If you are looking for a wonderful home in a fantastic community you might just of found what you are looking for. 3br 2.25 baths bright, open, with a lot of storage. We will be holding this property open this weekend 10/10 & 10/11 from 1pm to 4pm Please stop by and take a look.       Scott Cowan | Keller Williams | 253.219.1194 6926 Fairway Ln SE, Olympia, WA Beautiful home in Indian Summer. Private and quiet. Move in ready. Exterior landscaping and maintenance is taken care of. 3BR/2.5BA Townhouse   offered at $389,000 Year Built 2002 Sq Footage 2,075 Bedrooms 3 Bathrooms 2 full, 1 partial Floors 2 Parking 2 Car garage Lot Size 6,534 sqft HOA/Maint $175 per month DESCRIPTION Open House 1pm to 4pm Saturday 10/10 & Sunday 10/11 Turnkey standalone 3br 2.25 bath home in Indian Summer. Bri... 10/10/2009

Is this a great view or what? It's a Sunday afternoon, the air is crisp but the sun is warm. We wander in to the Hearthfire for a glass of wine and some fried calimari. NO ONE is sitting out on the deck until we stake our claim on the best table:  out of the breeze and in the sun.  And to top it off, it was still happy hour. 10/07/2009

For many years, Lattin's Country Cider Mill has been the go-to place in the Olympia area if you are craving apple cider or yummy apple bakery treats like apple fritters!  Through the month of October, you can visit the cider mill as they put on their Apple Festival each weekend from 9-5:30.  You can sample and buy apples just picked from the trees, listen to some toe tapping bluegrass music, & for kids (& to take you back to your childhood) there is also bobbing for apples, wagon rides to the pumpkin patch, farm animals to visit and pat.  Admission is free though there are charges for some of the various featured activities and for whatever goodies you buy to take home with you.  Lattin's is at 9402 Rich Rd SE Olympia - their website www.lattinscider.com has more details.  09/30/2009

The City of Olympia Arts Commission, Dept. of Parks, Arts & Recreation along with local business sponsors invite you out to the 16th Annual Arts Walk this Friday, October 2, 2009. Over 100 participating businesses in Downtown Olympia open their doors to help visual and performing artists showcase their talents. The spring version of this event is a huge hit, with the famed Procession of the Species stealing much of the spotlight. This year's fall version of the event will feature live painting exhibits, poetry and short story readings, live music, dancing, children's activities, photography slide shows and much more. Calendar of Events Not only is this a great social event, but it helps dozens of local artists show off their latest masterpieces in a very interactive and community center... 09/30/2009

The national recognition is starting to pile up for Olympia, the unpretentious capitol city of Washington. The latest recognition came from the American Public Transportation Association, which awarded Olympia with the prize for best transit system for its size in the nation. This came on top of Olympia's ranking by Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine as the sixth Best City in the Nation. In 2008 Forbes ranked Olympia #8 on their Best Places for Business and Careers list. Olympia's Evergreen State College is listed among the "best Buy Schools" in the 2010 edition of the Fiske Guide to Colleges, and Readers Digest has named Olympia's annual Procession of the Species as the top of its "can't resist" parades and processions list. The most significant nod comes from Sperling's Best Place... 09/21/2009

The IRS is offering an $8000 tax credit to 1st time home buyers and buyers that haven't owned a home in 3 years or more. You have to close the transaction and be occupying the home by November 30th, 2009.  It take about 4 weeks to close a home bought with a loan (if its a smooth transaction without delays).  The race is on call your realtor to start looking and you will save some cool cash on April 15th.    09/20/2009

Looking to enjoy yourself more and work around the house less? Stop by this weekend September 12 & 13 2009 at 6926 Fairway Ln. Olympia WA 98501 You will be able to see what it would be like to live in Indian Summer and have most of your exterior maintenance taken care of for you. This is a standalone townhome. Imagine no shared walls, your own private patio, and everything that living in Indian Summer has to offer. Offered at $419,000 this 3br 2.25 bath townhome offers over 2,000 sqft of living space with floorplan that will make you want to move in today. For more information you can view the attached postlet advertisement or visit our website at www.classichomesnorthwest.com We hope to see you at our open houses this weekend. If you need specific information please call Scott Cowan di... 09/12/2009

Now is the time to be viewing homes so you will be able to make an offer and have the property close in time for the $8000 dollar tax credit. November 31st  is the date you need to be occupying the home.  Plenty of good values still available and historically LOW INTEREST RATES. Do not regret missing this opportunity contact a REALTOR and reputable lender today! 09/05/2009

Tomorrow through Sunday, you can enjoy the 36th annual Harbor Days Festival  (www.harbordays.com) in Olympia - with the main attraction being races of actual vintage tugboats!  This is a very cool weekend of fun, celebrating Olympia's maritime heritage.  The tall ships Lady Washington and The Hawaiian Chieftain will also be in town as will the steamship Virginia V (www.virginiav.org)    The festival starts Friday (Sept. 4th) at 5 PM and that is when the tall ships will be arriving at Port Plaza and the steamship at Percival Landing.  The vintage and working tugs will also be at the docks at Percival Landing, and most are open for viewing Saturday from 10-4. Along with the various watercraft, there will also be numerous arts and crafts booths to browse through, loads of entertainment and... 09/03/2009

