Become a Master Recycler Composter

Become a Master Recycler Composter to learn new skills and help your community.

Join fellow fans of waste reduction and become a "green ambassador" for the three "R's." Thurston County trains Master Recycler Composter (MRC) volunteers with the purpose of inspiring others to reduce waste, recycle, or compost at home and work. 

Over a five week period, MRC volunteers learn how to reduce waste and increase public awareness of opportunities to prevent waste, recycle, and compost in Thurston County.  

Participants receive background and hands-on training from county and state educators. Class topics include: 

• waste prevention. 
• recycling processes and markets.
• home composting. 
• worm composting. 
• greener buying choices. 
• how to work with the public.
• plus so much more.

2013 Class Training Dates:

Tuesday evenings, 6 pm- 8:30 pm: refreshments provided
September 3- October 29  

Location: 9605 Tilley Rd S, Olympia WA 98512  

Saturday morning field experiences:
September 21, 9 am- 1 pm (Dirt Works Garden, Olympia)
October 5, 9 am- 12 pm (Waste & Recovery Center/LeMay Recycling Plant, Lacey)

Course graduates agree to give a minimum of 25 hours of yearly service as they put their new skills to use. They work with: 

• local organizations. 
• community members. 
• neighborhoods.
• schools. 
• workplaces. 
• or at special events.

Volunteers encourage waste prevention, recycling and composting.

MRCs can design their own projects or work on existing ones. On-going continuing education opportunities will be provided.

The online application is available now. Preference will be given to applicants who live or work within Thurston County. Applications are due August 16 by 5 p.m.

 A $75 course fee will be collected at the first class to cover all training supplies and field trips.

For more information, go to www.ThurstonSolidWaste.org and click on "Volunteers" or contact Cori Carlton at carltoc@co.thurston.wa.us at or call 867-2162.

  

Mortgage Interest Deduction

Wonder how much WA homeowners get in tax deductions by reporting their mortgage interest on their tax return? Or what is the percentage of homeowners in WA that actually use the mortgage interest deduction? The answers and more are in the report "The Geographic Distribution of the Mortgage Interest Deduction,"commissioned by The Pew Charitable Trusts.

Percentage of each state’s tax filers who claim the mortgage interest deduction, 2010

Home prices rose in 41 states in the 1st quarter of 2013

• FHFA (Federal Housing Finance Agency) price data shows that home prices across the United States rose 6.7 percent from the first quarter of 2012 to the first quarter of 2013. In 41 states and the District of Columbia prices were higher than the fourth quarter of 2012, and from one year ago the District and all states except Connecticut and West Virginia showed higher prices. In Connecticut and West Virginia, prices were weaker by less than one percent.
• Price gains were largest in the West. Nevada, Arizona, California, and Idaho each saw gains exceeding 15 percent from one year ago. The map above shows the breakout of annual gains for each state.
• Nationally, prices rose 1.9 percent from the fourth quarter. Note that this is seasonally adjusted, but not annualized, meaning that if prices continue to gain at this pace, it would imply an 8 percent gain for home prices nationally in the course of a year.
• FHFA uses a weighted repeat sales index that compares the prices of properties that involve a conforming conventional mortgage purchased or securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Thus, the FHFA index is based on a broad geographical sample of home transactions, though it misses out on transactions involving cash, jumbo or FHA/VA loans. In spite of this limitation, its price trend is usually similar to that of other price measures.

Courtesy of Danielle Hale, Research Economist via REALTOR.org

May/June 2013 Market Pulse

Home sales have been hovering at the 4.9 million sales-pace mark since fall of last year and aren’t likely to move up much unless more inventory comes onto the market. As long as markets continue to see inventory shortages, home prices will continue to rise, not a healthy development if household income gains don’t keep up. All trend lines are from March 2012 to March 2013.

How to Ensure Healthy Price Gains

Prices are increasing quickly, though that may not always be the most healthy development for the economy. Also, banks may soon loosen overly strict requirements, but a choke point remains in new-home construction.

