Traveler Days in Union, WA - 2010

The month of May will be an exciting month for the people of Union. Union Tourism Association (UTA) is launching its first ever Traveler Days in May. As an active member of the association, PING Real Estate is participating in these events along with all the other business owners in Union. Ping Real Estate is also next door to the new office of Union Tourism Association Visitor Information Center so we look forward to seeing you at the grand opening event on May 1 as well as all the other events for the upcoming Traveler Days. Below are some of the schedules posted in the March UTA newsletter.

WEEKEND TWO - May 1 & 2

GRAND OPENING - Union Tourism Association Visitor Information Center - Sat 11AM
A major milestone, the Union Tourism Association will be opening a dedicated Visitor Information Center at Union Square, Saturday morning May 1. Join us at 11AM for a formal ribbon cutting ceremony and to tour the new space. The center is being outfitted to provide not only a wide range of visitor information on dining, lodging, recreational and retail opportunities in our area, but also as a gallery space that will feature a rotating display of local artists' work and showcase Union's rich arts history.

SEASON OPENING - Hood Canal Open Market - Sat 1-7PM
The long-standing collaboration between our local artist community and Robin Hood Village will enter an exciting new stage with the launch of the Hood Canal Open Market, a variety market featuring live music and spoken word performances, farm fresh produce, art, crafts, collectibles and more, every Saturday during the height of the season! (Want to participate? Contact howard@leggettartstudios.com.)

Pub Poetry Slam/Spoken Word Performance - Sat 7PM
The spoken word version of a musical open mic night, this evening will feature a range of local poets, actors and story-tellers sharing anecdotes, literature, poems, classic radio plays and stories in a lively spoken format at the wonderfully intimate Robin Hood Pub beginning at 7PM.

Culinary Arts / Wine Class Series - Sun 11:30AM - 1PM - 2:30PM
Any excuse to visit the remarkable private estate of The Bend at Hood Canal is exciting. But on Sunday, May 2 a limited number of folks will have the opportunity to participate in a truly exciting series of cooking and wine classes in The Bend's remarkable main kitchen. The first class, beginning at 11:30AM, will combine the culinary skills of Chef Mike Holbein of Robin Hood with the organic local produce of Highwater Farms in a basic skills class that will introduce participants to the fundamentals of planning a meal on a theme, carrying that theme through sides and separate courses, as well as particulars such as gauging proper doneness, plating and presentation. The 11:30 class will explore these topics on a meat-based menu; the 2:30 class will explore the same concepts through a seafood-based menu. In between, award-winning vintners Lloyd and Ann Anderson of Walter Dacon Winery will teach a class on the basics of wine tasting including tips on distinguishing separate notes in a wine, proper glassware and more. Price for each individual class is $25 per person per class and registration is limited (proceeds benefit the Union Tourism Association). To register reply to this email (or send an email to info@visitunion.com).

Cameo Boutique Open House - Sat & Sun 10AM-5PM
The 2008 Best Ladies Boutique in the Northwest continues its Traveler Days celebration with another two days of free wine tastings, and will feature writer Valerie Johnson who will be on-hand autographing her book on Saturday, May 1 from noon to 3PM; as well as author and historian Mike Fredson who will sign copies of his book Sunday, May 2 at 11AM.

Lady Alderbrook Historic Water Tour - Sun 2PM
Join local historian (and fifth generation Unionite) Mike Fredson for a cruise around the Great Bend and a lecture on our community's rich history. Produced by the McReavy House Museum of Hood Canal, the lovely Lady Alderbrook will depart from the Alderbrook Resort & Spa dock at 2PM for a two-hour cruise (you'll want to arrive early to reserve your seat) and includes cocktail snacks and a no-host bar. Tickets are $50 per person and are available by contacting Howard Leggett at 898-1717 or Dana Porter at 898-0101. (Proceeds benefit the McReavy House Museum of Hood Canal.)


