King County Home Prices Continue to Rise

Home prices continued to rise in the Northwest in July, hitting nearly 20% increases in some areas, according to the latest report from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

Home prices increased an average 9% in the Northwest area in July, according to the report, which covers 23 counties in and around Washington state. However, some counties near high job-growth areas saw even higher increases. King County, for example, saw its median home price jump 18.6% from last year.

Read more here.

Happy Investing!

2016 Year End Stats

NWMLS Monthly Press Release

Home buyer frustration continues due to limited selection;
price increases

Like many other months of 2016, December was frustrating for buyers across Washington state as they encountered depleted inventory and rising prices. Post-election hikes in interest rates - with more on the horizon -- added to would-be homeowners' worries.

Northwest Multiple Listing Service statistics for December show year-over-year drops in new listings, but gains in pending sales, closed sales and prices. Pending sales (mutually accepted offers) in the four-county Puget Sound region reached their highest level since 2005.

At month end, MLS figures show inventory (10,571 listings) was nearly 15.6 percent below year-ago levels (12,522 listings), with about 90 percent of the selection being single family homes.

Seventeen of the 23 counties in the MLS report had double-digit drops in active listings at the end of last month compared to December 2015.

NWMLS members reported 6,401 pending sales during December, up from 5,970 for the same month a year ago for a year-over-year gain of 7.2 percent.

King County recorded the biggest year-over-year jump in pending sales of single family homes, surging nearly 11.3 percent, well ahead of Kitsap (up 4.5 percent), Pierce (up 4 percent) and Snohomish (up 3.2 percent).

Prices area-wide also continued trending upward, rising nearly 9.2 percent from a year ago. The overall median price for single family homes and condominiums that sold during December was $343,950; a year ago it was $315,000.

King County prices jumped 12.2 percent, from $450,000 in December 2015 to $505,000 for last month's sales. For single family homes (excluding condominiums) the median price for December's sales was $550,000, unchanged from October and November. Prices peaked this year in King County in June, reaching $573,522.

Consumers should expect prices to continue edging upward as the pattern of low inventory and increasing prices continues.

Happy Investing!

No Holiday Breather

NWMLS Monthly Press Release

Real Estate Brokers Expect No Holiday Breather

Pending sales of homes hit an all-time high for the month of November according to the latest statistics from Northwest Multiple Listing Service. The report covering 23 counties around Washington state also shows the number of new listings added during the month plunged to the lowest level in 11 months, prompting MLS leaders to predict a busy winter for residential real estate as buyers compete for the smallest inventory since March.

Figures for November show a 13.2% drop in inventory of single family homes and condominiums, a9.4% gain in pending sales, a 31.3% spike in closed sales, and an 11% increase in prices compared to the same month a year ago.

Pending sales (mutually accepted offers) totaled 8,217, and eclipsed the number of new listings (5,779) by 2,438 units. That imbalance depleted total inventory, dropping the number of active listings to 13,303, down 13.2% from a year ago.

The median price on last month’s closed sales of single family homes and condominiums area-wide was $342,000, up 11% from the year-ago figure of $308,000. August was the only other month this year with year-over-year double-digit appreciation for prices area-wide.

Prices for single family homes (excluding condos) rose 10.9 % from a year ago to $350,500. King County reported the highest median price for single family homes at $550,000 (up 10 % year-over-year).



Happy Investing!

King County Housing Stats

Despite a sparse selection in many areas, an expected summer slowdown, and “appraisal conundrums,” Northwest MLS members notched 11,898 pending sales during August, eclipsing the same month a year ago by 1,295 transactions for a 12.2 percent gain. There were 8,628 pending sales in the four-county Puget Sound region -- the best August for mutually accepted offers since 2005 when members tallied 8,874 sales.

Brokers added 11,411 new listings to the Northwest MLS database during August, but they presented
offers for even more buyers (11,898) to keep inventory below two months of supply. At month-end, there were 18,336 active listings in the MLS system, a decrease of 11.6 percent from a year ago, resulting in only 1.9 months of supply. (Four to six months is generally considered to be a “neutral” or balanced market for buyers and sellers.)

In King County, the median price on 3,656 sales that closed during August was just under $500,000.
That’s up nearly 11 percent from the year ago figure of $450,700, but slightly lower than July’s median sales price of $505,000. Prices on single family homes (excluding condos) that closed in King County jumped 10 percent year-over-year, rising from $499,950 to $550,000.

