To date, the Seattle housing market is coming out with an unusual spring outing. The home prices inch upwards but still stay lower when Year on Year comparison is made. The number of new homeowners has decreased and a lower number of houses have been listed on the market. The listings are getting mixed responses and some attract bidding battles whereas some have been untouched for weeks.

However, the overall effect is that a lower number of houses have been sold as compared to 2022 (till May). With high mortgage rates and reduced supply in the market, the pending sale of listed houses has gone down by 28% (as compared to April 2022). However, the median home prices have been increasing since the start of the year but have fallen compared to last spring.

As per Northwest Multiple Listing Service, a single-family home in King County was sold for an average price of $875,000 which is a reduction of 12% as compared to April of last year. Similarly, the same statistical analysis shows that Snohomish County homes sold at an average price of $767,500; showing a decrease of 9% in the same time frame.

The average Pierce County home was sold for $525,000 which is a downgrade by 9.5%. The average Kitsap County home was sold for $520,000, a downgrade of 8%. The prices dropped sharply on the Eastside as well, where the $1.45 million average home price went down 16% as compared to April 2022. Seattle’s $886,000 average was down 13%. However, Seattle’s average condo price went up by 5% from a year ago, while the Eastside’s went down by 8%.

When it comes to King County, it is estimated at five to six weeks are required to clear out all the listed inventory. Sandy Meyer, a RE/MAX agent in Snohomish, believes there are more buyers out there than there are sellers. Therefore, a mixed offering in the spring cleaning season means that home buyers will look out to save money on auxiliary costs before buying a home. An example of this auxiliary overhead includes home inspections before buying the home. This is a huge advantage for buyers out there. However, higher mortgage rates are making it very difficult for families to find accommodation in their budgets.

Thomas and Megan Brown who rent their house in Marysville, the housing market is not easy but moving at a rapid pace. Their analysis is based on the fact that they lost an offer twice due to an all-cash clause put up. The increase in mortgage rates makes it even harder to find a home in a growing market that would be ideal for their family size. Therefore, they went for a five-bedroom home in Sultan that was around $600,000. The downside of this home was that this is still under construction. However, the upside of such a home that is under construction is that it cannot be outbid.

If you are still confused by the ever-changing market, rise in mortgage rates, decline in home prices; then you should pay a visit to United Seattle and book an appointment immediately with the available experts.