Home prices finished 2024 strong, NAR data shows. But in the last five years alone, median home prices have jumped 50%.
Property owners are getting richer as home prices prove resilient against lower home sales. Nearly 90% of metro areas registered home price increases in the final quarter of 2024, according to the latest housing data from the National Association of REALTORS®. Fourteen percent of the 226 metros NAR tracks posted double-digit price gains, up from 7% in the third quarter.
Artificial plants can be a practical alternative to real ones, especially in spaces with limited sunlight or for people who travel frequently, according to interior designer Laetitia Laurent. Designer Erica McLain suggests using preserved or dried botanicals as a more authentic option and advises choosing faux plants that mimic natural imperfections and pairing them with natural elements, such as stones and raw woods.
Homeowners are embracing bold and rich colors for kitchen paint in 2025, moving away from traditional whites and neutrals.
While warm whites and classic neutrals will always be a kitchen staple, this year we’ve seen more colorful kitchens than ever before. It’s almost like homeowners are shunning the strict rules of resale value and allowing their personality to shine in the more functional areas of their homes. But we also understand that painting your space a striking sunshine yellow or verdant green isn’t for everyone—this is why we tapped top interior designers to reveal what kitchen paint color trends their clients are actually asking for right now.
I recently completed 41 hours of continuing education and attained 3 more Designations from the National Association of Realtors to better serve my buyers and sellers!
Accredited Buyer’s Representative®
For most homebuyers, purchasing a home is the largest and most complex financial endeavor they may ever undertake. As an ABR®, I have the education, experience and skills to anticipate your needs and guide you through the home buying process. My goal is to get the best results for you, the buyer. I will help you find a home that fits your needs, style, and budget, all while providing best-in-class service.
Seller Representative Specialist
As the premier credential in seller representation, this designation is designed to elevate professional standards and enhance personal performance. As an SRS, I demonstrate the knowledge and skills essential for seller advocacy, and represent a global community of REALTORS® who use their advanced training and expertise to go above and beyond their seller’s expectations.
Seniors Real Estate Specialist®
Navigating the real estate market as a senior has unique challenges and opportunities. Whether downsizing, relocating, or adjusting to new life circumstances, an SRES® can make a significant difference. I bring specialized knowledge tailored to the over-50 market, ensuring your transaction is handled with expertise and empathy.
This graph shows how the price of homes have evolved over the last 30 years in a few key counties in the Pacific Northwest.
For many years, NWMLS has been tracking a variety of metrics each month in counties within its service area. One of these monthly metrics is Median Sale Price, which is the middle point in the price distribution of homes sold that month, meaning half of the sold properties were priced higher, and half were priced lower. Median Sale Price is considered a more accurate representation of the market than average sale price, as it is less affected by outliers.
Your home never gets a second chance to make a first impression with prospective homebuyers – and fall is the perfect season to make that first impression unforgettable. With autumn underway, enhance your home’s exterior with fall maintenance and seasonal staging!
Here are seven ways to boost curb appeal when selling a home this fall:
While the vibrant hues of foliage add beauty to the season, fall leaves can sometimes look messy when they accumulate in your yard. Regularly raking the leaves helps maintain a tidy appearance and prevents potential damage to your lawn.
With the arrival of shorter days, it’s essential to ensure your outdoor lighting is in top shape with updated bulbs. To take lighting to the next level, consider installing stylish sconces, a weather-resistant chandelier or lanterns to create a warm welcome that starts outside.
In warmer climates, lawn care is a year-round endeavor that entails cutting grass, trimming hedges, edging walkways, maintaining flowers and more. But in colder climates, fall is when lawn care tapers off as winter looms ahead.
That said, if your home is on the market this fall, make sure to maintain a sleek yard by keeping up with tasks like lawn mowing and leaf raking. The general rule of thumb is that you can water the grass until nighttime temperatures start to dip closer to freezing, making it necessary to turn off the irrigation system.
