After a nearly 4 year hiatus, Seattle Metropolitan Credit Union has stepped up to the plate to offer houseboat lending in the Seattle area. We salute SMCU for embracing this amazing Seattle tradition which truly helps to define the Seattle character. For those thinking about purchasing a Houseboat in Seattle, this is great news.
The program details allow for 75% financing of the combined sales price plus sales tax, 30 year amortization with a 10 year balloon payment, and rates comparable to those for yacht lending. Credit and Income guidelines are similar to those required for purchasing a home. A Marine survey, and haulout is required. Further details can be obtained by contacting Denise Carlson at (206) 398-5581 or by emailing her at denisec@SMCU.com. For a list of available houseboats, please visit Special Agents Realty.

Compliments International creates social media enhanced websites, allowing your website to become a networking site. Use the power of viral marketing to bring real customers to your website. Do you understand the power of a third party endorsement (referral)? Then bring that concept to your website, instead of just using your website as a signpost.

We strongly endorse Compliments International for website development – give them a call at (877) 839-1122.

Check it out!!! 3 Hot New Listings have just been posted on our site. With prices ranging from $195,000 to $395,000, these new choices make Lake Union Living THE place to locate a great houseboat. Don’t forget, we also do other real estate as well. Check out this fantastic 4800 sq. ft. home near Echo Falls.

There is a storm on the horizon that is seriously going to HURT our economy. The new Appraiser rules HVCC (Home Valuation Code of Conduct) being imposed are likely going to cause further harm to our economy. Though the concept sounds reasonable – i.e. removing the ability for Loan Originators or Real Estate Agents to choose the appraiser, the effect will be disasterous.  The new rules support undervaluing homes simply because an appraiser is chosen by the lender. If the lender chooses an appraiser that provides a consistently lesser value, they win because their asset is worth more than the appraiser indicated. Hence the Lender has less risk.

It is assumed that the evil Loan Originators and Real Estate Agents were able to influence the appraiser into providing over inflated values, however, do you really believe the Lenders are more ethical or that for some reason they do not have a vested interest in getting lower valuations? Give me a break.  We’ve seen what the big lenders are capable of doing. That is why according to www.ml-implode.com, 342 lenders have imploded since late 2006 by providing loans to people that should not have received them.  So, let’s put the power of choosing appraisers in their unbiased hands!?!

Be prepared to see further (unwarranted) devaluation of homes due to this rule.

Recently, I’ve become addicted to a line of games put out by Game Campus including Shot Online (a wonderful golfing game and online community), and MLB Dugout (a baseball simulation).

MLB Dugout is my most recent addition of games that are free to join and free to play, but offer premium items using “Campus Cash.”  The game is fun to play and is a quite realistic simulation.  You play against online opponents (you can practice against the computer before taking on the real thing).  A major appeal to the game is the online interaction, however, they have not implemented the online community in MLB Dugout as well as they have in their other excellent game “Shot Online.”  I suspect this will improve with time.

All in all, MLB Dugout is a fun game and I highly recommend it.  Check it out at http://mlbdugoutheroes.gamescampus.com/ and I will see you on the field – My team is the Baggers.

From the Department of Planning and Development (Shoreline Master Program Update):

The Department of Planning and Development (DPD) has begun the process of revising Seattle’s Shoreline Master Program (SMP) for the first time since 1987. The SMP establishes policies and regulations governing land use along marine and freshwater shorelines. Seattle’s shorelines include Puget Sound, Lake Washington, Lake Union and the Ship Canal, the Duwamish River, and Green Lake. The area affected by the SMP is generally 200′ landward from the waterline.  DPD is working with the Washington Department of Ecology to complete the update of Seattle’s program by the spring of 2010. If you are interested, participation in the process is through the Citizens Advisory Committee and their schedule is posted.

ANNUAL MEETING & BYLAW AMENDMENT
March 12, 2009
7 PM @ CYC Club House
Shilshole Bay Marina
7755 Seaview Ave. N.W.
Seattle, WA 98117

For more information contact Madhuri R. Hosford 206.478.6621 or email her at madhuri@madhurihosford.com.

TWO GREAT GRASS ROOTS IDEAS
By Kevin & Linda Bagley – Mar 9th, 2009 at 3:21 pm EDT

Fact: The financial crisis began with the housing & lending industry. As the sub-prime industry began to fail, an increased number of houses came on the market through foreclosures and short-sales (Sales where lenders agree to take less than what is owed). This, combined with more restrictive lending practices made it difficult to sell houses. This affects everything – builders, lenders, appraisers, carpet layers, drywallers, bankers, etc. etc. These are the people that buy cars and boats, and games, and TV’s. Hence the waterfall began. The reason that the car industry is hurting is not because we don’t make good cars, it is because PEOPLE ARE NOT BUYING. We can get people buying again, by turning the economy around, not by bailouts, or revamping the car industry. The auto industry is a SYMPTOM, not a CAUSE.

The same holds true for the Banking industry; it is a SYMPTOM, not the cause. The root cause of the financial crisis is the housing industry. Fix that, and the economy will revive. We are concerned that too much money and energy is being focused on fixing the symptoms, rather than the cause. This crisis began with a collapse of the housing industry and it will end with a recovery of the housing industry. WE MUST FIX THE HOUSING INDUSTRY!

Here are 2 Grass Roots ideas that we have come up with (incidentally, we are in the housing and lending industries) that we believe are cost effective and will have a direct affect on improving the housing industry.

1. National Open House Weekend: We believe President Obama should immediately announce and emphatically endorse a National Open House Weekend that would preferably occur this spring, during the time that is normally an upsurge in purchasing. This would be a day when Agents would focus on having open houses and invite lenders to attend and offer special incentives to encourage buyers to act.

2. Government Match of Interest Rate Discount: Use some of the TARP,or Housing recovery funds to encourage lenders to pass on reduced rates to clients by offering to match interest rate discounts below 5%. i.e. if a lender offers a rate of 4.5% (without discount points of course), then the government would match .25% to the lender. If a lender offers 4%, then the government would chip in .5%.

Help us get these ideas up the political ladder!

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