Wasilla Real Estate News, Valley Market Real Estate

Smoke Detector Catches On Fire September 11th, 2008

Categories: Wasilla Real Estate News

Apparently one of the reasons you need multiple smoke detectors in your home is to warn you if another one catches on fire.

I heard from another Realtor this week that a smoke detector in a newer house here in Wasilla malfunctioned, caught on fire and fell to the floor.  It burned the carpet on the floor but did not start the house on fire.

There was a warranty on the home from Home Security of America so of course the claim has gone in.  Last I heard they were trying to decide whether the home owners insurance or the Home Warranty company would be paying for damages.

This is not an excuse to keep from installing smoke detectors…in fact it is probably a reason to add some battery only smoke detectors to your hard wired ones in case of a malfunction.

Written by Marty Van Diest Please leave a comment.

You know You Are An Alaskan When: September 9th, 2008

Categories: Alaskana

1. Your idea of a traffic jam is 10 cars waiting to pass a motor home on the highway.
2. “Vacation” means going to Anchorage for the weekend.
3. You measure distance in hours.
4. You know several people who have hit moose more than once.
5. You often switch from “heat” to “A/C” in the same day.
6. You use a down comforter in the summer.
7. Your grandparents drive at 65 mph through 13 feet of snow during a raging blizzard, without flinching.
8. You see people wearing hunting clothes at social events.
9. You install security lights on your house and garage, and leave both unlocked.
10. You think of the major food groups as: meat, fish, and berries.
11. You carry jumper cables in your car, and your girlfriend knows how to use them.
12. There are 7 empty cars running in the parking lot at the grocery store at any given time.
13. You know what Bunny Boots are.
14. Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.
15. You think sexy lingerie is tube socks and flannel pajamas.
16. You know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter, and construction.
17. It takes you 3 hours to go to the store for one item, even when you’re in a rush, because you have to stop and talk to everyone in town.
18. You didn’t know what the word “county” meant, and we were never taught about “area codes”… 907 is all you had to know
19. You think bald eagles aren’t that great
20. You know to go to Best Buy a month after a CD release because that’s when it will FINALLY arrive in Alaska
21. You wish seagulls came with a mute button
22. You can go to McDonalds and order off the $1.50 menu which they feel is equivalent to the $0.99 menu
23. You were appalled by the “Carrs-Safeway” merge a few years ago
24. You have to have a raven cage around your trash to keep them out
25. You go to school, work, or both in the dark and come home in the dark
26. 30 degrees is shorts weather
27. -10 is a bit nippy
28. Buses leaving school are delayed because a bear is in the parking lot
29. You tell people you live in an igloo for kicks
30. You don’t swim in natural bodies of water for fear of swimmers itch or beaver fever…or leeches
31. Having a moose in your front yard is a legitimate excuse for being late to school
32. There is nothing like Matanuska Maid…who cares about Meadowgold, Dairyland and Viva!!
33. You only go to the fair for turkey legs and a husky burger
34. You refer to the continental US as the “lower 48″
35. You get an attitude when you have to pay tax in the lower 48
36. There is 4 feet of snow the night before school and you STILL have to go.
37. If you don’t like the weather wait for 5 minutes and then go back out outside.
38. You sleep through an earthquake like nothing ever happened; the only way you know is because the clock fell off the wall
39. Salmon isn’t a delicacy, it’s a staple
40. Halibut is beer battered rather than cooked some fancy way
41. 70 degrees is equivalent to 90 degrees in the lower 48
42. You know who “Sleeping Lady” is
43. During the winter you rarely use your freezer
44. You think $4 for a loaf of bread is cheap
45. A “cookout” is not all the time outside because it’s entirely too cold for all of that
46. You don’t sleep in the summer because it’s too short to miss a minute of it
47. Half your friends own a sled (snow machine) and you think people that call them snow mobiles are idiots
48. You have been chased or know someone who has been chased by a moose at least once.
49. You’ve seen the northern lights, and you know why they are such a “big deal”
50. You know its all about the snow, DUH.
51. You know that Cattle Company has the best potato soup there is.
52. Your bedroom windows are covered in aluminum foil or black blankets.
53. You know the two speed limits in Alaska: the ‘get outta my way limit’ and ‘taking cover limit’
54. You only watch the news when they announce the amount of the year’s dividend
55. Your school classes were never canceled because of ice
56. You have to start your car at least an hour before you leave so most of the ice and snow will melt off by the time you leave
57. You wear flips flops all year without getting sick
58. You’ve never seen cotton or tobacco growing, but your neighbor has a 30 acre potato field
59. You literally can’t leave the house without seeing some one you know.
60. You know the term “studs” isn’t referring to hot guys.
61. You have to ski in gym class
62. You know who “Binki” was, made fun of that stupid Australian tourist, and was so sad when he died.
63. You expect to see a moose crossing Tudor every time you drive down.
64. You give up and tell people in the lower 48 that you DO live in an igloo and you DO have a pet polar bear named Mishka when they refuse to believe otherwise.
65. You call someone without a crack in their windshield a tourist
66. You attend a formal event in your best clothes, your finest jewels and your Sorrels.
67. When you go to the lower 48 you wonder where everybody’s block heater cable is
68. You’ve been to the Peanut Farm but refuse to tell anyone…ever
69. Combat fishing isn’t a joke, it’s a religion.
70. You’ve seen a 2-month old moose get hit by a full-size van at 65 MPH, then get up and run off
71. Two words “Korn Fritters”
72. Your parents taking you trick-or-treating involves riding door-to-door in the car
73. You design your kid’s Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.

