So, my partner, Michael, and I took a few days this week to go and spend time at Lake Chelan with a friend whose family has had a "cabin" here for many decades.  We were touring around the lake tonight and last night noticiing that there are a larger than usual number of houses available for sale here. Anyone know from the local area if there are any distressed sales out this way?  We're all a little curious.  Some huge houses have signs on them. 08/06/2009

In the Lake Chelan area, we've been very fortunate and seen few foreclosures.  But, we are seeing a trickle now and they are causing some disruption in the market.  I have been talking with some folks who are worried about the ability to sell their homes with the competition from foreclosures.Fear not!  I wrote a post on my outside blog on just that issue: Even in the most difficult markets, like Phoenix and Las Vegas, there are people getting their homes sold in short timeframes.  In those markets, over half the sales are foreclosures!  So, the first step is not to fear, it can be done. Those sellers and agents that are getting the job done basically leave nothing to chance.  The research the market and make sure that the buyer who may be in the market for their home is virtually compe... 07/30/2009

Beginning this fall, Chelan County PUD is planning to offer customers cash rebates for energy conservation steps such as adding home insulation and replacing old doors and windows. The new program will replace a weatherization loan program that is almost 30 years old. Participation has been steadily decreasing in recent years, and costs for administering the loan program are about twice as high as expected for handling incentives. Details are still being decided, but Mark Wiser, manager of the PUD's Conservation programs, said customers could get a rebate of around 25 cents per square foot of new insulation, and about $6 a square foot for new doors and windows, up to a limit of possibly $1,500. Customers would also be eligible for federal tax credits. During the budgeting process each y... 07/30/2009

Growth management has created high costs for real estate in Washington.  With a less robust employment market, and the potential migration of large employers like Boeing (can Microsoft be far behind?) out of state, we could be in for some slow times in Washington State.  But, we've gotten the government that has been voted for, so the public will have to change their minds on priorities before we see change. Dan Beardslee of Erlandsen Engineering has been writing some great articles on impact fees, funding infrastructure and potential solutions in the Wenatchee Business Journal.  Unfortunately, the articles are not available on their web site so I cannot link to them.  Dan runs the local office in Chelan and often contributes Yesterday, there was an Associated Press article about states... 07/28/2009

While the U.S. government ponders its supposed exit strategy from the interventions it has made in the private sector, it is important to consider what an actual exit strategy should be for any of your investments and particularly your real estate holdings. Why do you need an exit strategy? Every investment has an optimal life.  Sophisticated investors purchase stocks with a target sale price and strategy of getting there before they ever make the purchase.  Real estate is no different except it is a much less liquid investment than stocks that can take some time to convert back into cash. Markets are cyclical, as we're being reminded again now.  Real estate typically has a few years of rapid price gains with periods of slow, no or sometimes even negative growth in price.  In my experie... 07/28/2009

We have the largest inventory of Lake Chelan waterfront homes available this year since, well, possibly ever!  There isn't any more lakefront land being made either and there are deals at nearly every price point!A cute 3 bedroom, 2 bath Lake Chelan watefront home on .15 acres near Willow Point Park was listed today at $925,000. It includes a dock, is connected to sewer and is close in to Manson!  It was constructed about 1962!  Come let me show you another Lake Chelan waterfront home for under $1 million! 07/28/2009

In 2009, 11 home sales were closed in June, compared with 13 in 2008.  The sales dollar volume was almost 91% of  last year's volume in June as well.  While that may not sound all that great, it is an improvement over the first 5 months of this year.  Average Sale Price for the year is down to $387,907 from $460,922 for the first six months of last year.  Last month, the Days On Market for all sales for 2009 averaged 220 days!  June sales brought that number down to a more respectable 179 days.  That may mean that sellers are beginning to adjust their listing prices to the market or may be simply be a more statistically significant number of transactions for the year. Listing volumes continue to dwarf last year, with 84 homes listed in June as compared with 59 last year.  There are curr... 07/06/2009

If you are in Chelan, you may have seen the activity going on at BC McDonalds.  I did not realize just how exciting the project was until I met with Brent McDonald, the owner, and Ron Coulter, the architect, for a tour of the project.  All that activity is over a dozen luxury hotel rooms right in downtown Chelan above BC McDonald's restaurant.  The hotel is keeping the name of the original "The Lakeview Hotel" which had been a hotel, in that same location, from around 1943 until the late 1980's.  The building was originally constructed in 1926 and the Lakeview Hotel is projected to reopen at the end of July, 2009.  While the original hotel was not considered up-market, the new hotel has a dozen beautiful spacious rooms where the original Lakeview Hotel had 32 rooms!  Each room is large... 07/01/2009

I had to look at how sales of vacant land were doing so far in 2009 in the Lake Chelan area.So far this year, we've had 16 sales, with a median value of $110,000, the high value is $305,000 and the lowest cost land sale this year was $51,000.  Total sales of lots and land ytd in 2009: $2,104,950.00.  Here's a list of Lake Chelan Sales of Lots and Land so far this year.In the same search area last year, by June 16th, we had 52 sales, with a median value of $137,000, a high value of $680,000 and a low value of  $35,000.  Total sales of lots and land ytd in 2008: $8,687,900.00.By transactions, this year is 30.7% of last year and total sales dollars year to date are 24.2% of 2008.  But, transactions are getting done, if you know how to get your Lake Chelan property sold.  06/17/2009

