Market Recap

Inflation and unemployment concerns prompted the Federal Reserve to maintain the federal funds rate at its current level, “giving a general indication of trends that may affect mortgage rates,” said Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research (WCRER). Mortgage rates remain stubbornly high at 6.77%, making affordability a challenge for prospective buyers. “The continued anticipation of inflation and concerns about increasing government debt suggests that mortgage interest rates are not likely to go down any time soon,” continued Bourassa.

Selma Hepp of Cotality indicated that though mortgage rates may be daunting, the “increase in the availability of homes for sale and the softening of home prices” indicates the NWMLS service area “is experiencing a re-balancing of housing market trends.”

“As prices moderate, opportunities open up for buyers who have been priced out, which may help stabilize the home market,” continued Hepp.

Key Takeaways

Active Listings

• There was a 38.82% increase year-over-year in the total number of properties listed for sale in the NWMLS service area, from 14,393 in June 2024 to 19,837 active listings in June 2025. When compared to May 2025, June experienced an 8.34% increase from 18,310 listings.
• All 27 counties in the NWMLS service area experienced double-digit, year-over-year increases in active listings.
• The six counties with the highest increases in active inventory were Columbia (+70%), Grant (+61.59%), Snohomish (+50.96%), Whatcom (+49.02%), King (+46.69%) and Adams (+46.51%).

Closed Sales and Months of Inventory

• The number of closed sales increased by 1.01% year-over-year, up from 6,627 in June 2024 to 6,694 in June 2025. When compared to the previous month, the number of closed sales increased by 3.51%, up from 6,467 sales in May 2025.
• A balanced market is considered to be 4 to 6 months by most industry experts. At the current rate of sales, it would take a little less than 3 months (2.96) to sell every home that is active in the NWMLS inventory. The six counties with the lowest months of inventory in June 2025 were Kitsap (2.05), Snohomish (2.12), Thurston (2.19), Pierce (2.65), King (2.72) and Skagit (2.9).

Median Sales Price and Total Dollar Value

• Overall, the median price for residential homes and condominiums sold in June 2025 was $670,000, a slight increase of 3.08% when compared to June 2024 ($650,000). When compared to last month, the median price increased 1.52% from $660,000 in May 2025.

• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were San Juan ($1,035,000), King ($913,563) and Snohomish ($775,000), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Columbia ($275,000), Adams ($320,000) and Ferry ($340,000).

Source: NWMLS 7/3/25

Market Recap

The real estate market continued to experience significant growth in housing inventory across NWMLS’s coverage area. While buyer activity showed some signs of seasonal strength, it continued to lag behind the surge in new and active listings. Buyers may be slow to accepting what may be a new normal, with mortgage rates continuing to hover close to 7% and construction costs hampering new developments.

Still, May brought some encouraging signs for buyers. The number of active listings reached 18,310, marking the highest level of inventory since September 2018 when there were 19,256 homes on the market. In addition, prices showed signs of stabilizing: the median home price declined 1% year-over-year and edged up less than 1% from April, indicating a slowdown in price growth. This increase in supply gives buyers more options and may help ease some competitive pressure.

Key Takeaways

Active Listings

• There was a 42.63% increase year-over-year in the total number of properties listed for sale in the NWMLS service area, from 12,837 in May 2024 to 18,310 active listings in May 2025. This was also a 26.6% increase from 14,459 active listings in April 2025.
• The number of homes for sale year-over-year increased throughout the NWMLS coverage area, with 24 out of 26 counties seeing a double-digit year-over-year increase. The six counties with the highest increases in active inventory were Clallam (+72.5%), Snohomish (+64.1%), Ferry (+59.1%), King (+57.7%), Grant (+53.3%) and Adams (+52.3%).

Closed Sales

• The number of closed sales decreased by 3.3% year-over-year, down from 6,689 in May 2024 to 6,467 in May 2025. When compared to the previous month, the number of closed sales increased by 9.9%, up from 5,887 sales in April 2025.

Median Sales Price

• Overall, the median price for residential homes and condominiums sold in May 2025 was $654,995, a slight decrease of 0.8% when compared to May 2024 ($660,000). When compared to last month, the median price slightly increased ($650,000 in April 2025).
• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were King ($865,000), San Juan ($831,000) and Snohomish ($785,000), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Ferry ($138,000), Columbia ($256,000) and Pacific ($323,000).

Source: NWMLS 6/4/25

Market Recap

As spring gets underway, inventory levels are high but the pace of sales is relatively slow. The number of active listings showed double-digit year-over-year increases in most counties when compared to April 2024, demonstrating that homeowners are primed and ready to sell.

