Bipartisan bill might boost the US real estate market

My client in Korea told me about a news he read from Korean media that might boost American real estate market. Of course I was intrigued so I googled to see what it is about and found LA Times article: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-visas-home-buyers-20111021,0,6715779.story "Two U.S. senators have introduced a bill that would allow foreigners who spend at least $500,000 on residential property to obtain visas allowing them to live in the United States."" The legislation would create a new homeowner visa that would be renewable every three years, but the proposal would not put them on a path to citizenship. To be eligible, a person would have to buy a primary residence of at least $250,000 and spend a total of $500,000 on residential...

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Posted in: Real Estate

Pumpkin time

Pumpkin time is here. I go to Stoney Ridge Farm in Everson every year on my kids' school field trip. It is the best place in Whatcom county! When you are done taking a wagon ride, picking apples and pumpkins, having fun in corn maze, feeding goats, checking out queen bee & animals, taking millions of pictures with all the cute display of pumpkins, make sure to drop by Rusty donut shop for mini donuts and coffee. Yum! After I dropped my camera the other day, Hubby came home and he made it to work again(I hate when that happens :). Well, it works but is not taking great pictures. I'm not sure if it has more to do with cloudy weather and wrong auto setting I had on but let's just blame on the camera for...

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Posted in: Bellingham event

Whatcom Artist Studio Tour

Have you checked out any artist studios? If you haven't yet, check out a few of your favorites. It runs one more weekend. If you don't have time to go around, you can have a taste of each artist's art at Blue Horse Gallery downtown. We went to David Ridgway's on Saturday. How I loved his paintings. The vibrant color of local scenary and architenture. I really had hard time leaving his studio. Some day... ...

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Posted in: Bellinghaml event

Bringing outside in

Bringing outside in adds so much to the room. If you don't have amazing water, mountain or city view to speak of, no worries. Nice tree or a little side yard view is wonderful too. modern living room design by los angeles architect Ehrlich Architects contemporary living room design contemporary dining room design by vancouver interior designer Claudia Leccacorvi modern kitchen design by other metros architect Ogawa Fisher Architects traditional patio design by seattle architect Bosworth Hoedemaker contemporary bathroom design by seattle interior designer Garret Cord Wer...

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New addition

I brought this home a while ago because it looked so sad and lonely sitting in a curb all alone. I gave a good sanding, a couple of coat of Benjamin Moore elephant tusk, put Minwax Wipe on poly to protect the top, changed the hardware. Voila! I'm using it as a bed side table so I can put all the magazines, books, computer and whatever I want by the bed. Sorry for the grainy photo that my phone took. I dropped my Nikon and broked the lens and I think I broke the camera too as it is not working with the other lens either. I'm still so mad at myse...

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Posted in: DIY

My first log cabin listing

A good friend of mine is selling a house. I had a previlege of staging their home for professional photoshoot yesterday.  I wanted the house to look the best so I volunteered to do the staging last minute. I can't help it sometimes. It was kind of impromptu so it wasn't really well thought out or anything but still, the difference is so ovbious. It is a log cabin and I wanted it to exude the charm and warmth of everything this house has to offer. My favorite part of this house is radiant heat everywhere and the wok room. I usually like open floor plan but having a separate place for high temperature cooking is divine. Gotta love that. It is a private heaven situated in 21 acre lot! Photographer, Lyle from Jansma...

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Posted in: Real Estate

From dream home file

exterior design by seattle architect Greif Architects / LIVING ARCHITECTURE How perfect it would be to have a special place like this to meditate and do pottery. A girl can dream rig...

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Posted in: Dream home

My father-in-law is visiting. We hit Farmer's market, Bite of Bellingham and Lynden fair in one day. Oh my, what a day. Here are some photos to share. ...

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How low it can go.

Can you believe these rates? I am going to buy another house to get this rate. Just kidding. Don't miss this opportunity to refinance my friend. Contact Cathy Digby at 360-738-7857. ...

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Posted in: Interest rate

I am back

I have been having fun renovating the house I bought in Seattle. I have been going down almost every week for a couple of months to renovate it. That explains my absence in this blog world a little bit. As the project is winding down, I'm almost back to my normal life. I bought a house before but buying a house as a real estate agent taught me invaluable lessons. It gave me client's perspective of what they go through during a transaction, which taught me how I can support and serve them better. Also, it was a short sale purchase and I gained a ton of indispensable knowledge on short sales. During renovation, I learned a ton about house construction itself. I am acting as a general contractor and project manager and I...

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Bellingham is number 5- Housing Markets That Will Rise Most This Year

Wall Street Journal has a crystal ball that I wish I had. They ranked Bellingham #5 of housing markets that will rise most this year. And I didn't know Bellingham is suburb of Seattle. I had to laugh. But I'm excited to hear that they see the value I see in Bellingham. 5. Bellingham, Washington > Projected Price Increase Through 2011: +4.9% > Unemployment Rate: 9% > Median Family Income: $59,000 > Vacancy Rate: 11.4%­ > Drop From Peak: -13.8%Bellingham, like Bremerton, is suburb of Seattle, which allows residents access to the city’s job market. Bellingham has several major hospitals and universities, and the abundance of steady institutional jobs has kept the population relatively economically stable. The city was one of the...

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