In the 10 Things Your Real Estate Agent Doesn't Do we must start at the beginning. In a real estate transaction there are different parties involved and many, upon many, unique variations of a real estate transaction.

However, for this example we'll keep it fairly generic and assume: the buyer needs financing, the seller has to sell, there will both a buyer and listing broker, there will be an escrow and title company, and the transfer of property isn't between family members.

The image to the right, shows a funny look at the perception of what real estate agent do; drink all day, act important in meetings, get rich of each transaction, heard cats, perpetuate the used car salesman persona, and stress out.

Its seems all funny, but in all honesty, its what some think we do as real estate. Yet, on a more serious note, lets look at what real estates don't do.

HomePath financing has been a useful financial vehicle for Fannie Mae products: rep homes, rehab properties, no-appraisal required purchases, and even multiple property owner refinancing.

That is all about to change. According to HomePath.com's website:

"Effective October 7, 2014, Fannie Mae is retiring the HomePath Mortgage (HPM) and HomePath Renovation Mortgage (HPRM) products". [SOURCE]

How Does Ending HomePath Financing Impact Borrowers?

The impact is minimal and most folks won't even noticed. Why? There are plenty of home loan programs for first time home buyers and investors.

Will this Change Impact the Availability HomePath Properties?

No. As of now, HomePath.com has no information stating properties will be discontinued even though real estate brokers are seeing REO inventory is decline.

What are Alternatives To HomePath Financing?

Two great alternatives are Home Advantage Mortgage and My Community Mortgage.

The weather is changing, leaves are beginning to display colors, and people's lives are filled with sports, school activities, plans to snow bird and so-on. Also, it may be the time to look for a new home, a new neighborhood, or something special. Yet where? Where does one look for something special? For that we travel back to Everett in September's Neighborhood Spotlight and the quaint community of Hilton Lake.

Many of us have faced this, seen it action, or heard stories about it; neighboring property owners accessing a different part of their property through a gate. Not uncommon. I mean, it's nice and convenient. It allows the homeowner to park a boat, travel trailer, remove debris, and/or access a portion of property that otherwise maybe very difficult. 

The last decade has seen the rise of the Nanny Cam and for good reasons. YouTube has video after video of people exposing atrocities and capturing crooks. Homeowners are now able to peer into a world that was otherwise a mystery, especially when selling a home.

I've shown many homes with security systems, not sure if there have been Nanny cams per say, over the years: self monitored, monitored, and with a variety of cameras and window and door sensors. In our line of work, these cameras bring a unique aspect to the purchase and sale transaction and one component I've never considered, audio recording.

In a neighborhood not so far away and in the heart of Snohomish County, we stop the Neighborhood Spotlight caravan at Lake Stevens' Soper Hill. Borrowing its name from Soper Hill Rd, and annexed into Lake Stevens in 2007, Soper Hill is a smaller community with approximately 1,200 residents all in a 292 acre area.

Being a real estate broker it may be easier to sense the changing weather patterns. The winds are calming and the multiple offer storms and perilless negotiations could be subsiding.

We probably aren't the only ones; appraisals are starting to come in 'low' forcing negotiations of a different kind, the renegotiation. With that said, other real estate brokers may be having a difference experience yet review the statistics for yourself and see if the market is shifting, again.

June 2014's Housing Inventory

Snohomish County's housing inventory is at 2.3 months which continues to favor sellers as it has for the last 2 years. Could this be due to a 37% reduction in REO inventory as reported by KCM?

As of 4:31pm there are 2,483 residential units for sale in Snohomish County - these are properties listed on the NWMLS and don't include FSBO's or other for sale properties. 

In July's issue of Neighborhood Spotlight we jump to Snohomish County southwestern boarder and the city of Mukilteo and the Chennault Beach & Harbour Pointe neighborhoods. Being two of Mukilteo's premier neighborhoods, Chennault Beach & Harbour Pointe offer luxury homes, mind blowing views, access to a top tier school district, excellent location to Boeing (or other business centers), Naval Station, and medical centers.

Below are data tables from June's recorded lot sales, unrecorded lot sales, and new construction home sales for Snohomish County Washington. DR Hortorn, Seattle Pacific, Pacific Ridge, and Lennar continue to purchase lots, develop, and build. All the sales are in cronological order of sales dates (dates are not included).

Recorded Lot Sales

Unrecorded Lot Sales

Pacific Ridge has two plats and Lozier has one plat in the works in south Snohomish County.

The real estate industry is ever changing with search functions, new home search apps, various search methods, which brokerage or website has the most property information, who has the latest homes for sale, and this is all inside a highly competitive industry. That competition stems from agent personalities, abilities, and a strong desire to gain more exposure for their listed properties and when viewing the industry at a company level the competition is no-less than fierce.