Fall mulching offers several benefits – including insulating your soil and plant roots, which in turn can reduce stress caused by low temperatures. Plus, adding a topical layer of mulch to beds during the fall can give a refreshed look to help with curb appeal.
Seasonal decorating is a great way to impress potential buyers and create an inviting atmosphere. To spruce up the space, hang a wreath in rich autumn colors on the front door, add a fresh welcome mat, and consider implementing seasonally-specific items like pumpkins and gourds.
Flowers are another great addition to a home’s exterior, even during fall. Enhance your front porch with flowerpots or window boxes filled with fall favorites – like low-maintenance mums – in shades of orange, yellow, pink, purple and red.
Transform your front porch, patio or deck into a cozy retreat where buyers can picture themselves enjoying the season while watching the leaves fall. Stage the space with simple outdoor furniture and add a few decorative items, like weather-proof pillows.
With cooler temperatures making outdoor work more comfortable, it’s an ideal time to tackle tasks that benefit the structure’s exterior. Touch up any peeling paint on the outside of the home – and if a full paint job is needed, consider doing it before it gets too cold out. Other beneficial tasks include power washing the exterior, cleaning or replacing house numbers and polishing door hardware. These updates can help show potential buyers that your home is especially well-cared-for.
Ready to sell your home this fall? I’ll be happy to help; contact me today!
Should you stage your home before selling it? The answer is generally yes. Home staging is your chance to make buyers fall in love with your space by highlighting its best features – without a full remodel.
First impressions matter, and staging is a powerful tool that can make your property stand out. Here are four compelling reasons to consider staging your home before listing it for sale.
Home staging entails decluttering and depersonalizing, as well as rearranging furniture and décor to best compliment the space. Some people choose to upgrade furnishings, while others may hire a professional home stager who can bring in their own items.
Doing these things can instantly give the space a renovated feel, even if it isn’t newly built. This simple approach helps showcase the potential of each room and can make your home more appealing to buyers. To take it up a notch, people often repaint their walls, opting for light and neutral colors, and invest in better lighting to increase brightness throughout the home.
Staging your home can impact its sale price and can potentially benefit your return on investment. After all, when a home appears updated and well-cared for, buyers are likely to want it more.
According to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) 2023 Profile of Home Staging report:
A crucial aspect of staging your home is decluttering. Clearing out excess items enhances the visual appeal and can make each room feel larger – a concept especially helpful in smaller dwellings.
Start by optimizing floor space. Then, clear unnecessary items from countertops and store away overly-personal items or mementos. Remember that overcrowded surface areas could distract potential buyers from important features throughout the home.
The same report from NAR found that 81% of buyers’ agents said staging made it easier for a buyer to visualize the property as their future home. Staging is essential for helping these prospective buyers to forge that emotional connection, making your home feel like the backdrop for their memorable moments.
To create this bond, keep decorations simple and neutral, allowing the space to feel like a blank canvas for their future rather than a reflection of your past. Scent – adjusted with things like air fresheners and incense – is another way to evoke emotion and make buyers feel right at home.
Staging is part of an effective home-selling strategy – and by thoughtfully curating your home’s appearance, you can leave a lasting impression on buyers and help your house go from “for sale” to “sold.”
Searching for a trusted professional to help you sell your home? Contact me today!
When real estate consumers set out to buy or sell a home, they can benefit from working with a professional who has the experience to get the job done – and does so with compassion and heart. That’s why so many choose to work with a RE/MAX agent.
Curious what makes RE/MAX agents stand out? Here are six distinguishing factors.
Trustworthiness is an essential quality in a real estate professional. After all, agents are helping consumers navigate one of the largest transactions they’ll likely ever make.
RE/MAX is a leading choice when people are seeking out an agent they trust the most. For years, shoppers have voted RE/MAX as the brand with the #1 Most Trusted Real Estate Agents in the USA* and Canada**.
Production matters – and RE/MAX agents average more sales than other real estate agents.
Multiple surveys revealed that RE/MAX agents, on average, outsell other agents by more than 2 to 1 at large brokerages, based on 2022 transaction sides***. In one of these surveys – the RealTrends 500 – 2023 was the 13th consecutive year RE/MAX had earned this recognition.