The number of sold properties since June of 2008 is very short.  Other than a lease, and a sale in Cashmere, the only sale since June 1, 2008 on the MLS is the sale at 510 E. Woodin Avenue, which was one of my listings, that sold at $299,000. For those who might be interested in buying, there are some pretty interesting Lake Chelan commercial properties available.  One is The former Deepwater Pub near Lake Chelan Shores.  Another is the Apple Inn Motel, a 41 unit motel on upper Woodin Avenue.  I have a former warehouse, office and processing listing on Highway 150 on 3.6 acres.  There are restaurants and retail available. Have a look at these 18 Lake Chelan Commercial properties and be sure to let me know if you have interest in any of them. 06/17/2009

The Resort Suites Condominiums in Lakeside are holding an auction where they are offering 15 units August 8th.  This is a reserve auction with a minimum bid. The Resort Suites are full-share condominums with an active vacation rental program.  They are rented nightly and weekly much as a hotel might be.  This project was just completed last summer and has 70% of its units sold.  Click the link for all the auction details or if you would like to talk with an experienced auctioneer about assisting you with the auction! 06/15/2009

Pending sales in the Lake Chelan MLS still don't show signs of a market upswing.  I posted in my main blog: While I often get you information on sold properties in the Lake Chelan Residential Sales Report and in posts on details of Lake Chelan sold homes, I haven't written about "pending real estate sales." The NAR nationally and the NWMLS in Washington have of late been claiming that pending home sales portend a turnaround in the real estate market.  So, I thought I should take a look at the local pending sales. There are 29 pending sales in the MLS today.  That number dropped from in the forties most of the winter and was running in the thirties lately.  The recent drop was in part caused by the sales of units at The Lake House which closed after completion of construction. - click fo... 06/12/2009

For details including size, price, days on market, address and more on homes that are selling at Lake Chelan, I posted those details and more for May.  An example of the data: 211 Village Drive, Manson, WA  98831 List Price $359,000 Sold Price: $334,000 Days on Market: 259 3 bedroom | 2.5 bath | 1550 s.f. | 0.10 acre Patio Home in The Village at Manson For the complete post, go to Lake Chelan Real Estate Update | Sold Homes in May.  For historical sales data, check out my monthly Lake Chelan Residential Sales Summary. 06/08/2009

We've got quite the selection of usually very rare properties at Lake Chelan right now.  I ran a search on waterfront properties, the rarest usually, on Lake Chelan.  The result was 50 properties under $1 million! WithMemorial Day is behind us, here's the update on affordable Lake Chelan waterfront properties.  There are 50 Lake Chelan Waterfront Properties for Sale for under $1 million! These properties are all classified in the Chelan Co-Brokers' system as residential, but include at the least expensive properties condominium boat slips at Harris Marina.  There are actual Lake Chelan beachfront homes starting in the $700,000s.  There are some stunning Lake Chelan community waterfront homes for even less. If you want help finding your ideal Lake Chelan waterfront home from someone who ... 06/02/2009

Here is my Lake Chelan Residential Sales Report May 2009.  So far, sales volume is HALF of last year's in transactions and 2009 is only 43% of 2008 by dollar volume!  But, summer is here so it is time to get busy in Lake Chelan Real Estate.We have some great homes for sale at Lake Chelan!  Or, if you are interested in getting your Lake Chelan real estate sold quickly, let me know!  Have a great weekend in Sunny Chelan! 06/02/2009

Yesterday, my listing on 6 Riverview Cemetary Road in Chelan closed. Days on Market? 89. Average Days on Market for home sales in the Chelan area this year? 228. I think that about sums it up. And, now is the busy season at Lake Chelan and the ideal time to get your home sold quickly. To see some of the things that were done to market this home, you can visit its custom web site, www.6riverviewroad.com . To learn more how I can get your Lake Chelan home SOLD, check our selling your Lake Chelan home ! 05/27/2009

Criterion Properties Lake Chelan Real Estate Blog now has support for multiple languages, including Spanish! On the sidebar there are flags for many different languages. By clicking on the flag of the language you are looking for, the site is translated to that language! Let me know if that does not work smoothly or if there is a language that I need to add! 05/18/2009

There are two great real estate related events happening soon in Chelan!  The first is a concert in Riverwalk Park on June 13th at 6:00 p.m.  It is being held in the pavilion in the park and is a celebration for the recent Grand Opening of  The Lake House. The Lake House at Chelan presents a concert by Craig Terrill, defensive tackle for the Seattle Seahawks, at the Riverwalk Pavilion in downtown Chelan.  The Lake House invites the community and visitors to enjoy the free concert where Terrill will perform songs from his debut album, CT, including "Take Me to the Mountain" and "Indiana Boy."  The Lake House officially opened on May 1 and features unobstructed views of Lake Chelan.  The 40 fully-furnished, luxury one- and three-bedroom residences are available for full-share and quarter-... 05/14/2009

To see what is happening at Lake Chelan, visit the Chelan Tweetgrid! It has all the twitter and tweets that mention "Chelan."  The stars, including Oprah are doing it!  Even the astronauts on the Space Shuttle are tweeting! Tools like the tweetgrid can help you to track things going on around a specific topic and keep your thoughts from going all a twitter! 05/14/2009

One project that keeps hitting the "SOLD" section of the Chelan MLS so far this month is The Lake House. So far, it has had three closings from $199,900 to $279,900.  According to Brian Merrill, Sales Manager at The Lake House, that is not even half of the closings scheduled for this month on this fractional ownership property.  It sounds like The Lake House is going to make May a good sales month for real estate  in Chelan.  Congratulations to The Lake House for keeping their customers happy and ready to close during this challenging time!  If you would like to see this project, or other great Lake Chelan Real Estate, please contact Al Lorenz. 05/14/2009