NCW Real Estate Blog

A nicely written article on the snowmobile trail grooming in the Fish Lake/Lake Wenatchee area ran in yesterday’s Wenatchee World.  The work these folks do and the quality of the recreational experience has not gone unnoticed in the world.

The demand for properties in the area has skyrocketed in the last 15 years as the reputation of the area as an all season recreation paradise has grown.  My family frequents this area and has owned a small cabin in the area since the early 90’s.

You can cross country ski, ride snowmobiles, dual-sport riding, hike, fish, kayak, golf or just enjoy the mountains and lakes.  As the area evolves, all of the activities just seem [Read more →]

Tags: General Interest, Local by Al Lorenz
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Real estate markets are local markets.  So why is Wenatchee bucking the national trends?  One reason is jobs growth is still strong, with the economy in Chelan and Douglas counties reporting 3.4 percent more jobs this January than a year ago as stated in this article in the Wenatchee World.

For that matter, a good economy is what has been keeping Seattle’s market afloat, coupled with a being a desirable area to live.  Wenatchee also is a relatively affordable market when Seattle and surrounding areas are considered.  So, it is the economy and the desirability of North Central Washington that are driving the demand in our market.

As long as the job numbers remain healthy, our real estate market should do well.  I find it pretty amazing that Washington’s economy is as healthy as it is.  Our local county and city governments are business friendly.  I won’t say there is nothing to worry about, [Read more →]

Tags: General Interest by Al Lorenz
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Yesterday’s Wentache World ran this article whose first sentence is “The number of homes for sale in the Wenatchee area in January more than doubled from the year before as housing sales slumped.”   Sounds bad, doesn’t it?  The article has a table that shows January sales back to 2003.

 So, what has changed since 2003?  For one, the market is larger than it was 5 year ago.  In 2006 and 2007, the market was a seller’s market and was constrained by supply of properties available.  A better way to look at this information is to look at

[Read more →]

Tags: General Interest, Local by Al Lorenz
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Despite all of today’s national news that January saw a continued decline in the housing market, this is the story that caught my eye!  Of course, readers of this blog already know that in the Chelan market, January was not a bad month.  They also may not be surprised that growth management is driving up the price of housing.  But, did you know in Seattle that developers are offering condos as small as 298 square feet, and they are selling [Read more →]

Tags: Land Use by Al Lorenz
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That’s what the Wenatchee World says in yesterday’s article on the avalanche stricken house near Lake Wenatchee.  But, I wasn’t convinced by the article.  It doesn’t say when the house was built, but Kahler Glen has been around since the late 1980’s according to the history section on their web site and the geo-tech report was from 1993.

Of course, a bunch of insurance companies and attorneys will probably eventually litigate to some sort of conclusion of blame or financial responsibility for the destruction of this home.  I don’t know how things worked in Chelan County in the 1980s, but today the decision of which lots  [Read more →]

Tags: General Interest, Land Use, Local by Al Lorenz
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There have been a couple of recent studies that show how much regulation has driven up housing prices in the Seattle area as well as a study I just read showing how high housing prices have impacted the entire economy in Boston.  Wages have been driven down and wild housing price fluctuations have been a result of regulation of the housing supply in Boston. [Read more →]

Tags: Land Use by admin
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There is a fascinating issue playing out in the community of Chiwawa River Pines, a residential community along the Chiwawa River in the Lake Wenatchee/Plain area.  Over the last few years, there has been a proliferation of homes being rented out on a short term, vacation basis.  While the county has no zoning concerns with this, the covenants in the community are pretty clear… [Read more →]

Tags: Local by Al Lorenz
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On the agenda for the Monday meeting on February 11 was a resolution to discontinue issuance of new permits for docks on district owned lands for private use.  This affects PUD owned lands in the Rocky Reach, Rock Island and Lake Chelan Reservoirs.  A link to the agenda is available here.

The resolution was NOT adopted, but [Read more →]

Tags: General Interest, Local by Al Lorenz
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