Written by Marty Van Diest 1 Comment »

Wasilla Real Estate, Monday Morning Market Memo for 9/1-9/8/2008 September 8th, 2008

Categories: Monday Market Memo

Wasilla Real Estate News statistics for the whole Matanuska-Susitna Borough.  These statistics cover everything from Talkeetna-Lake Louise.  But at least 80% of all real estate activity takes place within a 30 mile radius of the Parks/Glenn Highway intersection.

The numbers are all going in a downward trend.  It looks like we may be heading into winter mode.  The numbers in every category are lower.

Notice the big difference between average price and median price for New Listings.  There were two houses this week that hit the market for more than $1.5 million.  Those two houses skewed the average price by almost $80,000.

I wondered a couple weeks ago whether Sarah Palin’s Vice Presidential candidacy would do anything to the our local real estate market.  So far it is helping the hotels and B&Bs as reporters and lawyers come to town. 

The only thing that has happened to me personally is a call from a man in Beverly Hills.  I believe he was hitting the sauce, but basically he said that he has been watching Palin on TV and if that’s the kind of women we have up here…he’s moving up! 

Written by Marty Van Diest Please leave a comment.

Monday Morning Market Memo…Week of 8/22/2008-9/21/2008 September 1st, 2008

Categories: Wasilla Real Estate News

Wasilla Real Estate News statistics for Palmer, Wasilla, and the whole Mat-Su Borough. 

I added a Median Price Column for the real statisticians out there.  This number is actually more useful than the average price because it is not easily skewed by one extremely high end or low end sale.

The median price is the middle price of a group of sales.  If you were to line up a bunch of numbers in numerical order…it would be the number in the center.

The market continues to be comparatively healthy.  The total inventory dropped a little since last week while the pendings and closed numbers are higher than average.  

Sixty new listings is still a high number of listings but they appear to have been absorbed this week. At the end of any month, there are a lot of listings that expire, that is why  the total inventory dropped even though there were more new listings than pendings.

To the right is the Alaska MLS Chart for the last two years through August.  Click on it to expand.  I haven’t run it in awhile because the data is about 30 days behind, but it is interesting to note the long term movement in sold listings.  That is the blue line.  You can see that there has not been a drastic shift in our market.  It is humming along at about the same level but a little slower than a couple years ago.

It remains to be seen if Sarah Palin’s candidacy for vice president will have any effect on our real estate market.  I really don’t think it will, but it will probably help the hotels and b&bs with the out of town reporters.

I thought it was interesting today to receive four calls in a row asking about land on Lazy Mountain.  Jay lives there and I have scoured that area for years and know it well.  Perhaps it is going to be the valley’s version of the hillside.

If you would like some help with real estate give me a call at 907 232–7900 or email [email protected]

Written by Marty Van Diest Please leave a comment.