Poulsbo Real Estate :: SoundBiteBlog.com

Poulsbo Place is the award winning, master-planned community in the heart of the famed waterfront village of Poulsbo, Washington.

Designed in traditional Craftsman style, the architecture compliments the picturesque community of ‘Little Norway’ with its rich Scandinavian heritage.

Poulsbo Place is situated near the waters of Liberty Bay, a popular destination for area boaters and tourists, and is only a short walking distance to a wide variety of restaurants, bakeries, antique shops, clothing boutiques, book stores and gift shops.

As a licensed professional real estate broker, I view a lot of properties throughout Kitsap County, and into portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties, as well. Every once in a while, you come across a home that really stands out from the rest – one where location, condition, and price all combine together to achieve a truly amazing value.

Such is the case with this charming home in popular Poulsbo Place:

148 NE Sugar Maple Place, Poulsbo, WA 98370 

NWMLS #203093 provided courtesy of Teri Hewson of John L. Scott

The homes in Poulsbo Place aren’t for everyone. They appeal to a very select group of highly discerning Buyers. Though the lots are small, and the homes packed in closely together, nonetheless the close walking distance proximity to Front Street in Poulsbo and the Marina on Liberty Bay, makes this exclusive community highly desirable among Buyers, both old and young.

Senior residents like the professional yard and lawn maintenance provided through the Poulsbo Place Homeowners Association dues. Young urban professionals appreciate the cool, hip environment, and convenient accessibility to the Bainbridge Island ferry.

For more information about homes for sale in Poulsbo Place or other residential properties in Kitsap County WA, contact Rich Jacobson, Your Kitsap County WA Real Estate Professional.

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Rich Jacobson is a licensed real estate professional with Keller Williams West Sound, providing knowledgeable empowerment and relentless representation for his clients of residential properties and vacant land throughout all of Kitsap County WA and portions of Pierce, Mason, and Jefferson Counties. You can also find him at KitsapLife.com, ActiveRain, and Crabbing in the Hood, or e-mail:  kitsapagent@gmail.com

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Posted in Poulsbo Real Estate | No Comments »

Tags: homes by harbors, homes in poulsbo wa, Kitsap County WA real estate, liberty bay homes, master planned communities in WA, poulsbo place, poulsbo real estate

The men’s slow pitch softball team from New Life Church here in Kitsap County WA has received the prestigious #1 ranking by the USSSA (United States Specialty Sports Association). Here’s a snapshot of the Top Ten team rankings:

(For a complete list of the team rankings, GO HERE)

Our family knows several of the team players, like Little Dick, but one in particular is a very special friend, Josh Phillips, Owner/President of Ethos Builders in Poulsbo WA. Josh is good friends with our oldest son, Ben, and is married to Mallory (Gaboriault). Mallory’s parents live in the house behind us, and their dog, Prince, is on permanent loan to us.

Congrats to Josh and the rest of the team for such an amazing accomplishment!

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Posted in Kitsap County Bites, Poulsbo Real Estate | No Comments »

Tags: ethos builders, josh phillips, new life church, soft pitch softball, usssa

We were pressed for time. My Out-of-State Buyers had only a few days, and were on a whirlwind schedule. They scoured the Internet from a coffee shop wireless connection, and threw a few more candidates into the mix.

It ended up being like that VISA commercial, where everyone in the store is using their VISA card, and then the one guy tries to use cash, and the whole place shuts down from the log jam.

I called one of the last minute entries. The ‘phone-to-show’ number was the Listing Agent’s cell number. I got his voicemail:
“Hi! This is Rich Jacobson of Brio Realty. I was wondering if I might be able to schedule a showing for your listing on Jones Street for later this afternoon. I have some Buyers from out of town, and they would like to see the house.”

I got a return phone call later that day:

“Hi, This is Bill from XYZ Real Estate. Here are the showing instructions for the Jones Street property. Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 5:30pm to 7:00pm, Tuesdays and Thursdays from Noon to 2pm, and Saturdays and Sundays after 7pm.”

…..The brakes on the Home Tour bus came to a screeching halt!!!!…..

It amazes me, given the current market conditions (slow as molasses going uphill on a cold day), why anyone would create obstacles to prevent a home from being shown?

Typically here in our market, the ‘phone-to-show’ number is the Seller’s phone. The Buyer’s agent calls and sets up the showing appointment with them directly. This eliminates one more step in the communication chain. Some Listing Agents prefer to have their cell phone as the ‘phone-to-show.’ This isn’t necessarily an issue, as long as the Listing Agent is readily accessible. But then, the Listing Agent still has to call the Sellers, obtain permission, then call the Buyer’s Agent back. This can sometimes cause delays.

In a slow market, where you have tons of inventory, and lots of homes competing for the same pool of Buyers, Sellers need to do everything within their ability to make the showing process easy and painless for Buyers and their Agents. That means removing any potential obstacles that may exist.

