Schmetzer RE Group AZ and WA

10/12/2026

Starting January 1, 2027, Washington is changing how much tax you pay to sell your own home. Here’s the myth I keep running into already: “I should list for $549,000 instead of $555,000 so I don’t get pushed into the higher tax bracket.”

That’s not how it works, and believing it is costing people money.

Washington’s Real Estate Excise Tax is GRADUATED, like income tax brackets. The new 2027 state rates are 1.10% up to $551,000, 1.28% from $551,000 to $1,551,000, 2.75% up to $3,051,000, and 3.00% above that. Only the slice of your sale price that falls INSIDE each bracket gets taxed at that bracket’s rate ... not your entire sale price.

Run the actual numbers: a $700,000 sale owes roughly $7,968 in state R**T either way the math shakes out. Pricing $6,000 lower to “stay under a threshold” doesn’t save you $6,000 in tax. It costs you $6,000 in sale price to chase a tax savings measured in dollars, not thousands.

What I actually do differently before we ever talk list price: we run your real net proceeds ... mortgage payoff, state AND local R**T, title, escrow, commission, and any concessions. The list price is a negotiating number. Your net is the number that matters.

If you’re thinking about selling in Bothell or anywhere in Snohomish County before or after the bracket changes hit, let’s run your actual numbers together. Shoot me a DM.

📲206.819.7080
[email protected]
www.SoundandSouthwest.com

10/08/2026

6%.

That’s the share of people who told researchers at John Burns Research and Consulting they’d actually accept a mortgage rate anywhere close to 7.5% ... which happens to be almost exactly where rates have been sitting for months now.

Zillow’s newest market report, out this week, shows what that gap is doing to the market. Newly pending sales fell 8.5% year-over-year in September. Closed sales dipped too. The typical mortgage payment now eats up 34.4% of median household income, up from 33.7% a year ago. Meanwhile rents are climbing 2.7% annually ... the fastest pace since last spring.

The myth I keep running into: people are just “waiting it out” for a minute, holding their breath until things get back to normal. The reality in this survey is more specific than that ... most buyers have an actual number in their head, and John Burns found it’s 5% to 5.49%. That’s not “a little lower.” That’s a different market entirely, one that isn’t on the calendar anytime soon. However if sales continue to decline sellers may be more willing to make a deal that works in favor of the buyer

Here’s what I’m watching in my own two backyards. Seattle’s inventory is up 20.3% year-over-year right now ... buyers finally have room to be picky. Phoenix inventory is up a gentler 4.4%, still moving, still absorbing what’s for sale. Different pace, same underlying math everywhere: the “magic number” buyers are waiting for isn’t the number the market is actually offering.

What I tell people instead of waiting for 5%: build the decision around the payment you can live with TODAY, not the one you’re hoping shows up. A rate that’s merely high still beats a plan that’s stuck on pause indefinitely.

Is your “acceptable rate” closer to what the market’s actually offering, or closer to that 5% number everyone seems to be quietly waiting on?

10/01/2026

25,980. That's how many homes are active on the market across Washington state right now, as of this week.

The newest statewide numbers, out today: median active listing price sits at $649,900, with the median SOLD price over the past year at $625,000, a gap that tells you list price and reality aren't always the same conversation. Zoom into Snohomish County specifically, my own backyard: median sold price of $705,500, homes moving in a median of just 25 days, and sellers getting 98.9% of list price on average. Inventory sits at 3.4 months of supply, which is still a seller-leaning number, even though active listings here are down 5.6% year-over-year.

Here's what that mix actually means if you're trying to time this: fewer homes than a year ago, but the ones that ARE on the market are still moving fast, at close to full price. That's not the "wait, inventory's piling up" story some of the national headlines keep telling. Snohomish County isn't behaving like the rest of the country right now.

If you're weighing whether to list in Bothell or Snohomish County this fall, or trying to figure out what 25 days on market actually means for YOUR specific neighborhood, let's talk through it shoot me a DM.
📲 206.819.7080
[email protected]
SoundandSouthwest.com
Real Estate for WA and AZ

09/28/2026

This is gonna fly in the face of what you’ll hear many real estate agents say but numbers don’t lie, however they also don’t always tell the whole story
If you'd put your down payment into the S&P 500 instead of a house ten years ago, you'd have nearly three times the return today.

Economists Ray Fisman and Michael Luca ran the numbers this week: from December 2015 to December 2025, the Case-Shiller home price index rose 87%. The S&P 500, excluding dividends, rose 235%. So far in 2026 alone, home prices are up about 1.5% while stocks are up roughly 13%.

Here's the myth I hear constantly: "your house is your best investment." The reality is messier, Fisman and Luca's actual point isn't "don't buy a house." It's that people conflate two separate decisions, where you want to LIVE, and how you want to invest a big chunk of your life savings. Those don't have to be the same choice, and treating them as one often means overpaying on the investment case while underweighting the lifestyle case.

What doesn't show up in either number, is the years you actually get to live in the place, the tax treatment built into homeownership, the leverage of the value of the home as an asset, and of course the fact that you can't live inside a brokerage account. A house that "underperforms" the S&P can still be exactly the right call if it's the right house, in the right market, for how you actually want to live.