WEEKEND THREE - May 8 & 9

Artist Open Studio/Tour of Lodging Event - Sat & Sun 10AM-6PM
Over a 15 local artists, including watercolorists and oil painters, a scultpor, native artists, photographers and more are participating in this year's first combined open studio/tour of lodging event. Designed to showcase both the area's rich arts community and the wide variety of lodging options available for an overnight visit to the south shore, four separate locations will each feature a unique and carefully chosen subset of both! At the Cameo Boutique Cottage the tour will feature information on the variety of local lodging options well suited for romantic weekends. At the Nordstrom Great Hall at Harmony Hill Retreat Center will be information about lodging and sites appropriate for weddings, family reunions and larger special events. And at the new Alderbrook Golf Clubhouse will be information on family-friendly and activities-based lodging options. All three locations will also host a number of local artists who will be displaying their work (and some who will be actively working on new work) on site during the tour. You'll want to start your tour at the fourth location, the Union Tourism Association Visitor Information Center at Union Square, which will feature information on all the artists and lodging institutions participating plus a collection of individual works donated by the participating artists in support of the UTA's efforts!

Traveler Days Cocktail Party & Art Auction - Sat Time TBA
Saturday evening join us at the Alderbrook Golf Clubhouse for a finale special event to raise funds for the Union Tourism Association's efforts in our community. This exciting group effort involving a wide variety of UTA member organizations will feature a special cocktail and hors d'oeuvres menu assembled by the culinary artists at the Robin Hood specially to accompany the works of art to be auctioned off. Those works, donated in support of the UTA by the artists participating in the open studio tour, will be auctioned to raise funds that will in turn be used to further the UTA's mission: to build tourism in our community in ways that support and nourish Union's unique culture and character. Save the date!

Harmony Hill Mother's Day Brunch & Plant Sale - Sun 10AM-4PM
In celebration of Mother's Day, the remarkable hospitality crew at Harmony Hill Retreat Center is assembling a special brunch menu which will be served on site just as Harmony Hill's renowned gardens come into bloom. Featuring two seatings (one at 10AM, the second at 11:30AM) the cost is $25 per person ($10 for children 12 and under) and advance reservations are required (and can be made by calling 898-2363). Harmony Hill will also be launching its first annual plant sale, featuring flower and vegetable starts that day until 4PM - an excellent opportunity to visit the Hill and tour the gardens just as they're taking off for the season!

Will mortgage interest rate go up later this year 2010?

I have been getting a lot of updates lately from the mortgage industry about their speculations that interest rates might go up later this year after the Fed's stop buying mortgage backed securities on March 31, 2010. I just received the Realtor magazine April issue. It predicts higher interest rate. It says "The Fed's commitment ends March 31 - and while the full impact won't be known for several months, it's almost certain to cause rates to rise. NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun anticipates an increase of 30 basis point (100 basis points equals a 1 percent change), but he notes that home sales shouldn't be heavily impacted as long as the economy keeps growing and jobs are created. Of course, rates could inch up independently of this action, because with economic growth comes increased demand for loans".

For more details of the Fed's plan to end mortgage intervention on March 31, see the link here. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/17/business/17fed.html

USDA Loans Will Be Out Of Funds Soon

I received an email from a senior Wells Fargo loan consultant today regarding USDA loans. In short, she informed us the news that USDA loans will be out of funds soon. For those of you who have never heard of USDA loans, below is the brief definition I found online. You can also visit the USDA official site: http://www.usda.gov/.

"A USDA Guaranteed Loan is Government insured 100% purchase loan. These Loans are only offered in rural area's and serviced by direct lenders that meet federal guideline's."

Mason County in Washington state is considered a rural area. Many of the homes on the market for sale qualify for USDA loans so this news will affect many home buyers in Mason County who want to take advantage of the USDA loans in purchasing your future homes.

USDA will be out of fund and will not be giving conditional commitment to funding....... so no new applications are being taken at this time....

Please ready and take action....

