Sandra White: August 2009

A glimpse into this wonderful whacky place called Port Townsend.  It seems every weekend has a festival or reason to celebrate.  Life is short!

Last weekend on a gorgeous sunny day, it was the "Uptown Street Fair".   Held in the Uptown business section on Lawrence Street at Tyler,  beginning with the popular Farmer's Market, it  featured live music most of the day, a 5 minute parade in which anyone can participate, a beer garden with local brew on tap and lots of food, arts and  crafts.  People enjoy the opportunity to mingle, greet neighbors, hear upbeat music, shop for food and art, and have a beer on draft. 

Coming in September check out the Wooden Boat Festival, Kayak Symposium, and the Port Townsend Film Festival. 

 http://www.porttownsendrealestatesearch.net/

Orca (Killer) Whales are a favorite subject and pastime in the Pacific Northwest, and we have our own familiar pods that come and go on their way to Alaska every year.  Recently the Port Townsend Marine Science Center was awarded a grant for $150,000 to help us learn more about them and the environment they live in.

The money comes from a federal agency, The Institute of Museum and Library Services.  The money will be used for a project involving an Orca Whale that was stranded on the Dungeness Spit in 2002 in Sequim, WA.   This whale was found to have the highest PCBs ever found in a marine mammal.  The plan is to build an exhibit to display the skeleton of this whale to tell the story of the condition and health of our waters.

The Whale museum in Friday Harbor as well as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will be assisting in this project.  The center has one year to complete this project and raise matching funds.   

Port Townsend Marine Science Center at Fort Worden

 http://www.porttownsendrealestatesearch.net/

Uptown Cottage...Lowest priced on the market. 

Location everyone wants...close to uptown restaurants, shops and market.  Original Townsite with historic Victorians, cottages, and landmarks. 

1 bedroom plus bonus room, 1 bath Yr. Blt. 1940

Sweet '40's cottage on sunny corner lot in Uptown.  Hardwood flooring, picture window with mountain view, bedroom with French doors leading to large wood deck, 2nd room for office or guests, efficient kithen, full bath with tub and shower.  Good investment or starter home, retirement home, or getaway cottage. Great  price at $249,500.  www.johnlscott.com/45891 

http://www.porttownsendrealestatesearch.net/

Bigger and better than ever.

Located at Lawrence and Tyler, this open air
forum for local farmers and artistic craftsmen
to display and sell their products has been
operating seasonally for 17 years.

The market started in 1992 with 14 local growers
of organic and specialty produce. There are currently over 90 vendors including artisans, wine, cheese,
breads, pastries, soaps, lavendar and food vendors.


The market has Port Townsend's unique flavor and
features live music, cooking demonstations, non-
profit projects.

It is held every saturday during the warmer seasons
and on Wednesday a smaller merket is held on
Polk St. 3.30 - 6.30

For more information and schedule please
visit: http://farmersmarket.org

For Port Townsend Real Estate help or information please visit my interactive website.
http://www.porttownsendrealestatesearch.net/

 Coming up  Aug. 22, this is always a lively and well attended event with plenty of music and good food.  Held on Lawrence Street at Taylor where the Uptown shops are anchored by Aldriches Market.  The Farmer's Market will open as usual at 9:30 with specialized tent shops of fresh produce, flowers and crafts.  A parade starts at 1:00 with everyone invited to march in costume or not. 

Music will begin at 10 am with the Port Townsend Summer Band, the Delta Rays, Mystery Band, One Mean Cheese, and belly dancing performed by Middle East Out West. 

The kids can make festival hats, do face painting, a sidewalk chalk art contest, painting and sculpting contests.  There will be an outdoor beer garden and music will continue into the evening at the Uptown Pub. 

 Very private location, close  to Uptown shops, restaurants, theater, Fort Worden and beach. 

 Newer charming guest house available for short or long term lease, furnished or unfurnished.  Built in 2006 with craftsman carpentry, high ceilings, French doors,  bamboo flooring.  Full kitchen and bath, loft bedroom with double closets, room for full size bed and desk.  Full size washer and dryer, satellite tv, wood deck and fenced yard. 

http://www.porttownsendcottagerental.com

Quaint and charming, this gem is one of 2 theaters in Port Townsend, located just off Water Street in the heart of the Victorian downtown area.  As you pass, you are drawn in by the wonderful posters in the widows, sweet little box office, and the aroma of fresh popcorn, made the old fashioned way and served with real butter. 

Originally opened in 1907 with vaudeville shows and live musical productions, it moved to it's current location in 1908 and began showing the latest innovation, moving pictures.

 In 1958 the Rose closed and would not re-open again until 1992 under the ownership of Rocky Friedman, a nice guy with a dream and a love of movies.  (Financed by local citizens, who also helped with the painting of the building).  Rocky added the smaller cozy theater called the Rosebud, which fills up quickly with a popular movie.  The movies begin with a short talk about the film and a request to clean up after ourselves.  On Mondays there is a door prize for some lucky winner just for coming.

  Rocky studied film making in Southern California and moved back to the Northwest with the hopes of becoming a screenwriter.  Rocky and The Rose are devoted to bringing art to Port Townsend in the form of good movies.  A big part of the Port Townsend Film Festival, it also hosts a lecture series called  School of Athens Lectures, with subjects such as Archeology, Nature Photography, and Symbolism of Ancient Zen Temples. 

 I will just stick with the movies, most  of which are the artsy type, or often foreign film or festival winners. 

http://www.porttownsendrealestatesearch.net

Real Estate sales have undergone some drastic changes in the past 18 months, most noticeable being the prices of property and slowing of sales. 

Also important to you the buyers and sellers is the changes in mortgage loans under some new guidelines, actually rules by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government sponsored enterprises that purchase more than half of the home loans that are originated by your local bank or mortgage rep.   

1.  Appraisals are coming in lower and costing more money.   Under new rules, appraisors have to be drawn from a pool, not necessarily local and familiar with the neighborhood you are buying in.   Appriasors have also become very cautious and are trying to use sales only from the past 3 months, rather than the usual 6 months from past years.  They are having to do additional research and therefore charging more for the extra time it takes to complete the appraisal.  If your appraisal comes in lower and you really want the property you may have to put up more cash deposit, or ask the seller to lower the price.

2.  There is now a new "Risk based pricing" model which tacks on extra fees to people with lower credit ratings.  This would affect those with a credit score under 740.  They will be looking at your debt to income ratio, paying your bills on time and the amount of debt you are carrying.

3.  There could be higher points to pay for the loan you arrange just to get the advertised rate.  You should consider the amount of time you intend to stay in the home to determine how many points you are willing to pay.

4.  Fees have gone up for the entire loan process from processing locking in a rate, and for underwriting.

5.  Condos are in an even higher scrutiny since they are selling the least, with higher down payments, restrictions on sales with less that 70% occupancy, or complexes with high delinquencies on homeowner fees. 

Things to consider before you start house hunting, but with prices and interest rates at record lows, lots of inventroy to choose from, and the $8000 tax credit for first time home buyers (those that have not owned a home in the last 3 years of more)  how can you go wrong...it's a great time to buy.

http://www.porttownsendrealestatesearch