Caps

[Jason Fay]

Does anyone have an idea on what fair cap rate is in seattle?  Everything in my area seems so low.  Also is it common for seller to want 10% earnest money held back after feasibility test?

[Adrian Chu]

Within Seattle/Bellevue city limits, it's usually 4-5%.  In Snohomish County, 6-7% is common.  If you go to South King or Pierce County, you can find 7-9%.  Other counties, it's common to see 9%+.

The only time I have seen a 10% earnest money required is if you do a cash offer for certain bank owned properties.  Some aggressive private-party sellers will ask for something like that too. What are you looking for in particular?