Recent News

In Washington, unless co-owners have agreed otherwise, any co-owner of property can file a lawsuit to have the court divide that property.  This could be personal property or real estate.  For the purpose of this article, we will be discussing the resolution of disputes involving real estate.  The court process of dividing property is called… Read More

In almost every residential sale of real estate, the seller is required to provide a Seller Disclosure Form.  This is usually completed on MLS Form 17.  In a recent Washington case, the court addressed the effect of an incomplete Form 17.  The case is Lyons v. Liu and the opinion of Division 1 of the… Read More

Back in April, I published a piece here regarding the status of Western Washington Real Estate inventory. It outlined the large jump in residential listings across King and Snohomish Counties in March of 2025, compared to March of 2024, reflecting a noticeable increase in the availability of real estate. This post serves as a brief follow up… Read More

In Washington State, many mechanisms exist to enforce a debt. One of the most powerful mechanisms is the claim of lien. At its most basic definition, a lien is a claim to the personal or real property of another who owes the creditor money. With respect to real property, a lien creates an encumbrance that… Read More

June 19th, 2025 C. Michael Kvistad discusses "Owning Property with an LLC – Managing Financing Challenges". Read More

In Washington State, most home sales involve publicly disclosed and advertised transactions. They often start with listings on the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS) and end up with buyers and sellers entering into purchase and sale agreements with the assistance of their respective real estate brokers. Although rife with risks, some of which we have… Read More

While strict application of caveat emptor or “buyer beware” has been softened over time, Washington is still often referred to as a “buyer beware” jurisdiction when it comes to sales of residential property. Consistent with Washington’s “buyer beware” reputation, Washington courts have held that where a buyer is put on notice of a defect, a… Read More

The world is full of insurance – health insurance, residential property insurance, liability insurance, car insurance, and more. One type of insurance often gets ignored – title insurance. When a homeowner purchases a home, the homeowner often obtains an owner’s policy of title insurance. If that homeowner has a lender with a security interest in… Read More

The Clear Cooperation Policy (CCP) saga continues. Just recently, I wrote a blog post here about the push for private real estate listings in Washington State, spearheaded by Compass Real Estate and some other brokerages. As mentioned, this has been part of an ongoing argument about the merits of requiring new listings to become immediately available to… Read More