Gabrielle's Blog

Now, before showing you these goofy buildings, you must know that I'm a pushover for houses and architecture. I mean, you know me! Always up to go see the newest subdivision, the biggest home show, the best in designer home tours!

Random Web site took me to see Village of Joy this morning! This fun and crazy Web site specializes is a very different look at buildings! What a step away from the usual mix of staid, ho-hum architecture!

So ... without further adieu, visit Village of Joy's 50 Strange Buildings of the World! Oh Yes! And while you're there, visit their other links -- I thought their 50 Weird and Crazy Cars post was a hoot too!

Got horses, goats, alpacas, mini-beef? Close to Auburn, Lake Tapps and city commuting, this five-acre mini-ranch is the best value in the neighborhood and perfect for your equestrian or other animal pastimes.

From the moment you enter the property through the remote-controlled gate, you'll both be charmed by the thoughtful touches surrounding the house itself, and completely impressed by the two huge shops!

 There's way too much to describe here, but consider that the flower beds are surrounded by poured concrete edges, there are numerous little water features, the house is surrounded by a walk-around deck, and entered through a wonderful covered porch. Step inside to a sun-lit entry (complete with a sun-tube), and then on to the generous formal living room/dining room combination, and a family room with a free-standing woodburning stove.

This double-wide manufactured home, with two thougthfully placed additions, was well loved and it shows. Set up as a warm haven after working out on your own five-acre parcel, you'll appreciate all the little touches that make this it truly a home. As you come in from the back into the mudroom, you'll find plenty of places to stash the boots, even a built in window seat with storage. The kitchen is well appointed with new(er) black appliances and loads of cabinets.

The master bedroom has a huge walk-in closet complete with loads of wire shelves & storage units, and a five-piece bath with tiled double-sink vanity and soaking tub. The 2nd bedroom is just off the family room and also has private access to the 2nd full bathroom.

• Outside are five fenced and cross-fenced, hot-wired acres plus two shops, RV-size carport, barn with hayloft, 2-horse (only one stall) loafing shed, well house, a fish pond, your own private well and septic system.

• Barn measures 42' x 50'
• Hayloft 11' x 50'
• Five stalls (four with outside gates) with concrete pads
• Three additional rooms on opposite side of stalls.
• Corner room is plumbed with utility sink
• Extended covered storage on back and sides

• 1st Shop as you enter the property
• 42' x 24', plus 12' x 24' attached carport, all with concrete floors
• 2 rollup doors with openers, plus one sliding door Shop/storage room at one end
• Pull-down ladder to additional loft storage
• Insulated, 220V

• 2nd Shop, behind the house
• 36' x 24', plus shop bay
• Insulated, 220V
• Concrete floors throughout, plus parking pad
• 2 rollup doors & sliding door & barn doors
• Edged by large kennel in this photo

• RV Carport large enough for the grandest rig!
• Concrete Pad

 Waay too much to list here. For photos, photos, photos! ... plus the virtual tour, visit www.gabriellenemes.com

While working with some delightful clients a while back, I had a chance to interact with their two young daughters, Katy & Sarah. We let their Mom & Dad plow through some paperwork while we colored pictures and talked about playing on the computer. Inspired, I decided to see what I could find that might be fun for them next time we had a chance to play! These sites look like SO much fun!

• coloring.com Oh this site is FUN with simple designs for the younger crowd! Click on a page to go to electronic coloring!
• thekidzpage.com This is a flashy site with busy ads for all sorts of things for kids. The printable coloring pages are worth it though!
• learn about the weather color pages by NOAA Downloadable stories you can color about different types of weather ... think Tornados, Thunderstorms, Snow!
• color book links WOW, this site contains links to tons of other sites that have .pdf downloadable coloring pages! PERFECT!
• Dover Publications I get updates from Dover Publications periodically that show off their newest books. Most of them have sketch pages that can be downloaded and then colored. These are generally the high-end adult-type coloring pages for those of us that enjoy coloring with markers with lots of detail. Brings out the "kid" in all of us!
• National Institute of Environmental Health Okay, another site where the youngest of us can learn a bit about environment responsibility ... these are fun pages that can also be colored online.
• Crayola.com Of course there has to be a page with a nod to our favorite crayons, right?

Okay, just one more ... apparently there are hundreds of these sites. Who knew?

• Coloring Pages for Kids So here's a resource references what looks like hundreds of other sites containing coloring pages. Have fun!

