As a real estate agent I often encourage my clients to read as much current news about northwest real estate as they can. So for those of you wanting to educate yourself about the current market here’s my top 10 recommendations:

1. The LA Times on Seattle’s Market
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-na-boom31dec31,1,2460412.story

SEATTLE — It’s the kind of house that a year or two ago would have been snapped up in days: a refurbished rambler in a woodsy residential neighborhood minutes from downtown.

The asking price: $559,000.But after seven weeks, Kristen and Al Dittmaier have not received a single offer on their Wedgwood home.

“I really believed there would be no problem selling,” Kristen Dittmaier said. “But the whole feel of the market has changed. We might have to drop the price.” 

2. The Seattle Times talks about the slowdown in the Seattle Market
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2004099309_reanxiety30.html

Until recently, Seattle-area homeowners could bask in the knowledge that their houses would appreciate handsomely. Median home prices rose 16 percent in 2005 and 21 percent in 2006, a Seattle Times analysis found.

When this year’s final numbers are tallied, the median annual increase will probably be more like 2 or 3 percent, Seattle real-estate economist Matthew Gardner says. That puts Seattle ahead of many cities; still, it’s the lowest appreciation rate in roughly a decade.

3.  Seattle Area foreclosesure rate, “Under Control” according to Default Research, Inc.
http://www.pr.com/press-release/66406

According to Default Research (www.defaultresearch.com), Pierce, Snohomish and King Counties had 1.11 percent, .70 percent and .49 percent of households enter some phase of the foreclosure process in the last 12 months. The Seattle averages for homes in foreclosure are far below other regions in the Default Research coverage area, such as Southern California and Phoenix, had approximately two or three percent of their households in foreclosure.

“Washington State foreclosures were under control in 2007,” said Serdar Bankaci, President/CEO of Default Research. “Seattle dodged the foreclosure bullet primarily because there was less speculative investing, a high median income rate compared with home prices, and not as much volatility in home prices.”

4. Seattle region’s economy poised to capitalize on weaker dollar, avoid recession.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/345513_regionaleconomy01.html?source=mypi

Among a handful of varying business leaders and economists, the consensus seems to be cautious optimism for now. Luckily for Seattle, the economy is different — more global and more diverse — this time around. Business leaders hope that the new economy, plus a weak dollar that makes airplanes and software more attractive to customers abroad, will save us from a three-year funk like the one that struck in 2001.

“We won’t see anything like the nation is seeing,” predicted Jim Warjone, chairman and chief executive of Port Blakely Cos. “Seattle is in a wonderful position because it is truly at the edge of the global market.”

The Pacific Northwest economy is increasingly tied to growth in Asia, including China, which has shown no signs of stopping, said Warjone, whose portfolio of businesses includes real estate, timber and international trade.

If anyone wins in the shakeout, it will be the companies that have embraced globalism — those whose health is least subject to domestic ups and downs, economists said.

So far, companies in this region are still hiring, and the average wage increases are outpacing inflation, said Steve Leahy, Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce president.

5. A Portland writer predicts 2008, and makes a great point.
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=47551

Third, homebuyers need to understand that real estate is MARKET driven. And the “market” is local . . . not National! While such things are averages, and stats love to be broadcast on the evening news, it’s not a phenom with foreclosures everywhere. In fact, the Metro Portland market hasn’t seen plummets as other markets have. Housing STILL costs less then other West Coast markets (Seattle, San Diego, LA, San Francisco) for example.

6. More from Oregon, only three Cities avoid the national housing crunch.
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.cms.support.viewStory.cls?cid=42175&sid=5&fid=1

Only three cities reported rising prices: Charlotte, N.C., Seattle and Portland. The Eugene-Springfield area’s market resembles those in the bigger Northwest cities — inventories of unsold houses are up, but prices have held steady.

7. Deals on the rise, outside of Seattle area.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2004097138_reyearender30.html

“There are deals to be had depending on where you are. If you’re in Seattle and Bellevue, there are not that many,” Anderson says. “But in the hinterlands, people are offloading inventory like crazy.”

8. Seattle Area will slow not Crash.
http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2007/12/31/focus12.html

King County’s housing market will maintain its “return to earth” trajectory next year, but the region also will continue to sidestep the collapse that has stung many other areas of the country, experts say.

9.  A great blog primer on real estate agent commissions, and how agents work with brokers.
http://agentgenius.com/?p=706 

10. What’s the biggest news for 2008 in Commercial Real Estate around the Puget Sound, check out this forum in February. http://seattle.bizjournals.com/seattle/event/4173