Posted: 6/7/2007
Western Washington Housing Market Continues Trend of Expanding Inventory, Fewer Sales, Rising Prices
KIRKLAND , Wash. ( June 6, 2007) – Fewer home sales, more choices and higher prices were the themes again in May, according to new statistics from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
Figures show three key indicators -- pending sales, active listings and selling prices -- for last month’s activity followed the pattern of recent months. The report covers 19 counties, mostly in Western Washington.
Pending sales (offers made and accepted, but not yet closed) fell about 9.9 percent compared to twelve months ago, with wide variation across the MLS service area. King County, which accounted for about 40 percent of the pending sales volume, lagged year-ago totals by 7.5 percent. Three counties, Okanogan, Pacific and Skagit, improved on May 2006 activity. Thirteen counties reported double-digit drops in pending sales of single family homes and condominiums (combined).
In the four-county Puget Sound region (King, Snohomish, Pierce and Kitsap counties), brokers reported 7,311 pending sales during May. That was 1,100 fewer transactions than the same month a year ago (a 13 percent decline), but the largest volume since August 2006.
Inventory continued to grow. Member brokers added 16,888 new listings of single family homes and condominiums to the inventory during May. At month end, buyers could choose from 42,514 active listings, a 53.7 percent larger selection than a year ago when there were 27,660 listings area-wide.
Despite the slower pace of sales, prices are still rising. Area-wide, the median selling price for last month’s closed sales rose nearly 10 percent (9.95 percent) from a year ago. The sales price for May’s 8,590 completed transactions (including single family homes and condominiums) was $332,600, which compares to the year-ago figure of $302,500.
For single family homes only (excluding condominiums), the median sales price was $350,258, up 9.8 percent from the year-ago figure of $319,000. In King County, the median price for a single family home that sold and closed last month was $469,000, up more than $41,000 (9.6 percent) from twelve months ago when the median selling price was $427,950.
Condo sales dipped last month as well. Brokers reported 99 fewer pending sales compared with the same month a year ago for a 5.5 percent decline. In King County, where about two-thirds of the pending sales occurred, the volume nearly matched year-ago numbers. Brokers notched 20 fewer pending sales for a 1.8 percent decline from twelve months ago.
Prices for condominiums continue to jump at a fast clip. For last month’s closed sales, the median selling price system-wide was $270,000, up 18.4 percent from a year ago. In King County, the median price for last month’s closed sales of condos increased 17.6 percent, rising from $246,500 a year ago to $289,950.
“Bargain deals are few and far between,” observed NWMLS director Kathy Estey, the managing broker at John L. Scott’s Bellevue Downtown office. “In spite of growing inventory, prices are still increasing and homes that are priced right are selling very quickly,” she commented, adding, “Insulting a seller with a ridiculous offer is not necessarily a winning negotiation strategy.”
Procrastinating may be counter-productive as well, according to some brokers.
Buyers who take their time to decide may be “surprised and sorrowful when they lose their favorite property because they waited a day too long to make an offer and someone else sneaks in before them,” reports Northwest MLS director Dick Beeson, broker/owner of Windermere Real Estate/Commencement Associates in Tacoma.