Okay all you first time homebuyers, you've been given a second chance! The Homebuyer Tax Credit passed and was signed into effect on Friday, November 6th! What GREAT news!

And it gets even better! Not only do first time homebuyers benefit from the tax credit ... to the tune of $8,000! ... any homebuyer could potentially benefit, up to $6,500!

Here are some of the highlights. Of course you'll want to verify this information with your own accountant; as with most bills of this sort it's many pages long and there are requirements that must be precisely met:

1. A first time homebuyer is one that has not owned a home for at least three years.
2. To qualify, a repeat homebuyer, must have owned their current home for at least five consecutive years out of the last eight years. So ... imagine that you owned a home for at least five years, but sold it and have now been renting for the last two years. You qualify.
3. If you're a single person, you cannot earn more than $125,000; if you're married, you can earn up to $250,000.
4. You must be in a contract to purchase your new home on or before April 30th ... but you have until June 30th to close the transaction.
5. There's no lag between the old deadline (November 30th) and the beginning of the new period ... it's as if the November 30th deadline never existed. The new deadline is April 30th (see #3).
6. The maximum purchase price for your new home is $800,000.
7. Your new house does not have to cost more than your last house. It's okay to downsize!
8. Oh yes! And as a measure to prevent fraud, you'll have to attach proof of purchase to your tax return in order to qualify. I haven't read the entire Bill, but I would anticipate that a copy of your final HUD (closing) statement will probably suffice. But do as your tax accountant. They'll know.

SO, Congratulations. Now, don't twiddle your thumbs and let this run out AGAIN! Call me and let's get shopping!!

Since the beginning of 2009, first time homebuyers have benefited from an $8,000 gift directly from Uncle Sam. Qualifying for the gift was easy and thousands of people benefited.

As I write this, plans are in place to extend and modify the tax credit into next Spring (thank heavens), which will continue to help economic recovery for more folks than just those stepping up to purchase a home.

I've been amazed while hearing our various elected officials and economists speak shortsightedly, in my opinion, about why the tax credit should not be extended, nor should have been in place to begin with. I absolutely agree that the tax credit has a huge price tag. However, let's think very briefly about what that tax credit is actually buying.

Just help buying a house? Hardly! 

Think back to your last move, whether it was a house, an apartment, back to mom's, wherever. What was the first thing you did? I can tell you what I did ... picked up my wallet and headed straight to the store. I needed STUFF -- boxes, moving supplies, shelf liner, paint, curtains, towels, furniture -- STUFF!

That's where the money goes. Not just in a pocket or frankly, not just back in a savings account. Is $8,000 too much? Did I buy $8,000 worth of stuff? Oh yes. And much more. Had I been given the $8,000 as a gift from my last move, my house credit card might not have been maxed out!

As I write this at 4:45 PDT, our local news station is reporting that the Homebuyer's Tax Credit has passed and will be extended to April 2010.

While that's GREAT news, it's not quite right yet, from what I can see.

Looks like the Senate has agreed to pass a resolution that would extend the $8,000 tax credit to First Time Homebuyers, a $6,500 tax credit for repeat homebuyers, both with qualifying issues.

However, a vote hasn't actually taken place that passes the resolution as a stand-alone bill. At the moment, it's hung up on the premise that it'll be tagged onto legislation to extend unemployment benefits, although it appears that it'll pass the Senate even as a stand-alone bill.

We'll see.

I'm holding off the celebration until it's signed around!

Like almost everyone I know that works in the housing industry, I've been chasing myself around for the last few weeks trying to get all of the First Time Homebuyers in my client list qualified and under contract so that they were eligible for the $8,000 tax credit ... due to expire on November 30th.

It's been a wild ride, full of both elation and disappointment! And, of course, absolutely full of the question "Will it be extended?"

I've been diligently trying to follow along with activities in the legislature while listening to other opinions about why it will and why it won't and who thinks it's a great idea and who thinks it'll continue to bankrupt us all.

Reuters is one of my favorite places to find quality news feeds--in this case current activity on extending the $8,000 tax credit for homebuyers. Yesterday, Reuters reported that Bill Nelson (Dem.) of the Senate Finance Committee indicated that the Senate would act this week on the tax credit and that it would likely be extended for a "limited" period. Then the stock market reacted negatively later in the day to a report that it would not be.

This morning, Reuters posted another story complete with Q&A about another proposal being floated through the Senate by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat.

In their scenario, the credit would be extended to the end of 2010, but would be phased out in $2,000 decreases beginning in April, then again in July and in October.