The housing recovery is surpassing most expectations. Rising demand and many years of sluggish new-home construction have forced home prices to rise at a near double-digit pace in many parts of the country. The latest surveys from the National Association of REALTORS®, which looked at foot traffic at open houses and inquiries from potential sellers to real estate agents, continued to point toward too many buyers chasing too few sellers. Home prices should continue to rise this year and likely next year as well.

Fast-rising home values are clearly good for home owners, but price increases that are far in excess of income growth are not good for buyers and not a healthy development for the economy. However, it’s important to keep in mind that demand is moving ahead in spite of the stringent lending standards still in place. Fully one-third of buyers are using cash.

Consider what demand would look like if underwriting restrictions were dialed back to a more reasonable level. That’s finally a possibility for two reasons: Banks are sitting on piles of cash, and the quality of recently underwritten mortgages has been high. These conditions could persuade banks to start easing overly strict requirements. The additional demand in a more “normal” lending environment potentially would mean even faster price growth. The only way to tame excessive price jumps is for more inventory to reach the market. Investors could help here by selling properties ahead of their intended schedule to take advantage of rising prices.

The choke point today is from the slow recovery in new-home construction. Housing starts in March finally crossed the 1 million mark for the first time in five years. But 1.5 million new housing units are needed annually to keep home-price gains at a healthy, long-term level of around 3 percent to 5 percent a year. That balance seems unlikely this year as we will continue to see demand outstrip supply, fueling exorbitant price increases in some places.

PER realtor.og MAY 2013 | BY LAWRENCE YUN

In the Know: Prepare Your Home for Inclement Weather

Be "In the Know" with these statistics about the yearly impact of natural disasters in the U.S., and guidelines for protecting your family and your property as best you can.

Four Reasons Why Home Sales Are Looking Healthy

  At first glance, Wednesday’s report that sales of existing homes gained by just 0.6% in April, after adjusting for seasonal factors, seems unremarkable.

But the modest gain understates what was a relatively solid report. Sales were up by 9.7% from one year ago to an annual rate of 4.97 million, which was the highest level since November 2009, according to the National Association of Realtors. (To be sure, home sales have stayed within a narrow band between 4.9 million and 4.97 million units for the last six months).

Here are four reasons why Wednesday’s report is a sign of progress for housing:

1. Sales have increased from their year-earlier levels even though there are significantly fewer homes for sale. The 2.16 million homes for sale in April was 13.6% below last year’s level. So far, significant price gains over the past year haven’t slowed sales, partly because low interest rates have allowed buyers to swallow higher prices without seeing much gain, if any, in their monthly payment.

2. Sales of non-distressed homes are picking up. Around 18% of sales in April were a foreclosure or a short sale, down from 28% one year ago. Big drops in the availability of foreclosures and other short sales haven’t yet produced declines in reported sales volumes, which means home buyers are increasing their purchases of non-distressed homes.

In California, home sales fell by 4% in April from one year earlier, according to real-estate data firm PropertyRadar, but this headline masks big changes. Distressed-property sales fell by 39.4% from a year earlier, while sales of non-distressed homes rose by 36.6%. When or whether the non-distressed component can offset the decline in the distressed component will be an important milestone in a housing recovery.

3. The number of homes for sale jumped by 11.9% in April from March. Much of this is seasonal—more people tend to list their homes for sale in April. After taking into account these seasonal factors, inventories were up by 1.8%, according to Jed Kolko, chief economist at Trulia TRLA +6.35%. While inventories are up 22% so far this year, they’re up by 4% after seasonal adjustments, according to Mr. Kolko.

Many real-estate agents have said that sales volume has been limited by the lack of supply. By the same token, the fact that demand has outstripped supply also goes a long way to explain why prices are rising by around 10% from their year-earlier levels. Rising inventory should ultimately slow some of the price rally while boosting sales volumes, helping to restore equilibrium in the housing market.

4. Homes are selling faster. Half of all homes that sold in April were on the market for 46 days, down from 62 days in March and 83 days one year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors. A separate analysis of 22 markets by Redfin, the tech-powered real estate brokerage, showed that 20% of homes went under contract in just one week in April, and one third of all homes were under contract in two weeks. The share of homes that went under contract in two weeks increased by 39% from one year ago.

Follow Nick @NickTimiraos, Wall Street Journal