Robert & Sue, of Rose Hill in Kirkland, were about at their wits’ end. “We have had our home on the market for nearly 4 months & we have had only a handful of visitors & absolutely NO o� ers! What do we do to get our home sold?”

In today’s market nearly all sellers want to know the secret to selling their homes quickly & for the most money possible. Although there is no golden equation, there are Top Eight factors that will help you accom-plish this goal.

Robert & Sue listened to the below advice of a profes-sional & successful Broker - their home elicited an o� er within 30 days. � ey suc-cessfully closed the follow-ing month.

1. Price: You may think that location is the leading factor of whether or not a home sells. It is, instead, price. � ink about this: you have a home located in a prestigious & sought-a� er neighborhood, yet the list price is tens of thousands of dollars over the comps for the area. Truth: NOBODY wants it - but this same property priced just below the competition will � y o� the market. Price is KING in this market!

2. Location: Okay, loca-tion is still very important. A home that sits next to a jail, a crime-ridden neighborhood, or busy street is less desirable than one that backs up to green space. If your home has a “boast-able” location, then by all means boast about it. Buyers today are look-ing for neighborhoods that deliver amenities such as parks, restaurants, theaters. � ey want good schools, walk-able neighborhoods & plenty of things to keep them entertained without driving far.

3. Condition: � ere is a small segment of the market that is made up of renova-tors, � ippers, & investors. You won’t � nd near as many people these days eager to buy your run-down property that is in a good

location. � ose that are buying these types of homes are doing it at a substantial

20-30% discount o� market value. New paint & cleaned carpets will show the home is well-maintained. “Move-in” condition appeals to more buyers.

4. Competitive Advantage: Buyers are shoppers. Past area sales, as well as current listings & foreclosures,

are your direct competi-tion. You must take these into consideration when settling on a list price for your home. What amenities & upgrades do these homes have? Do the homes in your neighborhood all have updated baths, kitchens, or landscaped yards? In order to price in line with them you must be able to boast these same things, otherwise buyers will go elsewhere.

5. Curb Appeal: Curb ap-peal is the � rst impression. You must keep the yard

orderly & maintained when your home is on the market. Fresh bark, fresh paint, clean roof, cut lawn all play into the curb appeal.

6. Staging: Once inside your home, a buyer must be wowed. Intoxicate their senses. � ey want to see up-to-date furnishings, smell a clean home, touch nice cabinets, hear peace & quiet & of course “taste the good life.”

7. Brokers: An accom-plished, knowledgeable Broker/Realtor can be your biggest ally during the sell-ing process. � ey know the latest market trends & have built a network of other bro-kers & contacts to whom to market your home. Skilled brokers have an arsenal of marketing tools available to them: video, virtual tours, webcasts, brochures, web-sites, MLS listings & more!

8. Marketing: Marketing has gone global. With the power of the Internet, you can showcase your home to

millions of potential buyers. Sit down with your broker & develop a solid market-ing plan. You may not like everything they have to sug-gest - but they are ultimately saying it in order for you to succeed. It really is a team collaboration to accomplish a SOLD home!

� e market is not what it once was. You must be re-alistic about what selling in

today’s market means. You value your home, but it may not be “worth” as much as it was yesterday, last month, or last year.

Consider these Top 8 ways to help your home put its best face & foot forward. Robert & Sue will both agree, this is the best thing you can do for yourself so you can move on with life’s adventures.

For further information or suggestions on future topics, please contact Debbie Walter @ www.DebbieWalter.com or (206) 930-8699. Debbie is a REALTOR® with RE/MAX NW Realtors in Kirkland. Debbie is a member of the National Association of Realtors (a trade organiza-tion that promotes real estate information, education and professional standards).

