February Real Estate Update for the Okanogan Valley

OKANOGAN VALLEY MARKET SNAPSHOT

Well, things slowed down in January, as is pretty typical this time of year.  There were 6 residential properties sold in January, compared to 15 in December.  Average sale price of $172,433, down from $183,567 in December, and average days on market for January was a mere 81 days, vs. 254 for December.  As of 2/10/11, there are 224 active residential listings.  Search homes here.

Vacant land sales in the area were also down in January - two land listings sold, compared to 11 in December.  As of 2/10/11, there are 449 active land listings.  Search land here.  

These are sales reported through the NWMLS, and do not reflect private sales, or those from offices who are not members of the NWMLS.  These statistics are deemed reliable, but are not guaranteed.


JANUARY RESIDENTIAL SALES

CITY	BED	BATH	SQ. FT.	LOT SIZE	YEAR	$/SF	DOM	ORIG. PRICE	SOLD PRICE
Riverside	2	2.00	924	00.59 ac	1993	64.94	108	$70,000	$60,000
Okanogan	2	1.25	1,500	00.34 ac	1956	53.33	112	$99,500	$80,000
Omak	4	1.75	1,820	00.19 ac	1967	87.91	83	$168,500	$160,000
Oroville	2	1.75	1,544	24.19 ac	2006	123.61	28	4232,500	$190,850
Omak	5	3.25	4,150	00.32 ac	1912	64.64	63	$299,900	$268,250
Oroville	3	1.75	2,200	07.51 ac	2005	125.23	93	$285,000	$275,500
AVERAGES			2,023			86.61	81	$192,567	$172,433

FEATURED PROPERTIES

	New "rough finished" cabin on over 3 acres in Aeneas Valley.  Good water in area, and easy access.  SELLER FINANCING AVAILABLE!  Details and photos here.   $32,500
	GREAT BUY - 40 acres for $40,000! Just 7 miles from Tonasket - outstanding Cascade views.  Good water in area.  Details here.

TIDBITS AND LINKS

*  BARGAIN!  Smith & Nelson in Tonasket is selling pears and Golden and Gala apples - $10 for a 40 pound box!  And they are very good!!

*  If you are looking for some interesting things to see or do this time of year, check out my recent blog post. 

*  The Bonaparte Lake Resort is under new ownership since last fall.  They have spent the winter months renovating the restaurant and have recently reopened.  We decided to mosey on up there for dinner last night, and were very impressed!  They have managed to retain the rustic appeal, but the place is very CLEAN, and the food was excellent!  Be sure and check them out!!  

FROM MY KITCHEN TO YOURS...

Mexican Pickled Carrots

I had these at a Mexican restaurant once, served along with the chips and salsa.  They were really good, but very unusual, and I knew I had to track down a recipe to make them on my own...  Thank you, oh wonderful internet, I finally found the right one a few years back, and have added them to my canning list. (Though they do not need to actually be processed.)

 

2 lbs. carrots - peeled, cut into large chunks

2 yellow onions - sliced

1 1/2 quarts warm water

7 oz. canned jalapenos - with liquid

1 tbsp. dried Oregano

6 garlic cloves - halved or sliced

2 cups cider vinegar

1/4 olive oil

2 bay leaves

1 tbsp. salt

 

1.  Bring carrots and water to boil in large pot.  Boil for five minutes; remove from heat.

2.  Add remaining ingredients.  Cover and let cool several hours.

3.  Remove peppers before transferring to jars. 

 

Makes 2+ quarts.  Let sit three days before using.

A FAVORITE QUOTE

"Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship"  Benjamin Franklin

Pages! Listings!

Hey everyone!  I'm figuring out more of the ins and outs of this blogging site, and now have added some pages with listings for you to see, as well as a page with a search tool to customize your search.  I will update them as listing status changes, or as new properties come on the market.  And, as I get time, I will try and add pages with more content.  For now, there is still a wealth of area information and useful real estate tools, news, etc. on my real estate website at TNTRealEstatePros.com.

Thanks~

Tina Holan

Historic Treasures, Abundant Recreation....

On a recent drive through the Okanogan Highlands, I found plenty of fodder to share on my blog...  It was the perfect winter day - crisp, cold, sunny, and endless blue sky!  The kind of day where thick, white frost clung to trees and barbed wire fences and grasses.  I found dozens of photos waiting to be taken - old barns, ranches, the old Wauconda school, the Wauconda Grange Hall (1917 and still used today!).  All while my camera rested comfortably - on my desk - at home...

Okay.  Well - it made me realize two things:  One, I should ALWAYS take my camera along!  What was I thinking?!?  And two, there are a lot of really neat things to see and enjoy and do here that people from out of area might not realize.  Living in the Aeneas Valley, we decided to take the scenic back roads into Tonasket - a much longer route, but such a pretty drive.  After turning at Wauconda onto Toroda Creek Road, you meander through open ranch lands and timber for several miles, and then come across the old ghost town of Bodie.  One of the many things I love about the Okanogan, are the remnants of history that are still around to be enjoyed.  Another fun place to visit up in this region is Molson.  If you missed my earlier post about this ghost town, you can read about it here.

There is plenty of winter time recreation in the highlands as well.  Sitzmark Ski Hill is a great place for family fun and they have lots of activities scheduled for February.  If snowmobiling is your thing, check out the Bonaparte Sno-Park.  And, Beaver Lake and Beth Lake are popular spots for ice fishing. 

Alright, so I did run back up in the late afternoon and snapped a few photos to share...  They are not the glorious photos I had envisioned while the sun was high in the sky at 11:00 AM, but I will share a few anyway. 

Don't blink, or you will miss Wauconda!  Located on Highway 20, between Tonasket and Republic, this is one stop shopping at it's finest - cafe, groceries, post office and fuel.  Admittedly, I have not eaten here since it changed hands last, but the food has always been pretty darn good!

The old Wauconda school is currently listed for sale for $349,000.  Includes 23+ acres, and 9 RV sites.

And, (shameless plug), also listed for sale in this area is this Hidden Creekfront Retreat for $400,000!

The Wauconda Grange Hall - 1917

And a little about Bodie...