Seattle is a "wealth island" with encouraging future expectations.

A "wealth island" is a 24-hour a day city with a diverse job base and good potential growth prospects. Seattle will have a high demand for more apartment housing and the commercial growth prospects look good. Personally I've seen rent rates increase with low vacancies so am not surprised that the forecast looks good. Click here to read the entire article.

A tale of two real estate markets; the luxury market and the rest of us.

Though it says the luxury market is going up and the rest of the market is going down it's not a complete picture. In Seattle the most desirable areas have low inventory and some homes are getting multiple offers. Just ask my clients who have been outbid on 2 homes already. Still, it's an interesting story. Click here to see the entire article.

The mortgage interest tax break is under scrutiny.

There is a lot of talk about eliminating the tax break for mortgage interest deductions. This will certainly impact those who get the most benefit, namely the younger, higher-wage-earner homeowners who buy a more expensive home with a higher mortgage. I think eliminating this for 2nd/3rd and investment properties wouldn't be such a bad idea. It's funny in the article that all those quoted are getting this break currently. Click here to read the entire article.

King county sales up more than 30% but median prices hardly move.

Single family home sales are up more than 30% August-over-August but the median prices remain flat. Eventually the increased sales will translate into higher prices. The slower luxury market (over $1m) has also kept the median prices down. Condos continue to struggle and now is a great time to get a good deal on a condo. Click here to see the full article.

Home prices up in the Seattle area for June 2011!

Case-Shiller reported home prices up in the King/Snohomish/Pierce counties combined, which is fantastic news, especially considering the challenges the outer areas are facing with Short-Sales and Foreclosures. All but one of the 20 metro areas that Case-Shiller watches had increases in June. Click here for the entire article.

Walkability score for Seattle, how we compare.

Seattle ranks #6 in "walkability" of the biggest 50 cities in the US. Our score is 74 while the US average is 43. Not too shabby. Click here to see the entire article.

Why it is a good time to buy.

Here are some compelling reasons as stated in the Wall Street Journal. I also think that for lifestyle reasons it's a great time for some people to buy and still not good for others, despite any facts about what is happening in the market. Click here for the full Wall Street Journal article.