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Economic outlook reports

http://www.realtor.org/Research.nsf/files/CurrentForecast.pdf/$FILE/CurrentForecast.pdf

October 2007

Tuesday, October 16th.

Economic outlook report. Click on this link to see the report. economic outlook reports

Here is an interesting article on remodeling, and how a good realtor can assist you in deciding where to put your money, in order to get the best resale value when the time comes.
This article was extracted from the National Association of Realtors website and was written by Stephanie Singer.

Realtors® Help Consumers Remodel With An Eye Toward Resale

Washington, December 21, 2005 -  Kitchen and bathroom remodeling projects are returning more of a homeowner's investment than ever before, according to the 2005 Cost vs. Value Report published by the National Association of Realtors in REALTOR® Magazine and by Hanley Wood LLC in Remodeling magazine. Many homeowners who complete midrange bathroom remodels can expect to make money; the cost on a national average for this project is $10,499, and the return is $10,727, or 102.2 percent, compared with 87.5 percent in 2002. On average, major midrange kitchen remodels cost $43,862 and return $39,920, or 91 percent of the costs to remodel, up from 66 percent in 2002. Nationally, homeowners who add an attic bedroom spend an average of $39,188, and on resale, they recoup 93.5 percent of the cost. Master suites, however, do not fare as well; an upscale addition, which costs $137,891 on average, returns only $110,512 on resale, or approximately 80.1 percent of the remodeling expense. The Cost vs. Value Report includes information provided by NAR members about the resale value of common remodeling projects in 58 U.S. housing markets. The report includes cost data, resale value and percentage recouped at sale for 18 projects, including a first this year: a home office remodel. Given that America's homeowners spent more than $139 billion on home improvements and repairs over the past year, according to data from Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies, the report contains valuable information for anyone who is considering embarking upon a remodeling project. "Realtors® have industry expertise that goes beyond the initial real estate transaction," said 2006 NAR President Thomas M. Stevens, senior vice president of NRT Inc., from Vienna, Va. "Our members' experience and familiarity with the communities in which they work make them valuable resources. They understand what makes a good home investment, whether their clients are buying, selling or remodeling. Realtors® not only sell housing; we also build communities." The desirability of different remodeling projects varies by region and metropolitan area. In the West, window replacements are highly valued, perhaps due in part to insulation and cooling concerns in desert regions, with nearly 103 percent of costs recouped on sale. Westerners also prefer remodeled kitchens and basements; in this region, for example, a minor midrange kitchen remodel may return 112.3 percent, and a basement remodel is estimated to return 108 percent. In the Midwest, however, the same kitchen and basement projects return only 85 and 73 percent, respectively. Midwest buyers appreciate homes with updated siding; midrange and upscale siding replacements return 96 and 98 percent of the project costs, respectively. Siding replacement projects fared well at resale in all four regions, likely because new siding is a relatively inexpensive way to update and refresh a home's curb appeal. Buyers in the South are partial to upscale bathrooms, which return an average of 98.5 percent of project costs. When considering resale value, however, Southerners may want to think twice about midrange window replacements; this improvement, which is so popular in the West, only returns an average of 83.7 percent of project costs in the South. In the East, a midrange attic bedroom addition returns an average of 98.1 percent at resale, but a home office remodel only returns 75 percent. In fact, remodeling projects that involved home offices were among the lowest returns on investment across all four regions. "Local and regional differences in the resale value of remodeling projects are not surprising -- the desirability of certain home features varies by neighborhood and is heavily influenced by buyers' expectations in a given area," said Stevens. "For example, adding a bathroom to a one-bathroom house in a neighborhood where most homes already have two may not return as much as remodeling an outdated bathroom in that same community." In the final analysis, however, homeowners who are thinking about a remodeling project should consider their own needs and desires as well as those of the home's future inhabitants. "Keeping up with the Joneses can be a savvy investment move," said Stacey Moncrieff, editor, REALTOR Magazine. "But ultimately, the best reason for a remodel is to enjoy it." The December issue of REALTOR® Magazine features 10 of the 18 projects. For a synopsis of the report, visit www.REALTOR.org/realtormag. The entire report, including city-by-city data, is available to the public for $6.50 plus shipping and handling at www.realtorreprints.com. Members of the media can obtain the entire report by sending an e-mail request to ssinger@realtors.org. The National Association of Realtors®, "The Voice for Real Estate," is America's largest trade association, representing more than 1.2 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. # # #