I got to enjoy this year's Sand in the City in Olympia with my son and my little 2 year old granddaughter - & what fun it was!  The sand sculptures are just amazing - so much detail and very witty besides!   Everything from scenes out of Madagascar and Ice Age to tugboat eating crabs! Watching the master sculptors at work was fascinating, too, as they meticulously added detail to their work. And besides lots of music to enjoy, the Hands on Children's Museum had plenty of craft tables to entice children to make a mosaic necklace or color a special picture.  Other kid attractions included a climbing wall, face painting, a large tub of sea creatures that you could pick up and touch - plus my granddaughter's favorite - the Bubble Hut!  Lots of buckets of suds and plenty of bubble wands of d... 08/23/2009

Olympia's 9th annual Sand in the City event is this weekend!  Teams sculpt absolutely amazing creations out of sand, all ready to view in the Port Plaza along Budd Inlet.  If you enjoyed building sand castles as a child, you will wonder how in the world these elaborate sand sculptures are done!  On Saturday (8/22) from 10 AM til 7 PM you can tour the sculptures and vote for your favorite.  There will also be live music, activities and crafts galore for kids including giant sandboxes for them to play in!  Then on Sunday from 10 AM til 4 PM it is grandparents day - so if you've got grandkids, here's that special outing you can share with them!  The event is free although there is a suggested donation amount of $5.00 per family (how's that for a bargain for some cool entertainment!!)  The ... 08/21/2009

This is my 4th blog post about Trader Joe's. It started years back with activating people to petition Trader Joe's to open a store in Olympia, through the confirmation of a planned store, to the progress, and finally the grand opening. I really should stop writing about Trader Joe's, as people who google the store inadvertently come across my blogs and call me for information about opening times and the store phone number.   Being a big Trader Joe's fan, I couldn't miss the grand opening of the store today. I thought arriving 45 minutes before the doors were supposed to open, I would be one of the first shoppers, but apparently there are a whole lot of people more dedicated than I. Shoppers waiting in line were entertained with a live band, playing island music. After the store finally... 08/21/2009

If you love to see cute pets, cute kids and creative costumes on both, as well as decorated bikes, trikes and wagons - you will LOVE Olympia's annual pet parade happening this coming Saturday!  And if you have a cute kid (with or without a cute pet), it is not too late to plan to participate in the parade. This is the 80th Pet Parade and it is a very cool community event, now sponsored by The Olympian newspaper.  Participants don't need to pre-register but should gather in Heritage Park downtown by Capitol Lake for judging between 8:30 and 9:45 before the parade begins at 10 AM.  There are lots of categories for kids and their pets to have a chance to win prizes, and the parade itself is a kick to watch or walk along in!  Parents are welcome to accompany smaller kids in the parade as it... 08/12/2009

So it's been rumored for months, probably even years.  This time it's for real. See this picture? I took it myself and I was standing in a parking lot on the corner of Cooper Point and Black Lake Blvd. Yes...believe it. Trader Joe's is coming to Olympia!  Their opening is set for later this month.  There have been newspaper articles and blogs here on ActiveRain about it. But I kept wondering  "Will it ever happen?" Why do I like Trader Joe's so much?  It's just fun to walk up and down the aisles and see and try different products: curry simmer sauces, olive oils, great prices on wines. Their own brands are good quality and are reasonably priced.  This week, it's number one on my best things in Olympia! 08/10/2009

Olympia, WA Home Sales: What price range is selling? Forget all the news you've heard lately about home prices for a moment. While analyzing median prices can provide useful insight, it may be far more important to consider the supply and demand in different price ranges when measuring the strength of a market. As a home seller, it is crucial to know if you are in a segment of the market that is in high demand or one that is over-supplied. Knowing this will help you strategically price your home and set you up for success. In the Olympia, WA real estate market the segment of the market below $350,000 is where a huge majority ( 81% ) of the sales have taken place over the last 6 months. The specific segment that has far outperformed all the rest is between $200,000 and $250,000, where 31... 08/05/2009

  Every summer when lawn chairs start to line Capitol Way Boulevard, that's a sure indicator that Olympia's Capital Lakefair is in progress. The fair has been an Olympia staple for over 50 years and is still an immensely popular event bringing the community together and bringing visitors to Olympia.     My favorite event is the Grand Parade down Capitol Boulevard. It is lead off by a military color guard and includes imaginative floats, marching bands, drill teams, horse riders, classic cars and more. There's just something so typically American to a main street parade that makes me think of apply pie and Disney Land.       Some of the other events include boat races, a car show, kit car races, rides, games, amusements and food. This year's Lakefair was blessed with exceptionally good ... 07/22/2009

07/22/2009

Yes, its that time of year already. Summer in the Northwest...not too many things can beat it. The weather is gorgeous, the city is hopping with events, and the real estate market is.....STABLE.Obviously the climate in the real estate market and the wider economy is a little less sweltering than our weather has been so far this summer, but overall things could be much worse . The trick in analyzing market trends is to have data to measure against. For us, the data available to measure against just happens to be from the hottest real estate market in history. It is crucial to keep that in mind when looking at these trends. At first glance, you may feel that the charts I'm going to share paint a bleak picture. But when you consider that the data I'm using is from the past 5 years (transla... 07/17/2009

Inspired by an annual event in Brussels, Belgium, Mathias Eichler, owner of the hippest store in Olympia, and community organizer, put together an innovative, yet simple community event in downtown Olympia called: A Table for Olympia   It took place early evening on Friday the 10th of July on Washington Street. The street was closed to traffic and one block-long line of tables was lovingly set with white table linens and vases with fresh summer flowers. The residents of Olympia were invited to come to town to share a pot luck dinner together, and plenty of people followed the invitation. The weather couldn't have been better. There was sunshine, live music and singing. Delicious Olympia artesian well water was served, people sampled each other's food, sat together, ate together and got... 07/11/2009

07/01/2009