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Spring is now teasing us on a regular basis. Everything is in bloom, we are seeing some mid 70’s temps and I think more sun than clouds. Due to the unsettled weather, golf has been hit and miss no pun intended!  I played last Wed, got wet on the first three holes, but by the time I came off #4, the rain subsided, the sun came out, and the next 14 were uneventful weather wise!

This past weekend Walla Walla held the 35 annual Balloon Stampede, the weather cooperated and 38 balloons took to the skies on Saturday morning. It is always a great thing to watch and this year was no exception. The festivities included a car show on Saturday with a great variety, from vintage model T’s to chopped and seriously tweaked model T’s.  Horse racing on Saturday and Sunday drew good crowds too.

The first weekend of the month was Spring Barrel Release, the consensus seemed to be,  numbers were down, but the sales were about on par with last year, a very encouraging sign given the current state of the economy.

Walla Walla Real Estate continues to slowly improve, we currently have closed 99 homes in Walla Walla/College Place since the beginning of the year, a strong showing compared to last year (roughly up 10% compared to the first quarter of last year) when we had only 363 for the year, but not on par with the 504 from 07, interest rates in the 4.5-5% range is definitely helping too.  It is a great time to be a buyer.

 

One of the most exciting things on the horizon is a partnership between the Washington Association of Realtors and the Washington State Housing Commission, when all of the details are worked out, it will allow a first time home buyer to use the up to $8,000 of tax credit for a down payment. It is hoped that it will be in place by the 1^st of June.  Projection show that up to 12,000 first time home buyers may benefit from the program, Washington is the first state in the nation to implement a program of this type. Currently 18-19 other states are looking at Washington’s program.  No matter which side of the isle your politics lay, Senator Patty Murray deserves serious accolades for her work on this project; it never would have come together without her efforts.

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