Where do you land — do you buy a home as shelter first and treat appreciation as a bonus, or do you want it to outperform like an investment too? Both are important decisions to contemplate and neither one is incorrect!

09/18/2026

Is Washington a buyer's market or a seller's market right now? Depends who you ask this week.
Statewide data released this week puts Washington at 3.9 months of inventory and calls it a "seller-leaning market," with prices down just 1.4% year-over-year statewide.
Zoom into Snohomish County specifically, though, and the story shifts: median sold price is down 5.3% year-over-year, sitting at $707,250, with 3.2 months of supply and homes moving in 22 days.
So which is it? Depends entirely on where you're standing. A county-level number and a statewide number can tell two completely different stories about the same market ... which is exactly why "the market" isn't a useful phrase without a zip code attached to it.
I'm watching this same pattern play out in real time between my two markets Snohomish County softening on price while overall inventory stays historically tight, and Gold Canyon/Apache Junction telling its own separate story entirely.
What's it actually feel like on the ground where you're searching or selling buyer's market, seller's market, or something in between? Curious what people are seeing.


www.SoundandSouthwest.com

09/17/2026

I lived in Everett for years and had my boat docked at the marina, so watching what's happening down at the waterfront right now genuinely gets me excited.
Waterfront Place, the Port of Everett's massive redevelopment of that old industrial shoreline just keeps building momentum. In the last year alone, Fisherman's Harbor has turned into a legitimate restaurant row, with the Net Shed Fish Market, Tapped Public House and its huge rooftop deck, and Agave Cocina & Cantina all opening up. Now a boutique fitness club is moving in too, signaling the next phase: this isn't just a dining destination anymore, it's turning into a full lifestyle district, dining, fitness, wellness, and retail all in one walkable waterfront neighborhood.
This is roughly a billion dollars in public-private investment transforming what used to be old shoreline industrial land into one of the most desirable areas in Snohomish County.
When I had my boat there, this was a working marina with a few good restaurants. Now it's becoming the kind of place people plan their whole Saturday around.
Everett feels like it's on the edge of a real renaissance.
So here's the question I keep asking myself: if this is the trajectory today, where do home prices along that waterfront corridor look in 5-10 years?

If you've got a stake in that area, or you've been eyeing it, I'd love to hear your take. 👇

📍 Curious what's actually available near the waterfront right now? I put together a list of homes and condos currently for sale near Downtown Everett's waterfront district — take a look here: https://portal.onehome.com/en-US/share/1792177T67869

If anything catches your eye (or you just want a second opinion on the area), reach out — happy to talk through it.


www.SoundandSouthwest.com
Let's chat - (206) 819-7080

09/16/2026

As the summer heat starts to slip away the prime Arizona weather is on its way! Now is the time to start thinking of a trip to the desert! 😎🌅🌄👍

09/09/2026

Every once in a while a home crosses my radar that's worth sharing and this one definitely fits the bill.

It's right in my own backyard, in a community I know well: a fully gated neighborhood surrounded by larger estate homes, with views over the golf course straight to the Superstition Mountains. At $1.3M, it's a genuinely beautiful home — and for that price, I think a lot of my Pacific Northwest friends would be thrilled to call this place home. 😀

The listing agents are well respected in this market, and it shows the photography does the home real justice.

Worth noting: several homes in this same neighborhood sell for well above this price point, which tells me there's real room to add value here with some additional updates. Take a look through the photos and let me know what you think!

Tucked within the quiet, gated Mountain Whisper community, this beautifully appointed Gold Canyon home pairs an inviting, thoughtfully designed interior with a backyard made for enjoying the Arizona lifestyle, all against the striking backdrop of the Superstition Mountains. Mature, intentional lands...

09/03/2026

Check out my newest blog post for September at
www.soundandsouthwest.com/ -post6
And if you or someone you know is interested in finding out more about buying a home in the greater Phoenix area please check out my website and get to know me and my services, I’d love the opportunity to help!

08/24/2026

With massive growth already happening in the SE Mesa area, Mesa Gateway Airport just closed out a record-breaking fiscal year and it's a signal worth paying attention to if you're watching the East Valley market.
Besides the fact I’m selfishly hoping that as the Airport continues to grow we may get a direct Alaska Airlines flight from Mesa to Paine Field in Everett there is much more going on here

There are TWO massive development projects happening right now near the airport:

✈️ Gateway East — new business park with a hotel, restaurants, and offices coming (Xnrgy's new HQ is already open!)

✈️ SkyBridge Arizona — a $1 billion aviation & commercial hub with Gulfstream Aerospace already on-site

Nearly 3,000 people already work at the airport, and that number is only growing. Big companies like Garmin, Virgin Galactic, and Textron Aviation all have facilities there too.

What does this mean for you? Growth like this tends to ripple outward, more jobs, more demand for housing, more energy in the local market. If you've been thinking about buying or selling in the East Valley, this is exactly the kind of trend worth watching.

I live and work right here in the East Valley, so if you want to talk about what this means for your home or your next move, just reach out! 🏡
📞 (206) 819-7080 📧 [email protected]
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