This edge in agent productivity is featured in the latest RE/MAX vs. the Industry report – which ranks the results of national full-service brokerage brands in the U.S. – along with several other relevant metrics.
In today’s tech-powered world, it makes sense that the most productive industry professionals are using innovative technology tools to organize, promote, and drive their business.
When aligned with RE/MAX, agents have access to some of the industry’s top tech platforms. For example, MAX/TechSM powered by kvCORE – which includes the brand’s exclusive CRM – puts everything an agent needs in one spot and enables them to design marketing pieces, build campaigns, monitor their sphere, track resulting leads, and more. The platform is available to RE/MAX agents in the U.S, and Canada at no additional cost.
A key reason many agents join RE/MAX is for the unparalleled brand power, strengthened over more than 50 years. In their marketing, RE/MAX agents harness the power of the RE/MAX brand itself and customize high quality social media graphics, advertisements, and more, created by RE/MAX for affiliate use.
RE/MAX recently debuted its 2024 National Advertising Campaign, a comprehensive mix of content that highlights the value an experienced real estate agent brings to a transaction. The materials promoted by RE/MAX – and placed in the hands of agents – includes commercials, social media, and other creative concepts geared toward digital connection.
Having an ever-expanding toolbox of digital assets at their fingertips means RE/MAX agents can market consistently and stay in-front of existing and future customers.
RE/MAX has a presence in more than 110 countries and territories – so agents aligned with the brand are a part of an extensive network (comprised of more than 140,000 professionals) bustling with referral opportunity.
All year round, RE/MAX agents can take advantage of the RE/MAX Global Referrals Platform, which seamlessly tracks a referral from start to finish and uses an algorithm to help connect users with potential business partners. Plus, the tech hub auto-translates referrals into 50 local languages.
Another coveted international networking opportunity is the annual RE/MAX R4® convention, where agents from around the world come together for connection and education. One can’t-miss aspect of the event is the Global Referrals Exchange, a gathering where affiliates from different countries throughout the RE/MAX network celebrate their cultures and form friendships that span across borders.
In a profession rooted in community, RE/MAX agents are committed to giving back to the places they live and work. Throughout the year – and especially during the annual Global RE/MAX Week – RE/MAX agents, teams, and offices find unique ways to raise funds for those in need, partake in community clean-up initiatives, feed those who are hungry, and so much more.
Many agents support Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) Hospitals through the RE/MAX Miracle Home and Miracle Property Program, where participants make a donation on behalf of their client after a closed transaction. Best of all, the money stays local, benefitting the affiliate CMN Hospital in their area. Since 1992, RE/MAX affiliates have donated nearly $200 million to CMN Hospitals across the U.S. and Canada.
*Voted most trusted Real Estate Agency brand by American shoppers based on the BrandSpark® American Trust Study, years 2022-2024 and 2019.
**Voted most trusted Real Estate Agency brand by Canadian shoppers based on the BrandSpark® Canadian Trust Study, years 2019-2024 and 2017.
***Source: Based on 2022 transaction sides cited in three surveys of the largest participating U.S. brokerages. The 2023 RealTrends 500 includes data for 1,561 brokerages with at least 500 transaction sides each. The 2023 RISMedia Power Broker Top 1,000 and the 2022 T3 Sixty Mega 1,000 each include data for the 1,000 brokerages with the highest sales volume.
Many of you may have heard about this over the last week. Sadly there is A LOT of misinformation out there. I’ve given it a lot of thought and think that the NWMLS’s statement summarizes it best for the majority of Washington State:
“NWMLS is owned by its member real estate firms and not affiliated with NAR.
Beginning in 2019, and continuing in 2022, NWMLS made changes to its rules, forms, and processes that address the issues raised by the national litigation and outlined in the proposed settlement agreement. NWMLS’s changes enhanced transparency, consumer choice, and negotiation opportunities related to broker compensation.
