Puget Sound Waterfront

Sotheby's International Realty reports on the first quarter of activity around the sale of waterfront homes in the four-county region of Puget Sound.

As you might expect, demand for waterfront in the Puget Sound region is rather seasonal – not only because buyers surface when the sun comes out but because brokers and sellers are more inclined to list properties during the peak sales season of April through October each year.  Therefore the first quarter trends lead into pivotal April statistics, which provides a glimpse of how the following sales season will respond.  Here’s a hint – it’s going to be hot!

4 County (King, Pierce, Kitsap and Island) Waterfront Homes For Sale in April 2015: 756 properties
Up 16.3% compared to the last month
Down 10.3% compared to the last year

4 County Waterfront Closed in April 2015: 163 properties
Up 28.3% compared to the last month
Up 53.8% compared to the last year

4 County Home Placed under Contract in April 2015: 235 properties
Up 23% compared to the last month
Up 50.6% compared to the last year

The average selling price of waterfront homes by County was:

Island - $477K

Pierce - $483K

Kitsap - $635K

King - $1.186M

For the central Puget Sound region including King, Kitsap, Snohomish and Pierce counties the long term trend has been for fewer new listings, increasing sales and expanding demand since the market rebound began in 2012.  

From a macro perspective median home prices along the water’s edge have increased at least 5-percent per annum but far more extraordinary trends can be found when exploring microclimates such as West Bellevue where demand for waterfront has reached a boiling point.   For example the greater Eastside lakeside market has experienced an 87.5-percent increase in homes placed under contract in April compared to the prior year and that’s only what is published with the Northwest Multiple Listing Service – private and off-market transactions only add to the spectacle.  

By numerous accounts wealthy Chinese nationals are amongst the top consumer group.  It helps too that the local economy and the surrounding single family home markets are robust allowing move-up buyers to successfully sell their current house and explore the waterfront lifestyle they’ve long desired.

 Please email HomeLandInvestment@gmail.com for a complete list of waterfront properties for sale in your favorite Puget Sound location.

Happy Investing!

Lake Sammamish Waterfront

With its proximity to Microsoft, Lake Sammamish is a popular waterfront community for affluent homeowners in King County.

One year ago, of the 34 waterfront homes for sale on or near Lake Sammamish, the median 4-bedroom, 3.5-bath house with over 4000sf of living space was listed for $2.2million ($541/sf). These homes had been on the market an average of 80 days.

Of the 50 Lake Sammamish waterfront homes that sold in the previous six months, the median home sale was for a smaller 3-bedroom, 2.75-bath house with less than 3000sf of living space for a price of $999,375 ($333.13/sf). These home sales were on the market just 77 days.

How have home prices on Lake Sammamish changed in the last year?

Lake Sammamish is the second largest lake in King County, encompassing zip codes 98008, 98027, 98029, 98052, 98074, and 98075 which border the lake. Using all of these zipcodes, we come up with the following waterfront statistics:

There are only six active listings on Lake Sammamish waterfront right now, a significant reduction in inventory from the previous year. Of these six, the median house has almost 5000sf, 4 bedrooms, and 3.75 baths. It is listed for a median price of $2,661,500 ($532.41/sf) and has been on the market for 73 days.

Here is what has sold on Lake Sammamish in the past six months: Only 12 waterfront homes sold on Lake Sammamish in the previous six months, again a significant reduction in inventory. Of these, the median home was a 4-bedroom, 2.75-bath with 3765 sf that sold in 39 days for  $1,927,500 ($511.95/sf). With shrinking inventory, we can see that the days on market have decreased significantly as well, assuming the property is priced correctly.

It would appear that the active listings, which have been on the market twice as long, are priced at least 4% too high.

That said, pricing waterfront properties is exceptionally difficult, given the custom nature of the homes, the waterfront, and the views. For a complete list of waterfront properties available for sale on Lake Sammamish, or in King County, please email HomeLandInvestment@gmail.com or leave a private message at 888-621-4999.

Happy Investing!