Moses Lake November 22, 2009

Black Friday Moses Lake

Yes I know we are ummmmm challenged in the shopping area here in Moses Lake.  Because of this you will find that most people when they want to do a large amount of shopping search outside our area and hit either Wenatchee (1 hr) or Kennewick (1 hr).  But did you know Moses Lake has our own Black Friday right here!

Yes, it’s true we do!  Granted there are obviously not as many shops to choose from but boy do people get out for this event.  So I will give you the list of stores that you will be able to visit here in town on Black Friday.

black Friday
black Friday

WalmartIn store specials will be available at 5:00 a.m.

The local store here in town has let shoppers into the store so they do not need to stand out in the cold.

Staples:  In store specials will begin at 6:00 a.m.  They are however running an ad on some items for a “buy it now for less then Black Friday price.”  Might be something to check out!

Big 5 Sporting Goods  I need to confirm times on Big 5 for black Friday

Radio Shack :  This store will be opening their doors at 5:30 a.m. on Friday

Gamestop :  I called the local store and he said they are opening at 6:00 a.m. and closing at 9:00 on Black Friday.

Home Depot:  They will open their doors at 6:00 a.m. on Friday.  They are also doing tons of things on sale right now at a lower cost then they will be on Friday.  Check it out here

Lowes:  They are also opening at 6:00 a.m.  Check out their Black Friday advertisements here

Ok granted, the list looks pretty minuscule but at least you don’t have to get up at 3:30 to drive to the Tri-Cities!  I am sure and hope that some of the local small businesses will be involved this year as well.  So don’t forget to drive thru the downtown corridor to see what’s open at this ungodly hour!

Have a happy and enjoyable Thanksgiving and go out and support your local community!

Moses LakeUncategorized November 20, 2009

Moses Lake Events

Habitat for Humanity Festival of Trees
November 28, 2009

Description:
It’s time once again for the Festival of Trees Auction. This annual fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Moses Lake is celebrating 15 years. The festivities start at 5:30 pm with registration, the silent auction, social hour and hors d’oeuvres. Their will be a short presentation followed by the live auction starting at 8 pm.j0440281

The event features a dinner as well as a silent & live auction which will feature at least 10 beautifully decorated trees, with most having gifts beneath or hidden within the branches. All proceeds from this event go towards Habitat’s mission of eliminating substandard housing in our community. All Habitat for Humanity homes are sold to the selected families at a no-profit, financed with no-interest loan and each family must invest upwards of 450 hours of sweat equity into the building of their home. This is a hand up and not a hand out program.

Donations are being sought for the Festival of Trees, items for both the live and silent auctions are needed. The success of the fundraiser depends on the generosity of individuals and businesses in our community. Show your support for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Moses Lake by calling Curtis at 509-765-0924 for tickets to the event, to donate items for the auction or to make a monetary donation.

Moses LakeUncategorized November 20, 2009

Moses Lake Events

Habitat for Humanity Festival of Trees
November 28, 2009

Description:
It’s time once again for the Festival of Trees Auction. This annual fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Moses Lake is celebrating 15 years. The festivities start at 5:30 pm with registration, the silent auction, social hour and hors d’oeuvres. Their will be a short presentation followed by the live auction starting at 8 pm.j0440281

The event features a dinner as well as a silent & live auction which will feature at least 10 beautifully decorated trees, with most having gifts beneath or hidden within the branches. All proceeds from this event go towards Habitat’s mission of eliminating substandard housing in our community. All Habitat for Humanity homes are sold to the selected families at a no-profit, financed with no-interest loan and each family must invest upwards of 450 hours of sweat equity into the building of their home. This is a hand up and not a hand out program.

Donations are being sought for the Festival of Trees, items for both the live and silent auctions are needed. The success of the fundraiser depends on the generosity of individuals and businesses in our community. Show your support for Habitat for Humanity of Greater Moses Lake by calling Curtis at 509-765-0924 for tickets to the event, to donate items for the auction or to make a monetary donation.

bankingMoses LakeReal Estate November 18, 2009

Feeling Vindicated Today!

It truly is a good day in ones life when you are basically told by someone who is supposed to have more knowledge then you that hummm maybe you were RIGHT!

That’s right today is a day that I was right!  Write it down quick for all you non-believers in me being right, I have proof!  And the round of applause is expected……

Applause

Applause

Now let me explain….I have a buyer that really wants a house, so we wrote up that great fantastic house that is unlike any other house in town.  By this I mean some of the interior finishes and touches as well as all energy saving appliances that are ultimately going to save you dollars in the end.

