occasions when the appraised value comes in lower than the contract price. In this situation, the listing realtor does their best to reconfirm to the appraiser the CMA price that was originally prepared by the factual data. If the appraisal cannot come in with the amount needed, renegotiation begins and the transaction may alter.

Inspections: An important key to buying a home is to ask for a home inspection to be done. If you don’t have an inspection, you run the risk of unfound damage that could result in serious money down the road. Even if you know the individual you are buying it from, a friend or family member, have an inspection! This is ordered and paid for by the buyers. On Camano Island, a typical inspection runs between $300-400. Once the inspection has been done, a written report is given to the buyers. The buyer’s agent then needs to discuss the options with the buyer regarding the findings in the inspection report. This becomes another negotiation break between the seller and buyer.

Title & Escrow: The buyer generally decides who the title and escrow will go through, however depending on where the home or property is there may be limited options. On Camano Island for example, Stewart/Land Title and Chicago Title are the only options for title. Many people use the same title & escrow companies, as it simplifies the paperwork. There are title & escrow fees that are not negotiable. Typically, the escrow will be split in half for each side to pay. The title will be different, as the buyer will pay more for their title to the lender than the seller will pay title for the buyer. These fees can be estimated once an offer is signed around and escrow has a chance to get all the figures.