The past week has been amazing both globally and locally. First off it has been stunning to see the people led uprisings occurring in the middle east. Nationally the budget deficit debates in our own country are just heating up. Here in Seattle we were all left feeling stunned by the decision of prosecutors to not pursue criminal charges against Ian Burk the police officer who fatally shot the Native American wood carver. And just when you feel the ground under you stabilize the Divas walked up to On the Boards under the rising full moon to be blown away by Kidd Pivot’s Dark Matter. Whew!

Other News ->

Photo courtesy of Glenn Roberts: www.glennaroberts.com/ravenna-park-north

Roosevelt Neighborhood Held Hostage By Developer: A very revealing story was released thanks to the Roosiehood Neighborhood Blog about developer Hugh Sisley and his boarded up buildings in the Roosevelt neighborhood. According to a recent PI article via the Rossiehood Blog “Sisley has a vision for the “maturing” Roosevelt neighborhood, including finding the “right developer” to take advantage of future light rail, potential “increased zoning” and the “more than 150,000 square feet and more than four city blocks available for development.”

The neighborhood will drastically be changed by this huge development. It will increase traffic, change the usability of the hood and all of this without any account of the hood’s character and charm. In the mean time Sisley is holding the hood ransom to move forward with the development by boarding up and putting ugly chain link fences around the properties. Unless the community agrees with the developer’s zoning changes the neighborhood will be continued to be blighted by these abandoned buildings. Home values will be impacted and true modern urban design progress will not occur! Read more on the Ravenna-Roosevelt Zoning Issues Blog->
If you care about development and design in Seattle PLEASE speak up and follow @rossiehood on twitter and check out the Rossiehood Neighborhood Blog.

BCH's Coleman Park Cottages

Team Diva Real Estate has joined forces with some of our favorite Real Estate mavens in Seattle to bring you a rare look at a fabulous sampling of Green Built modern homes in the Central Area. There is still room left to join the tour with the Divas, Dararith Marith, Kimberly & Mark Hobbs and others as we bring you homes by some of our favorite Green Built projects. Read more on the Diva blog after the jump ->

Homes on Display

gProjects urbanTrees

Although the Built Green standard was developed in 1999 there were still not a host of builders jumping on the band wagon in the early years. It wasn’t until 2005 that I (Diva Kim) finally sold my first truly green home. It was a rare breed of townhouse tucked behind the Columbia City Library. My clients took one look and fell in love. This was the first encounter I had with Graham Black and gProjects. Beyond the use of reclaimed woods and recycled materials, these homes were unique in that they were designed to foster community – not typical of most new construction of the day. I think the pretty communal courtyard sprinkled with edible plants and salvaged bricks was the clincher for all of us.

This Saturday at the Divas Green Built Home Tour we will feature another one of gProjects developments. Graham, in cahoots with b9 architects, redeveloped a dejected lot in the Central Area and created urbanTrees – 11 towhouses & live/work spaces collected around a central tree lined communal courtyard where cars and people can gather in harmony. We love this project and have shown it off to many a client and friend. Beyond the green aspects, sustainable custom design work and hip location, these homes are actually affordable as well.

Here’s the rub – there is only one live/work home left! So come and check it out this Saturday with the Divas before it gets snapped up. Read more info about the Central Area Green Built tour after the jump ->

Judkins Park Modern Digs

Greenleaf Construction is up there on The Divas list of primo green builders in Seattle. We have sold a number of their projects to our Diva Dwellers and we seek out each new project with relish. We love their quirky style and their bold use of color and materials. Plus, these folks strive to design high efficiency modern green homes that are fun as well as functional. That adds up to a Diva Five Star rating!

As part of our Green Built Home Tour this Saturday, Feb 19th, the Divas will have open a fantastic Judkins Park Modern Town Home built by Greenleaf Construction. We sold this fab home in 2008 to some of our fav Diva Dwellers. The unique design and lay out of this project, plus the fact that it is certified Built Green, is what attracted our clients to the home.  Although we are sad to see our friends trek off to California, we are excited to bring this cool home back on the market.

