More than 20 vendors are offering a variety of fruits, vegetables and berries every Sunday from 11-2 through August 24. You can enjoy the day at 1970 Keene Road in Richland at the Queensgate Village.
The Port of Benton purchased 16 acres of land overlooking Prosser along the Yakima River to establish a central point of contact for visitors wanting to learn more about the Washington State wine industry. After several years of planning and construction, the Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center was established. The center is named for Dr. Walter Clore who worked at the WSU – Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center (IAREC) near Prosser. At the center, Dr. Clore was surrounded by grapes being produced for the grape juice industry and wondered why they were not being grown for the wine industry. In 1960, he started testing over 250 varietals and hybrids based on latitude with other grape growing regions in Europe. In 1976, he retired and published his findings: “Ten Years of Grape Variety Responses and Wine-Making Trials in Central Washington.”
This publication was the basis for all vinifera grapes being grown in this region today and linked Dr. Clore as the Washington State ‘Father of the Wine Industry’.
The Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center formed a Board of Directors. Committees were chosen and in April of 2011 a $2 million grant was awarded to them by the State of Washington. Federal Economic Development Administration grant, Benton County, Port of Benton and private investment also provided additional funding.
The two facilities, the Vineyard Pavilion completed in 2012 and the Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center completed in 2014 were managed by Marv Kinney, the Port’s Director of Special Projects.
The center has an outdoor event center, wine tasting room, retail sales, classrooms and a culinary section including a demonstration kitchen.
As published in The Re Port of Benton Spring 2014 newsletter.
In need of some thrifty summer fun with your kiddos? Take them to the movies for free or at a discounted rate!
Fairchild Cinemas in Pasco offers free movies Tuesday’s, Wednesday’s and Thursday’s starting June 17. Doors open at 9 a.m. with movies starting at 10:00 a.m.
Regal Columbia Mall in Kennewick offers G and PG rated movies on Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s starting June 17 at 10:00 a.m. The cost is $1.00 per person, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Will Rogers Institute.
Carmike Cinemas in Kennewick offers family friendly movies on Wednesday’s and Thursday’s starting June 16 at 10:00 a.m. The cost is $4.00 per person which includes a kid’s tray with popcorn, drink and fruit snack.
Enjoy the summer while keeping your kids of all ages happy!
Hire a real estate broker. Make sure the broker is a member of the local multiple listing service. Regardless of whether you decide to use a traditional, full-service (full commission) broker or a limited-service (discount or flat fee) broker, you need access to the multiple listing service to sell your home for the highest price in the shortest time possible.
Prepare the home for sale. Repair known defects and perform deferred maintenance. Clean and de-clutter the home. Keep your home ready to show on a moment’s notice. There are many good resources available online with helpful tips on preparing your home for sale.
Price the home. If you hire a real estate broker, he or she will prepare a comparative market analysis [“CMA”] to assist you in pricing your home competitively. If you do not use a real estate broker, then obtain a professional appraisal from a licensed appraiser. Do not underprice or over-price your home!
Complete a Seller Disclosure Statement. In most transactions, sellers are required by law to complete and give to the buyers a Seller Disclosure Statement (known in Washington as NWMLS “Form 17”). Obtain and complete the Form 17 before have a buyer, so you will be ready!
Complete a Lead-Based Paint Disclosure. If your home was built before 1978, the law requires you to complete a Lead-Based Paint Disclosure (NWMLS Form 22J).
Get the legal description for your property. The purchase and sale agreement must contain a legal description in order to be fully enforceable, so have the legal description ready to attach to the contract. You can get the legal description from the deed you got when you bought the property, county records or a title insurance company.
Market the home. If you hire a real estate broker, marketing is his or her job! But, if you do not use a real estate broker, be sure to promote your home on the internet (including Craigslist and social media networks), as the vast majority of home buyers start their home search online, as well as through traditional methods, such as “for sale” signs, open houses, print advertisements, flyers, and word-of-mouth. Use video clips and lots of photos! Review resources on the internet for tips on creating effective advertisements and flyers.
Require buyers to be pre-approved for financing. When buyers express interest in your home, let them or their agent know that you will require buyers to be pre-approved for financing at the time of their offer.
Offer a selling broker’s commission. Usually, the buyers will be represented by their own agent. Even if you decide not to list your home with a real estate broker, offer a reasonable selling commission to the buyers’ agent. It is customary for sellers to pay commissions, so you should take that into account when pricing the home initially. Buyers pay all costs anyway regardless of whether they are “buyer’s closing costs” (in addition to the price) or “seller’s closing costs” (included in the price). If you refuse to pay a selling commission to brokers representing the buyers, you could severely reduce your chances of selling.
Negotiate the contract. When buyers decide to buy your home, they typically will make a written offer, in the form of a “Purchase and Sale Agreement.” If the buyers are represented by their own agent, the agent will prepare the agreement. You should have a real estate attorney review the offer either before signing it or include in the agreement a provision that gives you the right to withdraw from the transaction within an agreed time period, so you can seek legal advice. If neither you nor the buyers have agents, then you should have your attorney prepare the agreement.
Close the deal. Cooperate with the buyers’ agent, inspector, appraiser, title company and closing agent and make sure they know how to contact you. Customarily, the buyers will pay for their own inspection and appraisal, sellers pay for title insurance and the parties split the escrow fee. Buyers pay for financing costs and sellers pay real estate excise tax. If the transaction will be a short sale and you are not working with a real estate broker who will deal with your lender(s), consider hiring a short sale negotiator. Refer to the Short Sale Seller Advisory published jointly by the Department of Financial Institutions and Department of Licensing for important information.
