The quality of craftsmanship and details in some vintage homes never ceases to amaze me. This home has the original marmoleum. Sixty years old and in perfect condition. It was coved up the walls and cut to lay perfectly around the kitchen cabinets. A large swath of glass block by the entry way allows both light and privacy. A simple yet cunning closet opens both on the main hallway and inside the main hall bathroom. Besides being built like a ship, with nary a sway in the main floor hardwoods, the layout both up and down are extremely liveable. And, lucky for this house, a New Seasons decided to build less than two blocks away. No wonder this home had multiple over-asking offers within days.
Raleigh Park MidCentury
This new listing couldn't get much better in terms of floor plan- a rare find, this 3100 square feet one level holds a great room and kitchen which looks out to the large private backyard on a completely flat almost half-acre lot, with
deck and sport court. The four bedrooms are on a totally separate wing of the home, so you can entertain friends on one end, and simultaneously find peace and quiet in the other. There is also another family area with built in desks that would make a great study area or media room. While a few of the baths could use some updating, the home is truly move-in ready. $700,000
Raleigh Park
Buy this mid century home and almost assure yourself a spot in Atomic Ranch magazine. Architect designed, it is sited perfectly on almost an acre lot of beautiful grounds, very naturally landscaped with a lovely creek bubbling through the lower part of the property. The home itself is almost 100% intact from it's 1957 birthday, and has a northwest regional, and seems to be an homage to architect John Yeon. The home oozes with potential, and one would hope the new owner will be respectful to the homes heritage while making it more livable. I envision vaulting the ceiling and allowing much more light in, and updating the radiant oil heating system for a start. A very special home that I would love to show to you. $675,000
Street of Eames Private Dinner
Street of Eames has kicked off it's fund raising this year with a private dinner at the John and Karen Hoke residence. Their ongoing fundraising plan, as the Street of Eames wrapped up their final tour this year, is to raise funds through private dinners at architecturally important homes as well as lectures.
The Hoke's home was designed by award winning architect, Jeff Kovel of Skylab Architecture among whose designs include the Departure Lounge and Restaurant and the Doug Fir.
Dinner will be multi-course and wine paired courtesy of Naomi Pomeroy of Beast restaurant. Naomi is a 2010 finalist for the James Beard Foundation Best Chef: Northwest and is featured in "O, The Oprah Magazine" in the April 20 2010 issue. The restaurant describes itself as "frank in our appreciation of meat", and Naomi caused a bit of a stir with an advertisement that featured her cradling an expired pig. It was a beautiful picture that was not appreciated by all.
Just a few tickets were left as of yesterday, with tickets costing $450 per person, with most of the ticket price tax deductible.
A more affordable evening an June 2nd at Rejuvenation features architect Saul Zaik at 6:00.
Presenting an Offer
Many buyers and sellers are unaware of a quaint custom in real estate known as "presenting an offer."
More often than not, in today's world when a buyer's agent writes an offer with their client to purchase a property, the offer is then faxed or emailed rather than presenting the offer in person to the listing agent. Our industry has changed with the prevalence electronic communications just like so many other professions have. And why would one present an offer in person- doesn't the offer speak for itself?
I would say- absolutely not. Many opportunities are lost when not presenting in person. Ideally the buyer's agent should present to both the seller and their agent. If this isn't possible, than many times the listing agent is willing to meet with the buyer's agent. In either case, this a great time to build a relationship, and allow both parties to ask pertinent questions as they come up in real time.
Case in point- I recently took some clients to see a house that I found out was going to be listed and put on the MLS that very day. The listing agent agreed that I could show my clients through the home before that, in fact- right when he was meeting with the seller getting final signatures. My clients loved the mid-century home and shared with me immediately that they wanted to write an offer.
What could be better news to a buyers agent? Except that my buyers were selling their home to get into this home- and they had just experienced a fail sale two days before. This meant that now their offer would be completely contingent on the sale of their home- a home that wasn't even pending and in need of a buyer in a tough market. My buyers needed to know that to have an offer accepted with this contingency was a long shot- a very long shot.
The seller agreed to let me present the offer with her broker present, and I went through the terms with her page by page. My clients had decided to write an contract with very generous terms and the seller expressed a lot of enthusiasm for the offer. The seller and I struck up a friendly repoire. When I shared the contingency, she asked me how saleable my buyer's home was. I had the photos at the ready, and luckily the home was picture perfect. The listing agent was impressed that the home had been pre-inspected. The seller verbally accepted my client's offer that evening and we got the formal acceptance the following day.
I am positive this would not have been the outcome had I faxed the offer over. The listing agent would have been prudent to advise his client against a contingent offer and would probably have advised his client to put the house on the open market. As my principal broker shared with me once- "Why hitch your wagon to a slower moving wagon?"
With a good presentation, and a relationship built between all the parties, the personal touch can make all the difference. It allowed all concerned to ask questions and share information- a benefit to the seller as well.
The truly happy ending? My buyers got another offer on their home within two weeks and now they are living in their long shot.