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Real Estate & Appraisal

I have a real estate career that spans more than 37 years. I’m a real estate investor, real estate agent, appraiser, an SRA with the Appraisal Institute and a person that want’s to help.

My specialities are appraising, investing, and teaching. Each of these specialities has brought me knowledge about the other. Through investing I’ve been able to understand how fraudulent real estate transactions and loans happen. Appraising has taught me to be analytical in my investing and precise in reporting information. By teaching, I’ve been allowed to communicate with private corporations and government agencies helping them understand the anatomy of a fraudulent transaction and put some bad people out of business.

These skills didn’t happen by chance.

My father was a real estate broker selling homes in Seattle, later becoming the sales manager for one of the largest real estate development companies in the United States. The company created land developments in Washington, Oregon, California, and Australia and had offices throughout the World including Europe and Asia. From Palm Springs to Ocean Shores, from mountain tops to ocean side sand dunes, this company put developments together that are common city names today.

I consider myself fortunate, I grew up around bulldozers, road graders, land surveyors, engineers, a Secretary of State, Governors, bankers, and in my opinion, some of the best damn salespeople and real estate investors in the United States. For these talented people, making money was an every day event……if not an hourly occurrence. Growing up around them was an education in land buying, sales, marketing, analyzing, negotiating, Government rules, investing and making money. It was an education that could not have been gained any were else on this earth. The tides of time, money and talent all came to cross paths at two or three points, and I was fortunate enough to be close by when it happened.

For some reason (like I had a choice), I became a real estate agent and had the opportunity of selling real estate side by side with these talented people. Vacant land, houses, condominiums, residential subdivisions, time-share condominiums, estates, and recreational property, if was something you could live in or on, I had the opportunity to sell it. All around me, at every step of the way, my father Dick Hagar and his friends Rich Emery, George Donahoe, Herb Horton, Glen and Jack Corning, Harry Gillis, Joe and Mike Hengtgen, bought real estate, made lots of money and were kind enough to show me the way to do the same – Thank you gentlemen! Thank you very much.

Later I became involved with a construction company building and selling homes to first time home buyers and developing our own subdivisions. I’ve helped build hundreds of homes including my own.

I’ve managed investment properties for others, and myself, and helped hundreds of people successfully buy and invest in real estate.

Today I’m the owner of American Home Appraisals and have a few credits to my name including:

One of the more senior real estate appraisers in the State of Washington with the highest residential certificate available from the State.
An SRA with the Appraisal Institute. (The SRA designation indicates a proficiency in residential appraising and is awarded to less than 2% of all appraisers in North America)
On the approved list with more than 100 different lenders,
Perform review work for the State of Washington and some of the largest lenders
Provide attorney’s, valuation and real estate consulting for legal matters in Washington and Colorado.
Provide consultation and background regarding Shoreline Management and Growth Management Rules/Regulations
Been involved with legal challenges to State guidelines, laws, and….shall we say, methods of doing business.
Co-authored the State of Washingtons “Mortgage Brokers Practices Act” (RCW 19.146)
Licensed by the State of Washington to teach more than eight different fields of real estate including valuation, construction issues, sales and marketing, land use and real estate investment. One of the few people in the State to be authorized to teach eight different fields.
Created classes for local colleges, real estate agents, mortgage brokers and appraisers (Professor of real estate at Seattle colleges).
Regularly teach classes on Real Estate Investing, Appraisal, and how to spot fraud
Author of “The Real Estate-Advisor”, “The 8-Step Plan For Real Estate Investing”, “How To Spot And Identify Real Estate & Mortgage Fraud”, “The Investigators Guide To Real Estate Fraud” and numerous news letters for the real estate industry
Instruct criminal investigators and mortgage regulators in twenty states through the prestigious American Association of Residential Mortgage Regulators AARMR
Own and manage, with my wife’s constant help, our own portfolio of investment properties including homes, condominiums, multi-family, and a commercial office buildings.

I started with two vacant lots near Bellingham and along the way purchased many properties. Today I own…. well lets just say more properties than the average person. Experience from owning, together with the knowledge of a real estate agent and the analytical skills learned as a real estate appraiser, have provided me with a unique Insider’s prospective on real estate and real estate investing.

The ride towards knowledge and investing can be wild, fun, filled with insight, and downright profitable….. want to come along?

Richard