Every year USDA runs out of money for their fundings and normally you are not affected by this however, this year is very different. The USDA Section 502 guaranteed Rural Housing Program will have exhausted there 2010 fiscal funds by the end of April. The USDA would need to receive about 150 million in funding to be able to continue funding loans for the rest of fiscal year 2010.
In past years USDA has appropriated funds from other areas to make up for the shortfall in funding dollars giving lenders the oppurtunity to continue to fund USDA loans. Why is this year any different then past years? USDA is removing the “subject to receipt of appropriated funds” from their conditional commitments meaning there is no guarantee that lenders will be able to guarantee the loan and fund it. Why are they doing this? The money usually runs out around the end of the government’s fiscal year which is September 30th and USDA basically tells everyone we’ll get you’re funding commitments either this year or next. Since the money is running out so early in the fiscal year USDA is not sure where the money will come from therefore will not put “subject to receipt of appropriated funds” on their conditional commitments. Last year the money ran out in March but the stimulus provided the gap funding to carry the program thru to the end of the year but this year there is no stimulus money.

What can you do as a Realtor, Builder, Developer or loan officer? You need to contact your US Congressman, US Senator, professional lobby and employer to get them working on a solution because if this happens many homeowners will be left out on their loan closing because it simply won’t happen. The USDA loan program is a wonderful program for Rural America. The program is ran very efficiently and the default rate on USDA loans are much lower than FHA or other financing programs.

Union Visitor Information Center and Our Community Credit Union Coming to Union Sqaure

Here are the two pieces of exciting news for Union residents coming to this Spring.

- The new Union Visitor Information Center office is coming to the office next door to my office on May 1. Union Tourist Association is sponsoring the Information Center.

- "Our Community Credit Union" is coming to the corner building in the same square in a couple of weeks. The ribbon cutting ceremony for the Grand Opening of the Credit Union will be on April 7.

February 2010 Mason County Residential Real Estate Sales Statistics

What's happening:
Improving consumer confidence and a looming deadline for homebuyer tax credits are helping to boost activity. Both pending sales and closed sales in February outperformed year-ago totals . We are entering what is traditionally our busiest home selling season. Prices, while showing signs of stabilizing, still lagged year-ago figures. Move-up buyers are accounting for some of the surge in activity. Brokers credit the combination of a $6,500 tax incentive for qualified repeat buyers and thawing jumbo loan market as factors in spurring activity for February.

Market prediction:
We can see and hear the rumblings of pent-up demand from buyers, adding spring and summer sales to outpace last year because there are such good price values in the market. They are reminding buyers of the possibility of rising mortgage interest rates due to the Federal Reserve’s plan to stop buying mortgages by the end of March. Earlier in the week, the state Employment Security Department reported the state’s economy "picked up some steam in January," adding an estimated 12,400 jobs the first monthly gain since November 2008. As the peak real estate season is approaching, we see several encouraging signs. "Homes are more affordable, mortgage rates are at all-time lows, and employment in the state appears to be on the rise. All signs point to a strong spring." one broker added.

Below is the residential sales statistics at our Mason County local level for the month of February, 2010.

New Listings:
- Listing Inventory: Total 140 listings, down 5% comparing to last month, up 26% comparing to the same month last year.
- Average Days on the Market: 152 days
- Median Listing Price: $224,975, up 2% comparing to last month, down 5% comparing to the same month last year.

Pending Sale Listings:
- Total 54 pending listings, down 4 % comparing to last month, down 7% comparing to the same month last year.
- Average Days on the Market: 125 days
- Median Pending Sale Price: $147,225, down 13% comparing to last month, down 8% comparing to the same month last year.

Sold Listings:
- Total 39 Sold Listings: down 19% comparing to last month, up 95% comparing to the same month last year.
- Average Days on the Market: 118 days
- Median Sold Price: $145,000, down 9% comparing to last month, down 2% comparing to the same month last year.

(Above report compiled by PING Real Estate. Data source: NWMLS published data today Narch 4).

Below is the statistical summary by the counties statewide for Feb, 2010: