Archive for May 28th, 2009
Each week the numbers come out indicating how much inventory there is in each of the multiple listing service areas of Seattle and surrounding King County. Frequent readers of my blog should already be aware of the term inventory but for the newbies here is a refresher. Inventory is the relationship between how many houses are on the market and how fast they are selling. It is the information we use to indicate if we are in a buyer’s or a seller’s market. Generally the more houses and the slower they are selling the more it favors buyer’s. When there are fewer houses selling more quickly, it favors sellers.
The numbers below are expressed in months of inventory. Numbers below 3 are generally considered a seller’s market. Numbers between 3-6 indicate a balanced market. Numbers over 6 indicate a buyer’s market.
Each column represents one of the past 7 weeks with the average at the end.
| Neighborhood |
4/8 |
4/15 |
4/22 |
4/29 |
5/6 |
5/13 |
5/20 |
Average |
| Leschi / Seaward Park |
4.3 |
8.1 |
4.7 |
3.2 |
3.1 |
4.4 |
3.4 |
4.1 |
| SoDo / Georgetown |
2.0 |
2.7 |
1.7 |
2.1 |
3.4 |
1.9 |
4.2 |
2.3 |
| Capital Hill |
4.1 |
4.5 |
7.9 |
3.9 |
6.2 |
3.7 |
5.2 |
4.8 |
| Magnolia / Q. Anne |
7.6 |
5.0 |
5.8 |
3.8 |
3.9 |
6.8 |
4.5 |
5.0 |
| Ballard / Green Lake |
2.1 |
2.4 |
1.7 |
1.9 |
2.1 |
1.8 |
2.0 |
2.0 |
| Wedgwood / Ravenna |
2.6 |
2.1 |
2.3 |
2.4 |
2.1 |
1.7 |
1.5 |
2.0 |
| W. Shoreline |
2.1 |
4.0 |
2.8 |
4.0 |
4.0 |
2.8 |
2.0 |
2.9 |
| E. Shoreline |
4.2 |
4.7 |
2.5 |
3.2 |
4.7 |
6.4 |
4.7 |
4.1 |
As has been true for some time, NE and NW Seattle represent the hottest markets right now and in fact are in the range that would consider them seller’s markets. SoDo and Georgetown though have made a strong charge and are close behind and also seller’s markets. Even the western end of Shoreline including Richmond Beach has been improving.
Overall there are no markets that still appear to be buyer’s markets. All remaining neighborhoods are balanced.
Ok so those are the numbers but being in the trenches each day I can offer a little more insight. The facts are the the cheaper the homes the faster they are moving. The recovery is transitioning from just plain bottom feeding to buyer’s picking at appropriately priced inventory. They are still pretty cautious though. Much of the really old, really cheap houses have been bought up and what is left is getting absorbed at a more moderate pace. The higher the price point in general the slower the sale.
Take a look around your neighborhood. You are likely to see a lot more sold signs and a lot fewer for sale signs overall. Listings are way down compared to last year. This is good news. Seller’s are aware of the market and choosing to stay in their homes for a while longer.
Buyers continue to be very picky though. They are still trying hard to negotiate better deals on list price and closing costs all the way around.
My prediction is for a stable to improving summer. No fireworks but a healthy absorption of moderate amounts of inventory. I do expect to see a flurry of activity in the fall when people jump to take advantage of first time home buyer tax incentives prior to their scheduled expiration on November 30th.
Give me a call if you need help. I’d love to work with you.
________________________________________________
Rob Graham, Accredited Buyers Representative
Windermere Real Estate
206-321-6349
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