Here is a little pre-tour preview but trust us – you will want to see this home live and in living color this Saturday if you can. Read more about the tour after the jump->

Built Green Tour: Jackson Park Green Modern Home

Team Diva Real Estate loves discovering new Built Green developers and those who are pushing the envelope on modern design here in Seattle. One of the striking elements found in a Benjamin Custom Homes is the ample storage and livability of their developments. They are really well constructed and take the time out to think through how the average person would live in one of their spaces. The Divas are proud to have them on our Built Green Tour happening this Saturday, February 19, 2011.

More Info about Benjamin Custom Homes
Benjamin Custom Homes build energy efficient and environmentally friendly modern home with high end finish detail. Benjamin Custom Homes team includes, the award winning design team of Julian Weber Architecture & Design and effective acquisition, marketing, and sales force of Diva Pal Dararith (Darith) Marith and Coldwell Banker Bain.

Benjamin Custom Homes offer modern efficient eco-friendly homes at an affordable price. BCH incorporates functional open floor plans with high end finish details. Benjamin Custom Homes uses site friendly designs to assist in minimizing the developments impact to the site and the adjacent neighbors.

Standard Building Elements and Design Finishes Found in a Benjamin Custom Home:

• Gas-fired tankless instant hot water on demand
• In-floor hydronic radiant heating
• Pental chroma slab counter tops
• Flat paneled oak cabinets
• Energy star appliances
• Anne Sacks tile
• Dual flush toilets
• Multi-head European shower system
• Rain screen exterior lining system
• Sustainable flooring materials
• High efficiency dual pain awning windows
• Wall hung vanity
• Solid core doors
• Grass-crete system
• Rain barrels storm water retention system
• Cutting edge design

Urban Trees Project - CD Green Built tour

The debate about the long term value of Green Built homes is ongoing. Many have stated that in a down market people are less likely to spend more money for a home that was built to high environmental standards. Team Diva Real Estate has personally found that our clients are more likely to purchase a Green Built property over your standard beige box new construction. But a personal perspective does not prove long term value.

The Divas decided to look at the Central District, which has been at the forefront of Green Built construction in Seattle, to see if our gut feeling and the fine taste of our clients wins out over the naysayers. We took data from the MLS and looked at all of the homes that sold in the Central District in the past six months. Eliminated short sales and foreclosures. Compared the square footage sale price of the traditionally built homes to Green Built and found that there was a significant increase in value!

Price Per Square Foot – Green Built
$232 / sf

Price Per Square Foot – Non Green Built
$218 / sf

Green Built properties sell for around $18 more a square foot than traditionally built homes!

Green Built Central District Tour
See for yourself the fabulous work that builders and individuals are creating in the Central District at our Team Diva Green Built Tour next Saturday, February 19, 2011. More info after the jump->

Happy Valentines day everyone! Hope you and your sweetie or your best pal or your pet or whoever you love in this world are taking time out to remember and cherish that love! xoxo

The Big Story: Seattle Times Article Utilizing Zillow Data
The Seattle Times article we reported about last week continues to come up with clarifications and fact checking. in the story the headline stated “A Third of Mortgaged Seattle-area homes worth less than what’s owed”.  The story has been updated to clarify that 34.3 percent of homes with mortgages, not 34.3 percent of all homes, are estimated to be ‘underwater’ in the Seattle metro area. Approximately 27% of all Seattle homes are free and clear, which was not considered in the original article. The Seattle Times retracted the headline the next day. See our response to the Seattle Times article on our Diva Blog post and the corresponding comments from Zillow->