We wrote this offer up wayyyyyyy under their asking price and submitted it with a nice letter explaining that because of appraisal issues we felt that our price would be right where it would come out on appraisal.    They took it!

And so there it began, the appraisal was done and we waited over a week for the appraisal to be turned in.  It was a local appraiser, I felt he knew his values no problem!  Wrong!  He came in a measly $6000.00 under the agreed upon price.  Seriously are you kidding me!

With that the lender and I got together and said ok “what’s going on here?”  I KNEW my values, I did my CMA I knew where that value was.  I took a look at that appraisal and guess what I found?  Sloppiness, pure sloppiness.  The appraiser rated all the appliances in the house as “typical” not noticing that they were all energy savers and included tons of other extras.  Then the one that took the cake is where there was a box to check off for “fence”, It was blank!

Directly on the contract a nice vinyl fence was written in with the date that the fence would be complete.  Apparently his eyes weren’t working that day.  So we asked for a reconsideration of value from the appraiser with all of those issues on it, as well as other comps that could have been used.  Then we waited for 72 hours!

I got a phone call from the mortgage broker today AND I WAS RIGHT!  This same appraiser had gone back out to take a look again and determined that the price of the house was actually $15,000.00 higher then his previous appraisal.  I’m giving the appraiser the benefit of the doubt and thinking you know, maybe he had an off day for that first appraisal.  We all do make mistakes sometimes.  Sometimes though those mistakes cost people the homes of their dreams.

 

Heather

www.propertiesinmoseslake.com

bankingMoses LakeReal Estate November 18, 2009

Feeling Vindicated Today!

It truly is a good day in ones life when you are basically told by someone who is supposed to have more knowledge then you that hummm maybe you were RIGHT!

That’s right today is a day that I was right!  Write it down quick for all you non-believers in me being right, I have proof!  And the round of applause is expected……

Applause

Applause

Now let me explain….I have a buyer that really wants a house, so we wrote up that great fantastic house that is unlike any other house in town.  By this I mean some of the interior finishes and touches as well as all energy saving appliances that are ultimately going to save you dollars in the end.

We wrote this offer up wayyyyyyy under their asking price and submitted it with a nice letter explaining that because of appraisal issues we felt that our price would be right where it would come out on appraisal.    They took it!

And so there it began, the appraisal was done and we waited over a week for the appraisal to be turned in.  It was a local appraiser, I felt he knew his values no problem!  Wrong!  He came in a measly $6000.00 under the agreed upon price.  Seriously are you kidding me!

With that the lender and I got together and said ok “what’s going on here?”  I KNEW my values, I did my CMA I knew where that value was.  I took a look at that appraisal and guess what I found?  Sloppiness, pure sloppiness.  The appraiser rated all the appliances in the house as “typical” not noticing that they were all energy savers and included tons of other extras.  Then the one that took the cake is where there was a box to check off for “fence”, It was blank!

Directly on the contract a nice vinyl fence was written in with the date that the fence would be complete.  Apparently his eyes weren’t working that day.  So we asked for a reconsideration of value from the appraiser with all of those issues on it, as well as other comps that could have been used.  Then we waited for 72 hours!

I got a phone call from the mortgage broker today AND I WAS RIGHT!  This same appraiser had gone back out to take a look again and determined that the price of the house was actually $15,000.00 higher then his previous appraisal.  I’m giving the appraiser the benefit of the doubt and thinking you know, maybe he had an off day for that first appraisal.  We all do make mistakes sometimes.  Sometimes though those mistakes cost people the homes of their dreams.

 

Heather

www.propertiesinmoseslake.com

Homeowners InsuranceMoses LakeReal Estate November 14, 2009

CLUE Reports and How They Affect You

Moses Lake Real Estate Agent Heather Adkinson

Also known as a Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange is a claims history database that enables all insurance companies to access consumers claims information when they are underwriting an insurance policy.

Here is how it works….even if you as a homeowner have never had any claims or problems getting home insurance this will still affect you.  If you happen to be purchasing a house that has had claims made against the home you may be unable to get homeowners insurance.

Another flaw in the system is that the only one able to obtain a clue report on the house (besides the insurance agency) is the homeowner of the property.  Make sure when you are writing up a contract on a house that the insurance claim insurance contingency paragraph is marked on the agreement.