Now, at the moment, I kinda like this proposal. And I like the idea that it carries into the Spring, where house purchases and sales tend to begin rallying all by themselves.

My only issue with their proposal is that it's being attached to the passage of another bill for unemployment insurance benefits. Sigh. Seems like it'd be so much easier to keep track of things if each expenditure had to stand on its own.

I'm sure tomorrow there'll be yet more ups and downs about whether the $8,000 tax credit will be extended, or buried. Passage will be cause for celebration, in my opinion. Of course, then the bill will need to go on to the House, where, no doubt, it'll be changed yet again. Back and forth.

Just my Tuesday morning 2¢ worth!

I sometimes hear frustration from buyers who are being asked to produce the papertrail that supports the source of money used for downpayment and closing costs. The underwriter (the person that issues final approval for your loan) requires this information as one method of eliminating the possiblity of fraud, to meet the requirements of investors with whom they work, and for quality control. They're just doing their job, but sometimes meeting this requirement is difficult and tedious.

You may have  been diligently consolidating money from various accounts so that it's easier to manage, but this can actually cause more loan approval challenges.

During the time you're working on purchasing a home, or at least for the prior three months or so, don't move money around unnecessarily. The underwriter will require documentation of any large deposits or withdrawals from your account. This could include money you received as gifts, from transferring funds between accounts, investment liquidations, cashing out mutual funds, retirement funds, or whatever. You may be asked for copies of cancelled checks, deposit receipts, or other supporting documents that may see inconsequential.

If you're relying on gift monies that will be used in your purchase in any fashion, you'll likely also be required to produce a letter from the person giving you the money that documents the fact that you are not required to repay the gift. In fact, the person from whom you're receiving the money may also need to produce copies of bank statements, etc., that documents where they received your gift money.

In fact, this is also not the best time to be changing banks, or even opening new accounts.

Don't move your money around ... or if you do, be absolutely certain you can document everything thoroughly.

It happened yet again ... and it's certainly happened before.

Met with a wonderful potential client about listing her house. And talked her out of it. Helped her understand why this just wasn't the best time to sell and perhaps she'd like to wait? And that her house was worth less than half what she thought.

This one broke my heart -- a widow that truly needs the money from the house. But the money just wasn't there. I hated telling her that. But it's part of the job and I couldn't live with myself if I'd told her anything different.

I'm not in the habit of talking people out of listing with me, but sometimes it's the right thing to do.

Now ... what other professional can you think of where you talk people OUT of using their services!

Being a Realtor(c) is definitely the "dangdest" business! And one of which I am very proud to be a member.

I received a message late last week from one of my helpful resource folks, Garrett Huffman of the Master Builder's Association, regarding real estate closings and King County furlough days.

Earlier this year I posted a blog entry listing the days various King County offices would be closed in an effort to help minimize budget overruns. One of the most troublesome dates on the list is scheduled furlough for November 25th ... just 5 days prior to the end of the First Time Homebuyer's Tax Credit, as it is currently defined. Add in the typical Thanksgiving holidays of November 26-27, the last week of November has generally been deemed a write-off as far as getting transactions closed.

According to Garrett, the folks at King County have taken into account the general "panic" that may WILL occur by folks trying to get transactions recorded so as to qualify Buyers for their tax credit.

I have a couple of transactions that are looking like last minute closings too. YIKES!

The Master Builder Association has been working hard to be sure that last minute transactions are recorded on time. Here's what they're reporting:

 "King County has been very responsive to our association's concern regarding a furlough day planned at the county in late November.  To make sure that the home sales to first time homebuyers close by Nov. 30 and are therefore able to qualify for the federal first-time homebuyer tax credit, the Recorder's office is taking the following action: 

• King County plans to have 15 employees in the Recorder's Office designated as furlough ineligible and therefore able to work overtime during Thanksgiving week.  
• These designated staff will work overtime on Monday, Nov. 23 until all documents are recorded. 
• On Tuesday, Nov. 24 the Recording Office will start at 7:15 a.m. and stay late until everything is recorded. 
• They will have a team of seven recorders on stand-by to work on Wednesday, Nov. 25 should there be any additional work not completed on Tuesday. 
• The office will not be open to the public on Wednesday, Nov. 25 and would not receive any additional documents. 

In addition, we have requested that King County be prepared for Recording office staff to work overtime on Monday, Nov. 30, to help ensure that all sales are recorded and no first time homebuyer will miss the tax credit deadline."