The Wall Street Journal blog had more clarifying information regarding the methodology that Zillow utilized in developing the data that Seattle times used as the basis for their article. The article is great look at how these valuations are created and exactly the difficulty in developing a blanket assumption regarding the street value of one’s home. Here is an excerpt from the article “Zillow assumes none of the mortgage principal has been repaid, that initial lines of credit are fully tapped and that no additional ones have been taken. Because the first two assumptions tend to inflate the underwater count, while the third tends to deflate it, the company hopes any errors largely cancel each other out. The alternative of making assumptions about each home, “becomes fairly tenuous,” said Stan Humphries, Zillow’s chief economist”. Read the entire article at the WSJ Blog->

Other News
Intiman Theatre Facing Closure: For anyone who loves the work Intiman has produced this is indeed sad news ->

Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac: White House proposes eliminating the federally backed mortgage giants->

Bye Bye Super Low Mortgage Rates: We have seen this developing in the last couple of months and are not surprised that we are now heading towards “normal” rates->

FIUTS CulturalFest - Travel the World in a Day!

Starting this afternoon CultrualFest takes flight. Team Diva Real Estate is super excited to be one of the sponsors of this years FIUTS CulturalFest. As many of you know all three Divas host UW international students and support the programming of this very special organization. Diva Kim was selected to serve on the committee to produce CulturalFest. Diva Kim and the rest of the committee have put together a really special event for everyone to enjoy. Join us as we travel the world in a day!

What is Cultural Fest?
CulturalFest is a true celebration of the world’s diversity! Produced by the Student Board of the Foundation for International Understanding Through Students (FIUTS), CulturalFest is an opportunity to explore the many cultures of the University of Washington through music, dance, food, activities and more from over 35 countries!

Give me the Details
Thursday February 10, 2011

11am-2pm International Culture Exhibition (free)

5:30-7:30pm Artist Reception & Silent Auction (Diva Siting!)

7:30-9:30pm Cultural Music and Dance Performance

Location: Meany Hall, University of Washington campus

Tickets on sale now in the FIUTS office and at brownpapertickets.com!

2011 CulturalFest Performers:

Southern Cross, Music from Chile
Husky Wushu Team, China
Silk Strings, Japanese Koto Ensemble
Natya Indian Dancers
Delshodeh Dance Ensemble, Persian Circle Student Association
Sayaw Dance Troupe, Philippines
Made in Taiwain, Pop Music
Barvinok Ukrainian Dancers
UW Klezmer Band, Eastern Europe
And special guest, KUOW’s Marcie Sillman as Master of Ceremonies

Adult Tickets
$15 Performance / $45 Reception

Student/Youth Tickets (5-18 or with Student ID)
$10 Performance Advance / $15 Performance at the door / $20 Reception

Under 5: FREE

Artist Reception tickets include appetizers and beverages, a silent auction, and access to exhibit booths.

Evening performance tickets include admission to the exhibit booth area starting at 7pm.

See a map of participating countries at CulturalFest 2011!

Click here for directions and parking at Meany Theatre

Click here for a preview of our Artist Reception and Silent Auction catalog

The Original Real Estate Diva - Kim V. Colaprete

Many of you saw the Seattle Times article with the headline “1/3 of Seattle Homes Worth Less Than Mortgage” that came out this morning. The interesting thing about the Times article is that they based their findings from the comments of a Zillow executive. Team Diva Real Estate loves the value Zillow has in the community of Real Estate, but what we have personally found is that they are right only about 10% of the time. I believe we had one home last year that sold at Zillow value price. The rest sold for more than Zillow’s value. Just sayin’!

In a complex urban real estate market it is really tough to figure out the value of one’s home based purely on someone sitting back and developing an algorithm in an office chair. It takes people like Miz Diva Kim, who has been in the real estate business for over ten years, to bring their expertise to evaluating what your home is worth. Miz Diva Kim actually comes to your home and looks in person at the upgrades, calculates the market absorption rate of your specific neighborhood and is constantly touring the market to know which side of a hood has more value than others.