Wednesday, October 10th

I am posting this article from the Time Magazine dated September 2007.
Real Estate is and has always been subject to cycles...the growth that we saw 2 years ago in our area was definitely out of normality, and set the bar really high for the following years. The market in Boise has definitely slowed down but it remains strong in the Northend, north area, and in the condominium market. People are still moving from other States, the issue now is that the States they are coming from do not have a strong market. Those individuals and families who need to sell their property before they can buy one here in Boise are trapped.
I am seeing a lot of families, couples who send the husband here to start working, while the family stays behind until the property sells. This is good for rental properties. There is a high demand for short term rentals.
Also, prices have dropped, and sellers are eager to sell. This is good news for the ones who were priced out of a certain neighborhood to finally get in.

Finally, what should you take away from this...well, if you can hold off to sell your home, you should wait to do so until next summer, or potentially the beginning of 2009 ( we are foreseeing this market condition to last until the middle of 08).
However, if you are in the market to buy - without having to sell ( you could rent out your property for instance ) - this is a great time to get into this home that you have been dreaming about.
Same goes with commercial property.

Here is the link to the Time Article I mentioned above. Time Magazine About Real Estate Burst



September 2007

Well, it has been a busy summer. I have been focusing on marketing, updating my website, looking for innovative ideas to grow my business.
The market in Boise has been challenging, to say the least. It seems that every other house is for sale. With the mortgage industry tasting sour, buyers and sellers are nervous. SOme of them are way over their head with equity lines of credit on their home. Prices are dropping which would make our area a great buyers market. However, buyers still have cold feet, and/or are waiting for prices to hit rock bottom.
It seems that the lower price range (under $250k) and the upper range in Boise ( above 600K) are still moving well. it is the middle of the pie that is suffering.
Boise: 5.5 months of inventory in homes under $250k (good)
Meridian:8.0 (fair)
Eagle: 13 (poor) 
If you are considering moving up from $250,000 to the 400k price range, now is a good time. Your home may be on the market for up to 120 days, and you may not get your full asking price (1-2% difference).



June 2007

There are talks of a new development in Eagle North Foothills of nearly 20,000 new homes.
This is going to require a lot of planning from Ada County Highway District to assure that traffic can be alievated. The major roads in Eagle - old Highway 55, Eagle Road, Beacon Light and Floating Feather - are already heavily used, especially Eagle road. ACHD is contemplating to widen Beacon Light, Linder road, and Floating Feather to name a few.
I really hope that they consider putting in good bike lanes, as a lot of bikers use these routes on a daily basis, and Eagle needs to preserve a sense of bike-friendly community.
Eagle road is going to see even more traffic with the new "living center", or outdoor mall that is going to be put in at already busy intersection of Fairview and Eagle.

I am concerned with the growth in that area of the valley, and the current condition of traffic. We have to really look forward and plan intelligently: tunnels, overpass, light rail, more downtown living...on this last note, I think that Meridian is trying to implement more downtown units, so is Eagle.



May 14th, 2007

I am now a proud supporter of the Northend Association. Feel free to browse their site at www.northend.org

The market in our neighborhood has picked up a lot in the last few weeks. Homes under $500,000 are selling fast, especially the ones under the $300,000 mark.
If you are driving down the street of the Northend, you will notice a lot of Real Estate signs that now say pending or sold.
For the rest of Ada County, we have about 4 months of inventory...quite a bit, but hopefully, we will stay strong and beat the Real Estate crash that most areas in the US are currently seeing.
Boise still stands high on the relocation charts, companies are looking at us as a great place to put in their infrastructures.
Downtown Boise is going to keep growing with the support of the Downtown association, Realtors, and developers who are working together to make downtown living attractive.
Good news...Boiseans are buying more scooters and green cars, versus SUVs.


May 12th, 2007

Race for the cure in Boise...if you haven't done so already, please donate your time, or money to help find a cure for Breast Cancer. They have raised $126,000 with a goal of $150,000.
Most of us know a woman who has had Breast Cancer. It affects all of us, directly or inderectly.
One of my client was diagnosed with Breast Cancer last year. She was 31! She has gone through most of her treatment now, and is hopeful that she beat the cancer! She is strong, and I know that she is fighting hard for her 2 kids, husband, friends, family and herself.
Please, do consider giving a tax-deductible donation to the Race for the cure.

Thank you!


May 3rd 2007

My husband Kevin Everett has completed his 2nd professional race of the year. He is having a great start and the season is just starting.
We are very thankful of our sponsors: Tamarack Resort, Scott, Kenda tires, Smith Optics, Micron. Mark Dauenhaur with Body Work With Results, Michael Devitt - Focus...etc
For current news and updates, go to his website at www.kevin-everett.com




April, 22, 2007

For those of you who knew us as a team, things have changed slightly. Brooke has left for Teton Valley in Driggs, Idaho, to help release a new development.
There is a ton of opportunities there for investors to get in while the market is still hot. If you have any interest in knowing more about what is going on in the valley there, feel free to contact brooke at the following email address bblackwelder@tetonsprings.com
We wish her the best of luck in her new endeavour, and she will be missed by all of the clients that we have been working with.
I am contemplating hiring someone to fill in for her. I will let you know when I decide  on this.
In the meantime, I am working hard to stay on top of my work and keep all of you happy.

The market here is picking up. Homes are selling faster when priced under $300,000. There is a lot of inventory for higher end homes, which causes a slower movement in that market. Patience is key here, as the Real Estate in our valley is still good, people are still moving to Idaho in great numbers.

Downtown Boise is seeing a lot of changes with new condominium projects being approved and the existing ones selling really well so far.

The Library Block project - Mark Rivers development -  has been chosen to be the new face of downtown. I am personally very excited about this project, as I believe that Mark Rivers has a great vision for what is and should be our downtown living. His design team did a great job with the architectural lines of what will be the new library. As a European, I am even more enthusiastic about the emphasis that projects like this one are putting on walking and biking as means of transportation!
I am confident that this project is going to be a great success and will bring even more people out of the suburbs looking for a different lifestyle in modern downtown living.


December 2006
The month of December has been busy for us, regardless of the market being slower than usual.
We sold 3 single family homes - one in Eagle, two in Boise; 1 condominium in Sommerset Hills, in Boise Northend, and 2 townhouses in SE Boise.
Here is what my clients have to say about my work...



“Hortense not only found a house that suited my budget, but one that fit my lifestyle. Because she knew I was looking for a house within biking distance of downtown, we rode our bikes from house to house. Hortense also had a good feel for the market and offered me invaluable advice through the buying process. The friendly professionals at AV West won’t just find you a house, they will help find you a home.”-John R


We enjoyed working with you tremendously - you always were prepared for the house visits and you helped me ask the important questions when we visited the offices for condos. Sellers seemed to have respect for you and I always felt confident we were in good hands. Your reactions to listings and prices helped us make our decisions. Suggestions for houses fit our criteria. During the closing, you were professional. After the sale, you gave us valuable info about handymen and contractors. Your sense of humor is a definite asset. We look forward to working with you as we plan to purchase a condo downtown. Barbara McNeil and Harold Miller

Brooke and I are reviewing our goals for this year. We are happy with the way the past year turned out. One of our goal was to become Realtors of choice for Micron Employees. Eventhough we are not the exclusive realtors, we have been working with Micron employees on a regular basis now.
It started with our client and now friend Deepak, a new employee who was looking for a property close by to Micron, in Columbia village. We found him exactly what he was looking for, a great townhome, at a very reasonable price. He came from Salt Lake city, and before that from India.  
Both Brooke and I love the challenging experience of working with clients of different culture and background. It enhances the necessary qualities that a professional Real Estate Agent ought to have: good listening, and communication skills. These are essential in order to determine what clients needs and wants are, and know how to approach them when making a decision becomes necessary.
With these human skills, we are pretty much guarranted to make friends out of our clients!
We enjoyed working for our client very much, and since then, he has sent us 2 referrals.
This was our first step into the world of Micron.

Thank you Deepak!


Happy New Year 2007 and GO BRONCOS!