Sandra White: Sandra White (John L Scott Real Estate)

9th Annual JeffCo EXPO
April 25, 2009 - April 26, 2009
STARTS: 9:30 a.m.
LOCATION: Jefferson County Fairgrounds

4x4/ATV events, Car Shows, Bike Show, Armwrestling Tournament,Performance Horse Shows, vendors,Food, Mechanical Bull Riding.

 Sounds like fun for everyone.  We have the Jefferson County Fairgrounds here in town which is used for a lot of events.  There are corrals and stadiums, and lots of buildings for 4H events and of course the county fair.

 

 

My career began in Palm Springs, CA which is a small resort town.  Lots of second homes and sellers you never see, just unload their properties for them. I started in 1980.  Thats a whole nother story.    Then on to So. Orange County in CA where the emphasis was on investment.  Not is this the right home for my family, but how much can I make when I sell!  Oh yeah, and how soon after closing can I start my law suit.

Port Townsend been a refreshing change for me.  In the 10 years I have been involved in selling here, I have heard of only 1 lawsuit threatened, and not sure if there have been any in my office the whole time I have been here.  I have dodged that bullet for 30 years, maybe because I am a goodie two shoes and like to make sure there are no grey areas.  All of the clients I have encountered in Port Townsend have been very nice people, looking for a real home and no plans to flip in the future.  Makes the job seem a lot more pleasant and worth while.

So how are we doing.  Last I heard we went from 130 agents in Jefferson Countcory down to around 100 for 2009.  Pace of sales over 2008 has slowed dramatically, but values have held pretty steady.   For the quarter ending in March, sales were down 40%: 40 closed sales compared to 70 in the same quarter last year. That is a very small sample to draw from.  The median price of all homes sold in the county was $247,500( down 22% from a year ago) the median price dropped just 5% in Port Ludlow, a small neighboring community and acturally rose 5% in Port Townsend.   According to report I read in the Port Townsend Leader Newspaper, the median closed sale was $337,000 in Port Townsend.  We have mostly been on a plateau price wise since 2006. 

Offers are being accepted at about 93% of the asking price, which used to be around 96-98% in the hottest market a couple of years ago.  And of course there are consistent price reductions.  Fortunately you can count on one hand the number of foreclosures in our little town. 

Wishing you all a great spring season with renewed energy and passion for your business.

 

 

 

 

 

My son is so sad about losing his Basset Hound, Rudy. Here are some pictures and a link to his memorial.

Watch the movie at the bottom of his memorial page, it's pretty funny.

http://www.lulusfordogs.com/rudy.htm

 

Here in the Pacific Northwest, we like to say it with flowers.  Here is our very own peace sign blooming in yellow and white flowers.   

There is also a group in Port Townsend called the "Peace Movement"  I don't know what they do as I am not a memeber but the thought is good and here is their photo in the field with peace sign:

 

Population	14,683	9,069	6,468,424
Population Growth	12.8%	8.4%	9.4%
Population Density Population Density Population Density: "Residents per square mile"	247	1,329	96
Median Age	48 years	48 years	37 years
Median Income	$42,727	$38,550	$52,967
Cost of Living Index Cost of LIving Index 100 = National Average, 110 = 10% more expensive	109	108	110

Demographics

DemographicsZIP Code 98368Port TownsendWA

Male	47.8%	46.7%	49.9%
Female	52.1%	53.3%	50%
Married	42.8%	46.9%	42.1%
Single	57.1%	53%	57.8%
Families (w/ Kids)	14.8%	14.1%	24%

Housing

HousingZIP Code 98368Port TownsendWA

Median Home Age	22 years	29 years	28 years
Median Home Cost	$348,300	$348,300	$342,261
Home Appreciation	0.6%	0.6%	0.6%
Homes Owned	64.9%	60.7%	60%
Homes Rented	24.7%	31.4%	32.3%
Homes Vacant	10.2%	7.8%	7.6%

Economy

EconomyZIP Code 98368Port TownsendWA

Unemployment Rate	6.1%	6.1%	5.4%
Recent Job Growth	-0.7%	-0.7%	0.5%
Future Job Growth	22.4%	20.8%	24.5%

Education

EducationZIP Code 98368Port TownsendWA

School Expenditures School Expenditures Expenditures per pupil ($)	$4,578	$4,578	$4,734
Pupil/Teacher Ratio	20	20	20
Graduate Degrees	13.6%	12.2%	9.2%
4yr College Grads	21.2%	20.2%	18.3%
High School Grads	93.3%	91.4%	87%

http://www.porttownsendrealestatesearch.net/

I listen to Kirby Wilbur's radio show in Seattle, and he asked his audience to send him names of their favorite movie on the subject of conservatism.

The number one choice was The lives of Others.

I ordered it from Netflix ( a great service) and really liked it a lot.  It is a true story of a man in East Berlin after the war, working for the Secret Police and his change of attitude and what it cost him in his personal life.  It was made in Germany which makes it all the more interesting, so be sure to watch the special features to hear what the producers had to say about why they made the film. 

I went to East Berlin in the late 70's so this movie had special meaning for me.  It was a very scary place and there were guards walking around with big machine guns on their shoulders.  It was extremely drab, awful food, and not much had been restored so many years after the war was over.  Of course the wall was still up and in West Berlin I had heard that people went there and disappeared, so it was really spooky.

Let me know how you like this...

 

I did  make it to a Tea Party, in the small town of Port Angeles, famous for the Border Guards who caught the terrorist with explosives for LAX.  It is about 1 hour drive for me here in Port Townsend, WA. It is the port that takes you to Victora, in BC.   We are on the Olympic Penisula, very remote, very beautiful and very liberal.

The whole event was peaceful and fun.  Signs were amazingly creative and from the heart.  No astroturf here.  I loved meeting new people with like minds, and it energized me out of the political funk  I have experienced since the election.  I have been irritated with our own party for being to blame for a lot of this spending and irresponsibility.  Now it is time to move forward and take some action.  Feels good, just like when you are in a slump in real estate and make a few phone calls to get you back in the swing. 

I am so greatful there are people who take the time to pull these things together.  I have a side business and with real estate I am working non stop day in and day out. I lose sight of important things that also need to be done. 

There is one coming...this tiny little town has it's share of opinionated folks, and I don't know if I will be there, but I know this country is spending itself into oblivion.  I am glad there are some people who have the will and the time to let our government know when they are going in the wrong direction.  We cannot keep up the entitlements we have created and continue to have a thriving economy. 

What's going on in your town tomorrow?

Sandy White, John L Scott, Port Townsend

 http://www.porttownsendrealestatesearch.net/

 

 I feel like the real estate granny!  Almost 30 consistent, lonnng years out there working with Buyers and Sellers.  I started in a very down market for both buyer's and seller's since a new loan was out of the question.  Boy, did people get creative and not always in a good way.  Some strange offers came across my desk. 

The point is, this is a fluctuating, always changing  business just as our economy is cyclical, and who ever is to blame in this current ordeal is irrelevent , it too shall pass,  and its a good time to be learning and gathering experience.  I love the "saying you need 99 no's to get to a yes". and also good advice, put your ego and your problems in a drawer and concentrate on your clients.  Giving back to your community is also time well spent.  

Looks like things are turning around ever so slowly, and this is a great career!  Good Luck!