A few months ago I blogged about a senior mobile home park in Lynnwood that was being bought out by developers, thus displacing the residents of their low income housing.Well, Aaron Reardon, County Executive for Snohomish County, approved an ordinance that provides a contingent loan guarantee to bond offerings of the Housing Authority of Snohomish County to purchase two senior mobile home parks in Lynnwood.  The acquisition cost of the two parks is $10.2 million. Because the County has a strong bond rating, the loan guarantee saved approximately $500,000 on the total cost of the project, Reardon said,  lowering the rent rates for the residents.  The County will also provide $2.6 million of housing trust funds.So senior citizens, rest assured, you will be saved. You are our most precious... 04/03/2007

Graffiti is everywhere.  It does not respect jurisdictional boundaries or the worth of a property.Graffiti is not only an assault on private and public property; it is an assault on civilization itself.  Left unchecked, it is a sign of decay and like a cancer; it will ultimately result in declining property values and the corrosion of entire neighborhoods.The City of Lynnwood, Washington, recognizing the problem, has taken aggressive measures to combat graffiti.  The measures taken include: Reports of graffiti taken by policePhotographs are used as investigative toolsArrests are made and culprits are charged with felonies and misdemeanors  A Lynnwood Against Graffiti program is also in place to remove graffiti, not only from public places but also from private property, at no cost to th... 03/30/2007

I hope everyone is having a great New Year.In today's blog, I wanted to figure out what types of advertising everyone is using.  Being a commercial real estate agent is a bit different, but I'm still sending out letters to my clients in Edmonds, Lynnwood, Mukilteo and Mountlake Terrace.  Obviously, the internet is a newer way of advertising but what ways have worked for agents recently?  Is everyone still doing a mail campaign with items of value?  Are people advertising in the local papers?  How effective has blogging been in capturing clients?  I know everyone reads blogs nowadays, but does it actually create solid leads?  Have people tried to buy online ads and keywords from Google, Microsoft, etc?  Personally, my favorite type of advertising is when my past clients, friends and fami... 01/08/2007

I know activerain is a very active on the residential side of real estate blogging but I was curious to see what type of forums/topics people would like to discuss about Commercial real estate.My forte is in the Multi Family market in Snohomish County, to be exact, the Edmonds, Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace and Mukilteo area, but I have done other deals in Seattle-Queen Anne area, Marysville and am currently working on a handful of deals in Seattle as well.A couple suggestions I had: Are people interested in trends for the upcoming year Current market conditions1031 ExchangesCondo ConversionsLand developmentI'm open to discuss any of these topics.  I'm more suited to answer the first four examples but have dipped my pen on a couple occasions in land development.I really am interested in s... 01/02/2007

In my opinion, Multi Family properties in Edmonds, Lynnwood, Mukilteo and Mountlake Terrace will continue to grow and sell at a similiar pace to last year.  One of the many reasons for this is due to the fact that there is a lack of inventory available on the market.  As first time investors become savvy to the market, they continue to acquire properties and hold on to their current projects or take their single family homes and 1031 Exchange them into an apartment.  Investors continue to buy up as much property as possible, but do not put any of their own inventory on the market.   The lack of properties available on the market will continue to have investors bid up the price for apartments.  Also, many investors from 'hot' Seattle communities will see that they can obtain a better val... 12/26/2006

I'm pretty new to the blogging scene, but have gotten into it the last couple of weeks.  I have friends at Zillow and friends in the residential real estate business that use this media outlet to reach and inform the new age real estate consumer.  My question is, as a Commercial Real Estate agent, is blogging a legitimate outlet that can be used to benefit both the consumer and the agent?  I've done some searching through various popular blogging sites such as raincityguide.com, our site activerain.com and zillowblog.com and have yet to see any significant input by Commercial Real Estate agents.  Do investors actually use the internet for anything other than searching for actual multi family property listings?  Has anyone else out there posted commercial blogs before?  If you are intere... 12/20/2006

My experience here at EHI Real Estate Advisors has been fantastic.  I look back at our Christmas Cocktail this past weekend, our weekly meetings, each and everyday at the office and I truly feel blessed to be working with the people I do.  I'm curious to know what others out in the field think about their workplace.  Do the majority of you work from home or are you at your office everyday, minus appointments and meetings?  Do the larger firms have the same, high level of comradery as a small office?  Does it make a difference?Happy Holidays!   12/19/2006

The Alder Ridge Townhomes community is coming together nicely and is going to be a nice addition to the Lynnwood real estate market. After seeing the latest updates today I am excited to see what they will look like all complete and landscaped. The community will feature a shared play for the neighborhood kids which is a lovely addition. I remember when I was kid, our apartment complex had shared play areas between the buildings which was a great way to make new friends. Community play areas are a great place for parents to meet and forge a new found friendship. To me, your never to old to play...don't know who you might run into. 09/06/2006