So still a lot of demand for houses in our area, and a shrinking pool of available properties. A very HOT seller's market...

If you are thinking of selling, the market is hungry for inventory - and prices and demand continue to go up. For a free, no-obligation assessment of what your house might bring in today's hot housing market, please send a private email to HomeLandInvestment@gmail.com or leave a message on my 24-hour recorded hotline 888-621-4999.

Happy Investing!

Hot, hot, hot!

MLS figures show there is only 1.76 months of supply system-wide. In both King and Snohomish counties, there is barely more than one month of supply – well below the 4-to-6 months that many experts use as an indicator of a balanced market.

Even though brokers say paltry inventory is limiting sales, the year-over-year volume of pending sales rose more than 7.4 percent last month. Members reported 12,275 mutually accepted offers, up from the year-ago total of 11,425. MLS data going back to 2004 shows that one-month total is the highest on record.

Prices also rose. The median price area-wide for last month’s 8,630 closed sales of single family homes and condominiums (combined) was $339,950. That’s up more than 7.2 percent from twelve months ago when purchasers paid $317,000 for the median-priced home. Ten counties reported double-digit price hikes.

In King County, the median price jumped more than 11.7 percent, from $434,000 to $485,000. Prices on single family homes surged nearly 16.5 percent, rising from $480,942 to $560,000. Condo prices were up 9 percent, but finding one proved challenging as inventory dropped 29 percent in King County.

Happy Investing!

Hot, hot, hot!

The NWMLS reports that home prices in King County hit new highs in February as buyers tried to outbid each other for the sparse inventory in much of Western Washington.

With the number of single family homes for sale in King County down nearly 30 percent from a year ago, prices on last month’s sales surged 19.8 percent, jumping from $429,900 to $514,975. Ten other counties in the 23-county area served by Northwest Multiple Listing Service also reported double-digit price gains for single family homes that sold last month, according to its latest statistics. Condo prices surged 19.6 percent.

Member-brokers added 7,931 listings area-wide to inventory last month for a slight improvement from a year ago when they added 7,852 homes and condominiums to their database. At month end, they reported 12,107 active listings, a sharp drop from a year ago when there were 16,946 properties offered for sale.

Current levels of inventory translate to 2.4 months of supply, well below the four-to-six months that industry experts use to indicate a balanced market. In the four-county Puget Sound region, supply is hovering near or below two months, with King County having the lowest level at only 1.3 months of supply.

Seven counties, including King County, reported year-over-year declines in pending sales during February in the wake of inventory shortages. Pending sales in King County fell about 5.6 percent compared to twelve months ago. The selection in the state’s most populous county plummeted nearly 32 percent from year-ago levels while asking prices jumped about 22 percent.

This market is red hot for sellers, and a challenge for buyers...

Happy Investing!

Record-breaking Home Sales

Members of Northwest Multiple Listing Service reported 88,331 closed sales during 2015, outperforming the prior year’s volume of 77,276 transactions for a 14.3 percent increase.

Measured by dollars, last year’s sales of single family homes and condominiums were valued at more than $34 billion. Compared to 2014, that dollar volume represents a gain of nearly 23 percent.

Last year’s completed sales included 75,975 single family homes (about 86 percent of the total) and 12,356 condominiums. The total units and dollar volume surpassed the previous highs during 2007 when members registered 82,197 sales valued at $32.3 billion.

Year-over-year prices for single family homes (excluding condominiums) increased almost 8.5 percent system-wide, rising from $295,000 in 2014 to last year’s median price of $320,000. Condo prices jumped 13.3 percent, from the 2014 figure of $225,000 to last year’s median selling price of $254,900.

During 2015, the average area-wide supply, as measured by months of inventory, fell to 2.4 month, down from the previous year’s figure of 3.5 months. King County had the lowest level, averaging only 1.3 months of supply. Industry analysts tend to use a 4-to-6 month range as an indicator of a balanced market, favoring neither buyers nor sellers.

Among other highlights in its annual compilation of statistics, Northwest Multiple Listing Service reported:

• About 46 percent of last year’s single family home sales had three bedrooms, while the vast majority of condos (73 percent) had two bedrooms or fewer.