If when a homeowner reviews the report and finds errors on that report they do have the ability to dispute the report at which point the owners insurance company will be contacted to try and determine if there is a valid claim or not.

Unfortunately these reports can also be used by insurance companies to determine what kind of risk you would be and can in turn affect if you get turned down for insurance.  Not only do the CLUE reports cover homeowners, there is also a database that shows strictly  automobile claims.  Claims will only stay on your report for 5 years however.

Be aware that any hint of water damage to a property, for example, is likely to trigger a negative mark on the property’s CLUE report. Well-intentioned consumers who call an insurer to merely inquire about coverage for water damage have been shocked to have their insurance cancelled.

Here are some of the worst case scenarios that have come up as taken from http://www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs26-CLUE.htm

A former 21st Century Insurance fraud investigator and 32-year-old homeowner and mother was forced to get substandard homeowner’s insurance at three times the normal price because the house she was purchasing was “blacklisted” on a national Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) report.

A 79-year-old homeowner was turned down for a homeowner’s policy because she made a $393 claim on her purse that had been stolen in Montreal while she was visiting her daughter.

A 75-year-old homeowner was “blacklisted” after she made a telephone inquiry about her policy coverage with Allstate, with whom she had continuous homeowner’s coverage for 30 years.

The Chief of the Consumer Services Division, California Department of Insurance and Palm Springs homeowner was turned down when he attempted to get insurance for his new home. An inaccurate CLUE report showed five claims, two of which were for another property owned by the seller in a different city; two other “claims” were only for coverage inquiries and one claim was fully remedied and should not have had bearing on his eligibility.

Be aware that filing any type of claim with your insurance company may result in issues that you ought to not have to deal with.

If you are looking to Buy or Sell Real Estate in Grant County I would love to Help!  Call or text me at 509-760-7733

Follow Heather on Twitter @ hjadkinson

Become a fan on Facebook @ http://bit.ly/27KD73

Follow my Moses Lake Real Estate Blog @ http://hjadkinson.wordpress.com/

Search for homes @ www.propertiesinmoseslake.com

Homeowners InsuranceMoses LakeReal Estate November 14, 2009

CLUE Reports and How They Affect You

Moses Lake Real Estate Agent Heather Adkinson

Also known as a Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange is a claims history database that enables all insurance companies to access consumers claims information when they are underwriting an insurance policy.

Here is how it works….even if you as a homeowner have never had any claims or problems getting home insurance this will still affect you.  If you happen to be purchasing a house that has had claims made against the home you may be unable to get homeowners insurance.

Another flaw in the system is that the only one able to obtain a clue report on the house (besides the insurance agency) is the homeowner of the property.  Make sure when you are writing up a contract on a house that the insurance claim insurance contingency paragraph is marked on the agreement.

If when a homeowner reviews the report and finds errors on that report they do have the ability to dispute the report at which point the owners insurance company will be contacted to try and determine if there is a valid claim or not.

Unfortunately these reports can also be used by insurance companies to determine what kind of risk you would be and can in turn affect if you get turned down for insurance.  Not only do the CLUE reports cover homeowners, there is also a database that shows strictly  automobile claims.  Claims will only stay on your report for 5 years however.

Be aware that any hint of water damage to a property, for example, is likely to trigger a negative mark on the property’s CLUE report. Well-intentioned consumers who call an insurer to merely inquire about coverage for water damage have been shocked to have their insurance cancelled.

Here are some of the worst case scenarios that have come up as taken from http://www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs26-CLUE.htm

A former 21st Century Insurance fraud investigator and 32-year-old homeowner and mother was forced to get substandard homeowner’s insurance at three times the normal price because the house she was purchasing was “blacklisted” on a national Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) report.

A 79-year-old homeowner was turned down for a homeowner’s policy because she made a $393 claim on her purse that had been stolen in Montreal while she was visiting her daughter.

A 75-year-old homeowner was “blacklisted” after she made a telephone inquiry about her policy coverage with Allstate, with whom she had continuous homeowner’s coverage for 30 years.

The Chief of the Consumer Services Division, California Department of Insurance and Palm Springs homeowner was turned down when he attempted to get insurance for his new home. An inaccurate CLUE report showed five claims, two of which were for another property owned by the seller in a different city; two other “claims” were only for coverage inquiries and one claim was fully remedied and should not have had bearing on his eligibility.