Now, obviously, this doesn’t mean, as a Seller, that you do anything that compromises your safety. Don’t ever allow anyone in through your front door who can’t establish their professional standing as a licensed real estate professional. Always have them activate the Lockbox first, to ensure they can properly/legally access the key, and provide digital record of their visit.

As a Seller, you need to be as accommodating as possible if you’re going to successfully compete with other homes on the market.

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Posted in Buyers, Poulsbo Real Estate, Real Estate Bites, Sellers | 6 Comments »

As many of you may know, I am a Community Builder with ActiveRain, a very large real estate network and blogging platform. It’s a start-up based out of Bellevue WA, and has over 80,000 members throughout the US and Canada.

Part of my role is to simply monitor the network, make sure the members are behaving, and to field questions.

Earlier today, I received an e-mail from a fairly new member out on the East coast. She’s in her in late 20′s, is relatively new to the real estate profession (she didn’t pick the best time to enter the fray!), and is working through the challenges of establishing her business in a slow market.

She recently wrote an article about real estate commissions and the portion that actually ends up in the agent’s bank account. It was a well-written article. However, no sooner had she published it, than a swarm of bubble bloggers descended upon her post and unleashed their commenting fury.

The first volley of comments were fairly typical of most bubble bloggers, but as the discussion slowly devolved, they became increasingly base and personally degrading towards the young author.

(For my regular readers, please forgive the following uncensored re-publishing of a few of these comments. I don’t usually allow this kind of language within the confines of SoundBiteBlog, but I felt it necessary to include them here)

One of the Bubble Bloggers made this degrading comment:

After reading the various posts on this subject, I think that everyone involved is failing to see the big picture here which is that —– is one hot mamma jamma MILF and I can tell that she is a jackal in the sack.

In fact, I would like to bone her very much if she is ever open and willing to fulfill my naughty realtor mom who will do anything to close the deal fantasy.

Most of you are so caught up in your evil realtor nonsense that you can not appreciate a fine cougar when you see one.

 —–,  love you long time.  You are the bomb in my book.  You can flip my house any day.

 Call me.

-Dave

 P.S: Post more pictures.

And another example of this senseless filthy attack:

I’ll pay you 6%. You have proven your worth. I just have one question:

Does that 6% get me some “alone time” in the VIP room and a guaranteed happy ending?

Because I think it’s only fair that I can do to you what your commission would be doing to me.

-L. Flynt

We’ve had a few Seattle area Bubble Bloggers frequent SoundBiteBlog. Most of these individuals are extremely sharp. They’re very articulate and can discuss intricate economic indicators on a equal or better footing than most investment professionals. One in particular has become somewhat of a regular around here. Last time he stopped by, he actually gave me a compliment!

Many Bubble Bloggers tend to be rather argumentative and abrasive by nature, but rarely do they descend to this level of vicious attack. I was able to trace one of the perputraitors back to their blogspot site, and left a few choice comments of my own, along with the charge that he and his blog thugs didn’t reflect or represent the majority of Bubble Bloggers I had encountered.

No doubt they’ll hunt me down now and make me their next target….oh goody!

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Posted in Bite Me Blogs, Poulsbo Real Estate, Real Estate Bites | 11 Comments »

In the early morning hours of May 30th of 2006, a very popular local eatery in Poulsbo WA was left in charred ruins by fire. When Mitzel’s, a well known landmark, went up in smoke, area residents lost a dining tradition they had enjoyed for over 20 years.

Fast forward to the present, and the grand opening of ”Taprock Northwest Grill.”

Recently, I offered my son, Ben, and his friend, Josh, a lunchtime reprieve from their house-building efforts, and treated them both to a meal at the new Taprock Northwest Grill.

As is typical of most newly opened restaurants, the place was packed with plenty of local business people and assorted patrons patiently awaiting a seat.

The hired help was extremely friendly and gracious throughout our meal. On several occasions, the Manager, Steve Hancock, came up, personally greeted us, and inquired about our meal/service.

Yours Truly enjoyed a plate of Pan-Fried Totten Bay Oysters, while both Ben and Josh manhandled the Mountain High Tillamook Cheddar & Bacon Burger.

Trust me when I say that “Mountain High’ is an adequate description!

The food was very tasty, the service prompt and attentive, and the prices kind to my wallet.

The decor was classic Pacific Northwest, appointed with generous use of wood and stone, giving you the sense of an upscale hunting lodge or ski resort, but only next to a strip mall. It wasn’t too high-end though. Ben and Josh felt right at home in their work boots and bibs.

Overall, a very pleasant experience, and one that will no doubt more than adequately fill the shoes left behind by Mitzel’s.

Located at 760 NE Liberty Road, Poulsbo, WA 98370 * Phone: 360.697.2215

Hours of Operation
Sunday – Thursday:      11am – 10pm
Friday and Saturday:    11am – 11pm

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Posted in Business Bites, Poulsbo Real Estate | 4 Comments »