Douglas S. Tingvall Attorney at Law 8310 154th Ave SE Newcastle WA 98059-9222 425-255-9500/Fax 425-255-9964 RE-LAW@comcast.net www.RE-LAW.com
This article contains general information only, and should not be used or relied upon as a substitute for competent legal advice in specific situations.
RE LAW Bulletin No. 045 Page 1 of 2 Revised 11/25/12
By Steve Brown
This issue’s cover feature highlighting the flourishing careers of young real estate professionals presents a time for reflection. Just over 30 years ago, I, too, was under thirty . . . sigh. But, more important, the stories reaffirmed why I, and so many others, entered this profession and why new generations continue to do so. It all comes down to one word: opportunity.Like these young professionals, I chose to enter the real estate business because real estate offered me the opportunity to grow my business on my own terms. I was not bound by a corporate ceiling or an advancement schedule dictated by others. From the beginning until now, I was able to chart my own course. That’s opportunity.
In my case, I entered real estate and had some early success (recognized as one of the top ten agents in my market after three years in the business), but I soon decided to go to graduate school to fulfill important personal goals. I didn’t leave the business, though. I secured a license in the state where I attended grad school and sold real estate during my three years of study. Those sales, and the flexibility of the real estate profession, allowed me to pursue my graduate degrees without going into debt. That’s opportunity.
After grad school, I returned to real estate full-time. Sharing people’s dreams, by helping them buy their first home or sell their last home, continued to be deeply fulfilling. How many other professions enable you to touch lives at such profoundly meaningful levels?
If real estate offered me an opportunity for personal fulfillment, the financial opportunities were equally great. I was able to launch my career at a minimal cost while seeing the potential for virtually unlimited financial rewards.
This point was driven home to me years ago by a colleague who came to the United States as a refugee from Vietnam. “What a wonderful country this is,” he said, “and what a wonderful industry. Both allow people to go into business for themselves at a relatively low cost.” That’s opportunity.
But with opportunity comes responsibility. My colleague from Vietnam helped me realize that if America promised great opportunity, it was my responsibility to ensure that others would have the same opportunity to live the American dream in the years ahead. That’s why I became involved in the REALTOR® organization. The continued success of our profession affects not only my business and my clients’ lives but also the prosperity of our nation.
So I challenge all of you, whether you are under or over thirty, to deepen your involvement in the REALTOR® association at the local, state, or national level. Personal success and recognition come and go, but making a difference in the real estate industry, in the lives of fellow human beings, and in our great country lasts for generations.
http://www.realtormag.realtor.org/
1. Half-baked staging: “If you’re going to professionally stage your house, stage the whole house or at least one entire floor,” USA Today says. Maureen Reddy, a professional stager and owner of DaVinci Designer Gallery in Winthrop, Mass., says it can be jarring to see two elegantly designed rooms followed by an empty dining room or den.
2. Music: “At best it is distracting,” says Rona Fischman, owner of 4 Buyers Real Estate in Somerville, Mass. “At worst, buyers will get suspicious that there is more road noise or mechanical noise or neighbor noise that you are covering up.”
3. Lack of marketing materials: Have information packets available for buyers to take with them and make sure you don’t run out of copies, says Elizabeth Weintraub, with Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, Calif. If buyers don’t have anything to take with them, the house can become forgettable.
4. Strong odors: Bypass heavy air fresheners and aromas of cleaning products like bleach, which can be a distraction and make buyers question what smell you’re trying to cover up. “You only get one opportunity to make a first impression and if the impression is an overwhelming smell, you lose,” says Fischman. “Whether it’s cookies or disinfectant, if it is noticeable, and not merely background, buyers will notice.”
5. Left-out valuables: Tell your sellers to make sure they lock up their jewelry, prescription medications, and any valuables prior to the open house. The seller risks losing something when valuables are left in plain sight; and then that raises needless suspicion where everyone who visited the open house then becomes a suspect, which could sour any potential deal with an innocent buyer, Fischman says.
6. The wrong temperature: Keep the house comfortable — warm but not hot in the winter and cool but not cold in the summer, agents advise.
See more open-house turn-offs at USA Today.
Source: “10 Mistakes That Could Ruin Your Open House,” USA Today (June 8, 2014)
Putting your house on the market in Kennewick, Pasco, Richland, or any of the surrounding Tri-Cities area?
Make sure you fix any known problems before trying to sell your home. It is better to make obvious repairs up front, rather than waiting for an inspector to be called in only to hold up a time sensitive contract you may have.
A seller who does not get repairs fixed ahead of an inspection has the possibility of making less money on their home. A majority of sellers think that the cost to perform repairs is higher than what the actual cost really is, so they may ask for a price reduction.
Some common things to look at for fixes are paint touch-ups, windows in need of repair or just cleaning in and out, cleaning carpets rather than replacing, electrical problems which could cause safety issues, plumbing issues, and sidewalk or driveway cracking.
Even the small things will add up in a buyer’s mind causing them to contemplate and hesitate to purchase.
It is also recommended that sellers be educated on the different requirements of different types of financing which could include VA and FHA loans.
Some home sellers have the capabilities to handle cosmetic or small repairs needed, but others do not have the time or abilities to handle such tasks. If that is the case, ask your real estate agent if they have any recommendations for a handyman or any specialist needed. Some agents have a list compiled of such professionals, like electricians, plumbers, handyman and such. They would be more than happy to share their list of reliable referrals.
Nerd Wallet, a financial website, has named Richland the seventh best small city to live in! More than 900 small cities with populations between 25,000 and 100,000 were considered. Another deciding factor was based on cost of living to percent of residents without health insurance. Affordable housing, decreasing poverty rates and growing income and population helped to make Richland so attractive. The only other Washington city on the list was Sammamish, who ranked fourth.
Check out the complete study with more interesting findings here http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/cities/economics/best-small-cities-live-in/