• The median price for a 3-bedroom home that sold in 2015 was $283,250, about 7.9 percent higher than the previous year’s figure of $262,500. 

• Of the condo sales, about six of every 10 (61.9 percent) were located in King County, primarily in Seattle or on the Eastside. That ratio matched the figure for 2014.

• Newly built condos fetched higher prices than single family homes. Last year’s sales included 8,548 newly built single family homes that sold for a median price of $425,000, and 1,018 condos that sold for a median price of $449,950.

Seller's Market!

Western Washington, King County and Seattle in particular continue to be plagued by a low level of housing inventory. This forces prices up, while limiting choices for local buyers. Buyers appear to be making as many purchases, despite the reduced inventory.

Twenty-one of the 23 counties served by Northwest MLS reported double-digit declines in their volume of active listings last month compared to the same time period a year ago. For the overall area, there were 15,327 active listings, which compares to the year-ago total of 20,864. Of these totals, 5,268 were listings added during the month; a year ago, members added 5,521 listings to the selection.

MLS members reported modest increases in the number of completed transactions from a year ago, 5,999 versus 5,872 for a 2.2 percent gain.

Many neighborhoods in the Puget Sound, and most in the city of Seattle, are selling at prices higher than the previous bubble prices.

If you are thinking about selling your Seattle house, now might be a really good time!

For a no-obligation, confidential in-home evaluation of the market value of your house, please message Wendy Ceccherelli privately at HomeLandInvestment@gmail.com and

Happy Holidays! Happy Investing!

Prices Sizzle in Washington

NWMLS reports: Pent-up demand boosting Western Washington home sales and prices
KIRKLAND, Washington (August 5, 2015) – Pent-up demand continues to fuel home sales around Western Washington with millennials, military families and relocating workers vying for limited inventory. Brokers from Northwest Multiple Listing Service say they’re not seeing a typical summer slowdown.

Northwest MLS members reported 9,424 closed sales during July, easily surpassing the year-ago total of 7,878 transactions for an increase of 19.6 percent. Last month’s volume of closings also outgained June when members reported 9,163 closings.

Prices for last month’s completed sales rose 6.4 percent area-wide from a year ago, with considerable  variation across the 23 counties served by the multiple listing service. The median price system-wide for last month’s closed sales of single family homes and condominiums (combined) was $319,250.

Among counties in the central Puget Sound region, Kitsap County registered the largest year-over-year increase at 9.2 percent, and King County registered the smallest gain at 3.3 percent. The median sales prices in the four-county area ranged from a low of $245,000 in Pierce County to a high of $439,000 in King County.

Prices are escalating at a faster pace in Kitsap County than in King County. MLS  figures indicate the median price in Kitsap County has surged 22.4 percent since January, which compares to a 12.6 percent jump in King County.

Please email HomeLandInvestment@gmail.com for more information on home sales inventory and pricing in your favorite Seattle neighborhood.

Happy Investing!

New Mortgage Finance Rules

The NWMLS has revised its standard forms based on new federal rules promulgated by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), effective October 3, 2015. These rules relate to Integrated Mortgage Disclosures under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (“RESPA”) (Regulation X) and the Truth In Lending Act (“TILA”) (Regulation Z).

The changes that are most relevant for real estate brokers include:

 Definition of loan “application” (12 CFR 1026(a)(2));

 The lender must provide a “Loan Estimate” to Buyer within three days of

 The lender must provide a “Closing Disclosure” to Buyer at least three days

 The lender must provide a revised “Closing Disclosure” for last minute application (12 CFR 1026.19(e));before consummation (i.e. the date the Buyer is contractually obligated for the loan) (12 CFR 1026.19(f));changes to the APR, the addition of a pre-payment penalty, or a change in the loan product at least three days before consummation (i.e. the date the Buyer is contractually obligated for the loan) (12 CFR 19(f)(2)(i)).

The NWMLS is revising its forms, so that earnest money will be refunded to Buyer after lender (defined as either the party to whom the application was submitted or the party funding the loan) confirms in writing:

a. the date Buyer applied, including a copy of the Loan Estimate provided to

b. that Buyer possessed sufficient funds to close; and

c. the reasons Buyer was unable to obtain financing by closing.