NWMLS’s most recent efforts, in cooperation with Washington REALTORS®, culminated in revisions to the Washington state “Agency Law” that were effective January 1, 2024. As a result, Washington law already requires brokers to enter into a services agreement to represent a buyer, which is one of the primary “practice changes” in the proposed settlement agreement.
While NWMLS’s system of rules and forms, together with the revised Agency Law, provide both buyers and sellers with complete transparency, choice, and control of broker compensation, NWMLS and its members will continue to take advantage of every opportunity to enhance the quality of real estate brokerage services in the Northwest.”
Watch this 30 second video that highlights what Washington REALTORS® recently did to advocate for more transparency in real estate.
4/23/24 Update: Judge Bough granted the Plaintiffs’ Motion for Preliminary Approval of this agreement, which means that the settlement agreement is preliminarily approved.
Don’t hesitate to call or contact me with any questions!
Sprucing up your house’s exterior can help prospective buyers see the possibilities.
As daylight lingers longer and temperatures begin to rise, it’s evident that spring is on its way. Spring is generally a busy season for real estate, as homes hit the market after a hunkered-down winter and ahead of summer fun.
In many places, winter weather can take a toll on the exterior of a house. Before listing your home for sale this spring, consider these tips for improving curb appeal and charming prospective homebuyers.
Toward the end of winter – when snow is officially gone for good – lawns can be littered with leaves lingering from fall, as well as twigs brought down by storms. Removing them is important before starting on lawn revitalization, as debris will block seeds and nutrients from doing their job. Plus, clearing away debris makes for a much cleaner appearance.
Don’t forget to clean up flower beds or other non-grassy areas too – these places are also prone to collecting leaves. And make sure to clear out the gutters. All kinds of junk gets lodged in the gutters throughout the winter, and it can make for inefficient draining as well as a sloppy appearance. Not doing so can lead to roof leaks and other issues that could have negative repercussions on a home inspection.
Once the temperature is staying well above freezing throughout the night, it’s time to get your outside water lines and sprinklers going again. This involves turning your outdoor faucet back on – and re-starting a built-in sprinkler system if you have one. Carve out time to get the system running again before you need it – or reach out for professional assistance.
From there, assess what else your lawn needs. This could be patch-fixing, overseeding, providing nutrient-rich grass food, or aerating, among other measures. For lawns that feel beyond repair, some homeowners choose to lay down sod – which can be a steep cost – to achieve a luscious lawn in a quicker timeframe.
A fresh coat of mulch along edges and around plant beds can help a yard look cohesive. If you want to shake up your exterior color palette, try a different shade of mulch. The most common options are black, brown and red – and each one complements a home differently.
For example, red mulch provides a nice contrast against the vibrant color of plants and flowers. But, if you have a red home or brick home, the red may feel too monochromatic, making a muted brown shade a better match.
Take time to trim back trees and other plants that appear overgrown. This is especially true for large trees that canopy over a property, and smaller trees and bushes that line the house or yard.
For a well-manicured appearance, edge your walkways – especially the one leading toward the front door. These small details work together as polished curb appeal.
The physical exterior of your home could likely use some TLC following winter, too. Depending on the accumulation of dirt, it could be time to pressure wash the siding. Then, while it can be a more costly task, having the house repainted adds an element of newness and could make a substantial impact on the impression of prospective buyers.
Consider the front door, too. Give it a fresh coat of paint to correct any knicks, dings, and scratches. And for those looking to shake things up, try opting for a different color of paint – or sanding down a wooden door and covering with stain and varnish to restore its natural look.
Spring is the season where nature blossoms – so help emulate that cheery feeling as people catch a first glimpse of your home. Add a pop of color to the front porch with colorful planters framing the stairs or door. Or, to fill a larger space, try hanging planters from the ceiling of the porch.
Plants and flowers are a great way to add bits of color here and there. Just be sure to water them regularly, and according to their species, to ensure they stay vibrant all season long.
Ready to sell your home this spring? Contact me today!
Managing The Real Estate Details 