Top 8 “TO-DO’S” in Order to Sell

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REAL ESTATEYour guide to Real Estate and home buying & selling

OCTOBER 2011

October 7, 2011[10] www.kirklandreporter.com

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REAL ESTATEYour guide to Real Estate and home buying & selling

Real Estate

Real Estate Sales in Kirkland, WA • September 1-30, 2011Residential Housingin 98033 & 98034

13403 89th Ave NE $216,30011443 109th Ave NE $206,00011642 NE 92nd St $251,50010352 NE 141st St $245,00012809 102nd Ave NE $258,80010206 NE 142nd St $270,0006850 NE 129 St $240,0009300 NE 132nd Place $292,00013046 NE 113th St $279,90010027 NE 129th Place $290,00012947 NE 145th Place $290,00014452 88th Ave NE $300,00012237 96th Place NE $300,0008123 NE 125th St $285,0009714 NE 136th St $321,50012822 NE 136th St $309,90013026 103rd Place NE $325,00014104 111th Ave NE $334,95013429 91st Place NE $327,0007620 NE 140th Place $327,50012930 113th Place NE $352,00014013 92nd Place NE $357,50014002 125th Place NE $365,00012523 NE 134th Place $378,0009537 NE 141st Place $368,00010903 106th Ave NE $421,0008210 NE 124th Place $387,500

133 5th Ave W $410,00012148 NE 141st St $409,00011219 127th Ave NE $424,95012818 NE 103rd Place $410,00011415 Juanita Dr NE $465,00011505 NE 103rd St $447,00012948 Holmes Point Dr NE $486,150 311 8th Ave $489,00011233 NE 58th St $485,000311 10th Ave W $480,0004524 Lk Washington Blvd NE $580,500335 15th Ave $550,0009401 117th Ave NE $619,000339 7th Ave $598,50013727 NE 135th Place $629,0009502 117th Ave NE $639,0008207 116th Ave NE $600,00013116 NE 104th St $632,0008209 126th Ave NE $675,000912 2nd St $730,00013507 62 Ave NE $705,000606 2nd St $730,0001006 State St $710,000228 6th Ave $665,000712 5th Ave S $870,0005426 106th Ave NE $821,0001104 3rd St $825,00011001 NE 100th Place $795,000537 9th Ave $845,000432 9th Ave $835,000

11805 NE 43rd Place $935,000250 7th Ave S $900,00011908 89th Place NE $1,050,00011908 89th Place NE $1,050,00010202 NE 65th St $1,100,000720 14th Ave W $1,162,500

Residential Housing AveragesAverage. List Price $542,994Average Sales Price $524,713 CDOM (Cumulative Days on Market) 124

Condos/Townhomesin 98033 & 98034

12423 NE 145th Place #B144 $46,0009900 NE 124TH St #B134 $53,00012525 NE 145th Place #F96 $60,00014321 124th Ave NE #A2 $77,80012615 NE 119th St #E-2 $108,80011215 NE 128th St #L301 $105,00012032 100 Ave NE #L203 $105,50010014 NE 138th Place #Q1 $116,50011713 93rd Ave NE #B-10 $143,58511310 124th Ave NE #301 $155,00065 Kirkland Ave #105 $160,000521 7th Ave #404 $180,0009818 NE 137th St $214,00010110 NE 60th St #107 $245,00012809 102nd Ave NE $258,80011317 101st Place NE $270,0009201 NE 128th Lane $276,000

1004 Kirkland Ave #A - 9 $285,00024 Kirkland Wy #4 $300,000515 Lake St S #310 $315,000224 5th Place S $388,1006736 Lk Wash Blvd NE #9 $406,000225 4th Ave #A501 $457,000221 5th Ave S #104 $550,000820 Lake St S $565,0004824 102nd Lane NE $574,0005302 Lk Wash Blvd NE #D $660,0005302 Lk Wash Blvd NE #L $770,0004817 Lk Wash Blvd NE #5 $825,000

Condos/Townhomes AveragesAverage. List Price $311,408Average Sales Price $298,968CDOM (Cumulative Days on Market) 124

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Real Estate

A colleague told me a story that one eve-ning back in June,

a� er a long day of play-ing a tourist in Shanghai, China, he � ipped on the TV and was pleased to � nd CNN. A� er a few minutes, a story came on about Chinese artist and political dissi-dent Ai Weiwei. � at day, Weiwei was released by the government a� er nearly three months of deten-tion for “alleged economic crimes.” Just as soon as the story about Weiwei came on, the TV screen went black. About 90 seconds later, CNN returned to the air in the middle of a new story.

Yes, TV censorship is alive and well in China!

China, of course, has been in the news for years as its economy has roared and moved the country to the second largest eco-nomic power behind the

U.S. Yet, for all its might, there are some glaring holes that might trip it up over the coming years – with media censorship

being just one.China’s surge

is really a case of déjà vu. For much of recorded his-tory, China was the world’s largest economy. Even

into the early 1800s, it ac-counted for 30 percent of the world’s GDP, according to � e Economist. But, like many empires before it, China spectacularly � amed out over the next century. By the mid-70s, the disastrous reign of Mao Zedong had come to an end and China was near rock bottom.

In 1978, new leader Deng Xiaoping laid out a vision of economic reform that has propelled China to unprecedented growth. Since then, China has mas-sively reshaped the world order as its growth and

demand for resources af-fects everything from auto production, to corn prices, to funding the U.S. budget de� cit. Earlier this year, China overtook Japan as the world’s second-largest economy behind the U.S.

With that brief historical background, let’s review some facets of China’s phenomenal rise and what that may mean for you. Today, we’ll look at demo-graphics.

Incredibly, China’s GDP has grown at an average annual rate of 9.3 percent since 1989, according to Trading Economics. However, changing demo-graphics could cause this growth to slow in coming years.

You may be surprised to know that between 2000-2010, the U.S. population grew faster than China’s (9.7 percent in U.S. vs. 5.8 percent in China). For the past 20 years, China’s economic boom has been

China’s growth powers the world: Part 1partly fueled by urbanization – rural folks moving to the cities in search of higher paying jobs, plus a supposedly endless supply of cheap young workers. Turns out that supply may be coming to an end.

China has had a one-child policy since 1979 and it resulted in the “non-birth” of about 250 million ba-bies, according to Time Magazine. As a result, China’s population is aging rapidly. Today, 12.5 percent of China’s population is over 60. By 2020, it will hit 20 percent and by 2030, 25 percent, according to � e Economist.

Worse yet, the working age population will start to decline in about 2015, according to the United Nations. Fewer workers supporting a growing elderly population is not a recipe for economic growth.

Of course, China could reverse its one-child policy and rev up population growth, but that would likely cause other problems such as food shortages or envi-ronmental issues.

As the demographic shi� causes the labor market to tighten, wages have already started to rise, which ultimately is in� ationary and may make the country less competitive.

While it’s easy to look at China’s growth over the past 30 years and extend it for another 30, changing demographics is one of several hurdles that could put the brakes on growth.

In part two, which will run next month, we’ll look at the challenge of moving China’s economy from one led by exports and investments to one led by con-sumption. As a preview, we’ll talk about the perils of relying too much on infrastructure investments and how that could lead to excess capacity and bad debts.

John Klevens is the principal � nancial advisor for Klevens Capital Management. Contact John at 425-453-6353.

FINANCE

John

Kle

vens

[ more CHINA page 13 ]

October 7, 2011[12] www.kirklandreporter.com Real Estate

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KIRKLAND $459,000A� ordable luxury in Kirkland’s “Highlands”! Tri-level sits majestically on lrg, lush lot. Lovingly updated & upgraded w/designer colors, all new � rng i.e. bam-boo, tile, hi-end carpeting; tile festooned baths. Great Rm w/soaring ceilings & banks of windows. www.highlandsperfection.info GG Getz…’Results’!

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HEIDI BRIGHT 425-820-5343

WEST OF MARKET $1,237,000Lake views & an idyllic location...Perfect, � owing � oor plan, huge kitchen & great room open to west-facing patio & lawn. 4 Bdrm+Bonus up, Den on main. Peaceful master w/vaulted ceilings, sunny view deck. www.kirklandstyle.com

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