The Divas take on the Seattle Times story – take it for what it’s worth and move on!

Below is an excerpt by our Coldwell Banker Bain guru Ron Sparks on the Seattle Times story ->

In light of this morning’s Seattle Times front page article “1/3 of Seattle homes worth less than mortgage”, I went to the Zillow blogsite to see what the follow-up commentary might be. This is the first post I saw, verbatim;

“Your system has grossly undervalued my home. I need to have this resolved or I will take LEGAL ACTION”. This homeowner went on to say that “you are not qualified to evaluate my property without looking at it” and they would “aid in an awareness campaign to debunk your service”.

This frustrated homeowner’s post is exactly why real estate professionals are also frustrated with these reports…they are highly speculative and assumptive, not based on hard fact or the result of field experience and observation. Yet, they are certainly portrayed as fact in the sensational headlines we’ve become all-too-used-to from many local media outlets.

In this instance, Zillow ‘attempts’ to value all real estate, not just those homes that have recently sold. By their own admission, many times their Zestimates are substantially inaccurate. In my own experience of looking at the wholly inaccurate fluctuations Zillow assigns to my personal residence month by month, I have come to the conclusion that their valuations are…well, valueless.

If the algorithms that Zillow uses in their Zestimates are suspect, does it not follow that the methodologies used in this much more complex and ambitious valuation also be suspect too? It only stands to reason. Also, I have an issue with any blanket statement that has no real context…a home $1 underwater would look exactly the same as a home $1,000,000 underwater in this study. That too diminishes the value of the statement.

It’s been said that there is often a disconnect between academia and those that have their boots on the ground. In this instance, Zillow, a neophyte company that doesn’t actually sell real estate, is using it’s academics to make what appear to be definitive observations about the market. In fact, much like the Zestimate that frustrated the homeowner I mentioned earlier, it’s just guessing. Nothing wrong with guessing…as long as it’s characterized as such.

Greenleaf Community

Team Diva Real Estate is joining forces with some of our favorite Real Estate mavens in Seattle to bring you a rare look at a fabulous sampling of Green Built modern homes in the Central District. Join the Divas, Dararith Marith, Kimberly & Mark Hobbs and others as we bring you homes by some of our favorite Green Built projects.

The Central District in the midst of a Green Building renaissance. Over the past four years this fabulous neighborhood has seen strategic infilling of abandoned lots by Green construction and design entrepreneurs. Their design utilizes innovated techniques like capturing and re-purposing rain water to experimentation with low environmental impact building materials utilized in these amazing homes. The result is fresh take on how one can live in modern spaces while still integrating into the existing community around you. Truly a new modern community is taking hold in the Central District!

Update: Meet Up Location Released
Coleman Park Modern Cottages by BCH
1808 & 1806 24th Ave S, Seattle, Wa 98144

Homes on Display

• Modern Community on 26th Ave – by Greenleaf Construction
• Judkins Park Modern Cottages – by BCH
• Urban Trees – by gProjects
• Inspired Modern at Jackson Place – by BCH
• HyBrid Pre-Fab – by Hybrid

Tour Details:
Saturday, February 19, 2011
12 noon – 3:00 PM
RSVP Required -> Email the Divas at TheDiva@TeamDivaRealEstate.com or RSVP on Facebook

Green Built Central District Tweet Chat
Join us for a twitter chat next Tuesday, February 15th with a key team member from Benjamin Custom Homes Dararith Marith @dmarith and the Divas @SeattleDivas

More Information About The Central District
The Central District (the CD as it is called by locals) is one of the oldest and most diverse neighborhoods in Seattle. This is a community teaming with an eclectic mix of residents and architecture, where modern designer dwellings sit next to beautifully restored turn of the century homes. Its proximity to Downtown, Capitol Hill and easy access to the Eastside makes the CD a perfect place for any urbanite to call home!
Shop Local Spot: All Purpose Pizza
Hood Blog: Central District News