The revision to this provision requires Buyer to provide a copy of the Loan Estimate, along with written confirmation of the date Buyer applied for the loan. The new CFPB rules require the entity who received the application to provide Buyer with a Loan Estimate within three days of receiving the application. The timing of the Loan Estimate will confirm the date Buyer made loan application.

The revisions to Section 5 also clarify that if Buyer, after a good faith effort, is unable to obtain financing by the closing date, Buyer may terminate the agreement and the earnest money will be refunded to Buyer. Under the new CFPB rules, lender must provide a “Closing Disclosure” to Buyer at least three days before consummation (i.e. the date the Buyer is contractually obligated for the loan). If lender fails to do so and Buyer cannot timely close, the earnest money will be refunded to Buyer (assuming Buyer has not waived the financing contingency). Of course, the parties can always agree to extend the closing date.

A new chapter of RCW 64.04, effective July 24, 2015, governs how earnest money must be handled by the party holding the money (the “holder”) when a transaction is terminated. The statute provides that if a holder receives a written demand for the earnest money from a party, the holder must either disburse the earnest money, commence an interpleader action, or notify all other parties to the transaction of the demand within 15 days.

If holder elects to notify all other parties of the demand (as opposed to disbursing the earnest money or commencing an interpleader action) and the other parties do not object to the demand within 20 days of the holder sending the notice, then the holder must release the earnest money to the party making the demand. If the holder follows this process, it will not be liable to any party for releasing the earnest money to the demanding party.

The new CFPB rules require a revised Closing Disclosure be provided to Buyerthree days before consummation for last minute changes to the APR, the addition of a pre-payment penalty, or a change in the loan product. Section 9 (Extension of Closing) has been revised to allow for an automatic extension of closing for up to four days for a new Closing Disclosure to be provided to Buyer should one of these last minute changes occur. Please note there is no automatic extension for the situation where the original Closing Disclosure is simply not provided to Buyer in a timely manner.

Beginning October 3, 2015, new rules will require lenders to insert broker’s license numbers into the “Closing Disclosure” provided to Buyer three days before consummation (i.e. the date the Buyer is contractually obligated for the loan). In order to avoid any delay in the lender obtaining those numbers and providing the disclosure, NWMLS has added a field for the licensee numbers to the purchase and sale agreement.

In addition, the Department of Licensing is considering requiring brokers license numbers on all documents prepared by the broker.

Happy Investing!

Record Level of Home Buying Activity

Home buying activity around Western Washington is at the highest level in nearly a decade, according to

Northwest Multiple Listing Service sources.

 

Northwest MLS figures show pending sales system-wide surged 18.7 percent in February compared to the

same month a year ago, rising from 7,247 mutually accepted offers to 8,599. Twenty of the 23 counties in

the service area reported double-digit increases in pending sales. 

Those numbers might be even higher given the ample supply of buyers, but inventory is far from ample.

Northwest MLS broker-members added more news listings to the database during February than 12

months ago (7,852 last month versus 7,234), but the higher sales volume kept inventory levels well below

year-ago totals. The MLS reported 16,946 total active listings at month end. That compares to a total of

19,273 for the same month a year ago for a drop of about 12 percent. 

Single family homes in King County had the highest median price at $429,900 (up 6 percent from a year ago).

So Sellers, now is your chance to cash in!

Happy Investing! 

Green Development

What a beautiful week it has been in Seattle! I have been riding my electric bicycle everywhere, and even spent a whole day on an Argosy boat in the Puget Sound earning clock hours. Seriously. Thank you Independent Brokers Association and NWMLS for organizing such a delightful day of training!

Do we live in a great city, or what? And Seattleites tend to be especially eco-friendly and environmentally-savvy. It is tough not to be outdoorsy when you have world-class scenery, recreation and amenities like this literally outside your front door. Spectacular views of water and snow-capped volcanic peaks lure us to outdoor adventure, poetry, and spiritual renewal.

Perhaps it is the dreary weather the rest of the year that inspires us to become political activists, and to think up ways to try to change the world. Not surprisingly, several of the real estate clock hour classes I have been taking lately have to do with energy conservation, energy efficiency, green development, and low impact development.

We love this planet. We want to find ways to live that are sustainable and healthy. Seattle is ahead of the curve in many of these areas. Ask me about ways to purchase or retrofit your home to make it more energy efficient, cost effective, and good for the planet.

Happy investing!