Events • June 12, 2019

SAVE THE DATE: Skyway Outdoor Cinema’s 2019 Lineup

by Don Koonce

Free Family Fun & Films Every Summer

Join your community on the first four Friday nights in August for Skyway Outdoor Cinema – a fantastic, fun, FREE film experience for the whole family since 2003!

Scout out the best spot to set up your chair, blanket or bean bag and get some dinner from our food trucks as early as 7pm – then settle in for the preshow starting at 8pm behind the Skyway 7-Eleven on Renton Avenue South in the US Bank parking lot. Don’t forget to bring some cash for the concession stand (there is also a US Bank ATM on premises and a CO-OP ATM inside 7-Eleven). Movie starts at 9pm.

Check out the Skyway Cinema Season 17 lineup below.

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Design • Homeownership • June 7, 2019

12 Tips for a Cozy Bedroom

by Don Koonce

From the Windermere Blog:

At the end of a long day, your bedroom should be a sanctuary of comfort that welcomes you in. But, as a room that guests rarely see and in which homeowners spend most of their time with their eyes closed, its upkeep frequently gets pushed to the bottom of the to-do list. Thankfully, there are some little design tricks that can make a big difference. Turn your bedroom into a restful retreat when you up its coziness factor with a few of these easy ideas.

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Real Estate Listings • May 31, 2019

NEW LISTING: Superb Value for Lakeside Living in Iconic Seward Park Condo Community

by Don Koonce

9030 Seward Park Ave S #503
Seattle, WA 98118
$305,000

MLS#: 1459321
Bathrooms: 1.75
Bedrooms: 2
Square Footage: 1,004
Year Built: 1971

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Case Studies • May 26, 2019

COBUY SUCCESS STORY: Creating an Intentional Community

by Don Koonce

Friends Cameron and Isaac are CoBuy clients who wanted to buy a house in order to create an intentional vegan activists’ community.

CoBuy is an exciting new company with an online platform that makes it easier to buy a home with one or more other people–be it friends, family members, or both.

After the initial introduction, we connected by email and since it wasn’t convenient for them to meet in person, we scheduled a teleconference.

Once we had that call, I had a good idea of what kind of home and the location that they were looking for.

I set up a search for them. Since they were looking for a large home with several bedrooms that could be rented out, the options were limited a bit.

The search turned up five homes that could possibly work.

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Events • May 24, 2019

SAVE THE DATE: URB Garden Tour & Neighbor Meet and Greet

by Don Koonce

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From Don • Real Estate News & Information • May 17, 2019

REAL ESTATE INFO COLUMN: Are we in a bubble?

by Don Koonce

Welcome to my Real Estate advice column, “Dear Don,” where I answer all your burning Real Estate questions. Send yours to me at donkoonce@windermere.com, and I’ll try to answer them in future columns.

Dear Don:

Are we in a bubble?

Wondering Will

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Real Estate Listings • May 10, 2019

NEW LISTING: Classic Craftsman Meets Urban Farm

by Don Koonce

11839 Glendale Way S
Seattle, WA 98168
$479,000

Classic craftsman meets urban farm! The long driveway up off the street takes you away from the bustle of the city to 1920s charm. Hardwood floors and leaded glass built-ins set the tone for this light-filled warm home. Situated on .6 acres, there’s plenty of room to spread out. RV parking and more. Two-car detached garage+shop is someone’s dream space! The architecturally designed barn is perfect for chickens and goats. RM18 zoning for lots of options, including spaces for two tiny houses. Updated elect.

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Real Estate Listings • May 7, 2019

NEW LISTING: Picture-Perfect Craftsman with Beautiful Garden Lot

by Don Koonce

4018 40th Ave SW
Seattle, WA 98116
$865,000

Picture-perfect Craftsman with beautiful garden lot on quiet street close to all the fun in the Junction. Top quality studs-out remodel in 2011, thoroughly updated systems, tasteful finishes. Authentic Craftsman details including rocking chair porch, boxed beamed ceiling, wainscoting, built-ins, etc. Radiant sun-filled rooms, hardwoods,Chefs kitchen with breakfast nook, huge Master with sitting area, grand-piano-sized rec room, 3beds/3baths. Exquisite landscaping & gardens, alley to 1-car garage. Just move in!

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Real Estate News & Information • April 29, 2019

To Sell or to Rent? The Perks and Pitfalls of Being a Landlord

by Don Koonce

Electing a full sale or a property management situation is a life-changing decision that shouldn’t be taken lightly. In choosing whether or not becoming a landlord is right for you, there are a number of factors to consider, but primarily they fall into the following three categories: financial analysis, risk, and goals.

The financial analysis is probably the easiest of the three to perform. You will need to assess if you can afford to rent your house. If you consider the likely rental rate, vacancy rate, maintenance, advertising, and management costs, you can arrive at a budget. It is important to both be detailed in your projections and to have enough reserves to cover cash-flow needs if you’re wrong. The vacancy rate will be determined by the price at which you market the property. Price too high and you’re liable to be left vacant. Should you have applicants, they’ll often be a group that for some reason couldn’t compete for more competitively priced homes. Price too low and you don’t achieve the revenue you should. If you want to try for the higher end of an expected range, understand that the cost may be a vacant month. Any way you slice it, it’s difficult to make up for a vacant month.

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Case Studies • CoBuy • April 22, 2019

COBUY SUCCESS STORY: Dan, Briannon & the Perfect Fremont Townhome

by Don Koonce

Dan & Briannon’s new townhouse boasts amazing views of Lake Union & downtown Seattle from the master bedroom & roof top deck.

Dan Mendoza and Briannon Schaeffer are an unmarried couple who were looking to purchase their first home together. They were referred to me by CoBuy–an exciting new company with an online platform that makes it easier to buy a home with one or more other people–be it friends, family members, or both.

Due to the complicated nature of a cobuying situation, CoBuy only works with brokers–such as your truly–that have been through their training program, so I was prepared to guide Dan and Briannon through the process and prevent any future surprises.

In our initial meeting, they explained that they they didn’t want much yard to maintain, didn’t want to do any renovations, were open to single family homes and townhomes, and were flexible about location provided there was good public transit to downtown.

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