Seattle Real Estate Shows Promising Signs (August 2024)

Our real estate market here in Seattle is showing some hearty signs of resilience! Fresh off the press, the July 2024 report from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS) paints a cautiously optimistic picture for Washington state's housing landscape.

It's no secret that sky-high mortgage rates have been a thorn in the side for buyers and sellers alike. Yet, the latest figures are offering a ray of hope. We've witnessed home sales climb by 5.9% from last year, with July closing out a handsome 6,615 transactions. That's an upturn from the 6,247 deals sealed in the same month last year.

And that's not all – our shelves are stocking up with more houses. With a whopping 37.7% year-over-year surge in active listings, we ended July boasting 15,122 properties up for grabs. That's a significant leap from the 10,982 on offer in July of 2023. A closer look reveals that this trend is widespread, with double-digit increases in listings across 25 out of 26 counties in Washington.

Now, let's talk dollars and cents. The median sale price for homes and condos has ticked up to $650,000, showing a healthy 5.7% increase from last year's $615,000. King County wears the crown with the loftiest median sale price at $880,000, with Snohomish ($775,000) and San Juan ($740,000) trailing close behind.

Despite these promising figures, we did see a slight dip in consumer and broker activities in July, with a 4% drop in keybox access and a minor decrease in scheduled showings from June to July. But on another upbeat note, there's been quite the leap—a 19.8% increase—in the number of properties eligible for the Down Payment Resource program.

And here's a little insider scoop: Steven Bourassa from the Washington Center for Real Estate Research hints at the possibility of the Federal Reserve lowering rates soon, which could give our market the boost it needs.

So, while the market is learning to dance to the tune of high interest rates and a medley of other variables, the recent upswing in home sales and the blossoming inventory allows us to look to the future with a sense of hope for the Washington real estate scene. Stay tuned, my friends – there's more to this story, and I'll be right here to share every chapter with you.

Warm regards,

Michele