Be aware that filing any type of claim with your insurance company may result in issues that you ought to not have to deal with.

If you are looking to Buy or Sell Real Estate in Grant County I would love to Help!  Call or text me at 509-760-7733

Follow Heather on Twitter @ hjadkinson

Become a fan on Facebook @ http://bit.ly/27KD73

Follow my Moses Lake Real Estate Blog @ http://hjadkinson.wordpress.com/

Search for homes @ www.propertiesinmoseslake.com

Moses LakeReal Estate November 14, 2009

Extended Home Tax Credit

Extended First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

Moses Lake Real Estate Agent Heather Adkinson

Feature Jan 1-November 30 2009 December 1-April 30 2010
First time Home Buyer Amount of Credit $8000.00 ($4000.00 married filing separately $8000.00 ($4000.00 married filing separately
First time Home Buyer Amount of Credit May not have had interest in a principal residence for 3 yrs prior to purchase Same
Current Home owner Amount of Credit No Provision $6500.00 ($3250.00 married filing separately)
Effective Date Current Home Owner No provision Date of Enactment
Current Home Owner Definition for Eligibility No provision Must have used the home sold or being sold as a principal residence consecutively for 5 yrs of the previous 8
Termination of Credit Purchases after November 30 2009 (Becomes April 30 2010 on enactment) Purchases after April 30, 2010
Binding Contract Rule None So long as written and binding contract to purchase is in effect on April 30, 2010 the purchase will have until July 1, 2010 to close
Income Limits $75,000-single, $150,000 married Additional $20,000 phase out $125,000-single $225,000-married Additional $20,000 phase out
Limitation on cost of Purchase Homes None $800,000 enactment date
Purchase by Dependent No provision Ineligible
Anti-fraud rule None Purchaser must attach documentation of purchase to tax return.

Print this out for reference and you have everything you need!

If you are looking to Buy or Sell Real Estate in Grant County I would love to Help!  Call or text me at 509-760-7733

Follow Heather on Twitter @ hjadkinson

Become a fan on Facebook @ http://bit.ly/27KD73

Follow my Moses Lake Real Estate Blog @ http://hjadkinson.wordpress.com/

Search for homes at www.propertiesinmoseslake.com

Moses LakeReal Estatewaterfront November 11, 2009

Moses Lake Waterfront

 

Moses Lake Agent Heather Adkinson

MLS 29152187 Prime piece of waterfront located west facing on Moses Lake.  This vacant land is 1.97 acres in an established neighborhood that has CC&R’s but still allows you the flexibility to do what you want with your land

Waterfront Moses Lake

 

There is an easement that travels down the side of the property to allow the neighbors access to garage.  Full acerage is irrigitable and you can have horses if you would like to.

Waterfront has 100 ft of useable land.

 

This property is the lowest price waterfront in town by far and sellers would be willing to carry a contract.  Currently priced at $175,000                      740 Easy St 004

 

If you are looking for waterfront in Moses Lake, WA feel free to contact me for more information.

 

 

 

If you are looking to Buy or Sell Real Estate in Grant County I would love to Help!  Call or text me at 509-760-7733

Follow Heather on Twitter @ hjadkinson

Become a fan on Facebook @ http://bit.ly/27KD73

Follow my Moses Lake Real Estate Blog @ http://hjadkinson.wordpress.com/

Moses LakeReal Estatewaterfront November 11, 2009

Moses Lake Waterfront

 

Moses Lake Agent Heather Adkinson

MLS 29152187 Prime piece of waterfront located west facing on Moses Lake.  This vacant land is 1.97 acres in an established neighborhood that has CC&R’s but still allows you the flexibility to do what you want with your land

Waterfront Moses Lake

 

There is an easement that travels down the side of the property to allow the neighbors access to garage.  Full acerage is irrigitable and you can have horses if you would like to.

Waterfront has 100 ft of useable land.

 

This property is the lowest price waterfront in town by far and sellers would be willing to carry a contract.  Currently priced at $175,000                      740 Easy St 004

 

If you are looking for waterfront in Moses Lake, WA feel free to contact me for more information.

 

 

 

If you are looking to Buy or Sell Real Estate in Grant County I would love to Help!  Call or text me at 509-760-7733

Follow Heather on Twitter @ hjadkinson

Become a fan on Facebook @ http://bit.ly/27KD73

Follow my Moses Lake Real Estate Blog @ http://hjadkinson.wordpress.com/