Buyers were granted a bit of a reprieve as mortgage rates stayed relatively consistent throughout April, finishing out the month at 6.76% – the same rate as the end of March 2025. In addition, the median sales price for residential and condominium sales stayed virtually unchanged from March 2025, increasing from $649,999 to $650,000 in April 2025.

“As the number of sellers continues to outpace buyers, it is not surprising that price growth has slowed,” said Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research (WCRER). Recent media coverage identifies not only socioeconomic uncertainties such as tariffs and inflation, but also the willingness of both buyers and sellers to make concessions as potential factors in final sales prices in the last month.

Key Takeaways

Active Listings

• There was a 47.4% increase year-over-year in the total number of properties listed for sale in the NWMLS service area. There were 14,459 active listings on the market at the end of April 2025,compared to 9,813 at the end of April 2024.
• When compared to the previous month, active inventory increased by 2,819 listings (+24.2%), up from 11,640 in March 2025.
• The number of homes for sale year-over-year increased throughout the NWMLS coverage area, with 24 out of 26 counties seeing a double-digit year-over-year increase. The six counties with the highest increases in active inventory were Snohomish (+84.8%), Columbia (+76.9%), King (+71.3%), Clallam (+70.7%), Whatcom (+68.1%) and Grant (+59.8%).

Closed Sales and Months of Inventory

• The number of closed sales slightly increased by 0.7% year-over-year, up from 5,847 in April 2024 to 5,887 in April 2025. When compared to the previous month, the number of closed sales increased by 8.9%, up from 5,406 sales in March 2025.
• A balanced market is considered around 4 to 6 months of inventory by most industry experts. At the current rate of sales, it would take around two and a half months (2.46) to sell every home that is active in the NWMLS inventory.

Median Sales Price and Total Dollar Value

• Overall, the median price for residential homes and condominiums sold in April 2025 was $650,000, a slight decrease of 0.2% when compared to April 2024 ($651,000). When compared to last month, the median price was virtually unchanged ($649,999 in March 2025).
• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were King ($907,000), Snohomish ($755,500) and San Juan ($665,000), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Okanogan ($289,000), Columbia ($305,000) and Adams ($310,000).

Source: NWMLS 5/6/25

Market Recap

March’s market activity showed some expected seasonal growth as we move into spring, but an imbalance still lingers between buyers and sellers.

30-year mortgage rates dropped from 6.76% to 6.65%, a slight enticement for buyers who are keeping a diligent eye on the market. Sellers looking to take early advantage of seasonal transitions boosted NWMLS’s active listings nearly 44% year-over-year from March 2024.

Key Takeaways

Active and New Listings

• There was a 43.7% increase year-over-year in the total number of properties listed for sale in the NWMLS service area. There were 11,640 active listings on the market at the end of March 2025, with 21 out of 26 counties seeing a double-digit increase compared to March 2024. When compared to the previous month, active inventory increased by 1,192 listings (+11.4%), up from 10,448 in February 2025.
• The six counties with the highest increases in active inventory were Snohomish (+83.1%), Whatcom (+63.1%), King (+59.8%), Cowlitz +(51.7%), Kittitas (+48.3%) and Grant (+43.8%).
• NWMLS brokers added 9,161 new listings in March 2025, a year-over-year increase of 14.1% compared to March 2024 (8,028). When compared to February 2025, new listings increased by 44.4%, when 6,346 listings were added.

Closed Sales

• There were 5,406 closed sales in March 2025, an increase of 4.7% year-over-year compared to 5,165 in March 2024. When compared to February 2025, the number of closed sales increased by 26.7%, up from 4,268 sales.

Median Sales Price

• Overall, the median price for residential homes and condominiums sold in March 2025 was $649,999, an increase of 2.6% when compared to March 2024 ($633,717).
• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were San Juan ($870,000), King ($855,000) and Snohomish ($755,000), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Columbia ($220,000), Ferry ($268,725) and Grays Harbor ($335,100).

Source: NWMLS 4/3/25

Market Recap

Traditionally a quiet month, February’s market activity reflected consumer sentiment in two important areas: affordability and available inventory.

30-year mortgage rates dropped slightly from 6.95% to 6.76%, but that may not be enough to encourage buyers when faced with continuing rising prices. The median price for residential homes and condominiums rose 2.4% from $615,000 in January 2025 to $630,000 in February 2025.

Although the number of active listings is significantly higher than a year ago (39.4% greater), the annual growth in the number of transactions is much smaller (only 1.9%).

Overall, inventory levels remain stubbornly low. Most industry experts consider a balanced market to have 4 to 6 months of inventory. However, at the current rate of sales, it would take less than two and a half months (2.45) to sell every home that is for sale in the NWMLS service area.

Meanwhile, homebuilders are bracing themselves for increases in construction costs following the White House’s announcement of tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico beginning March 4^th. “The prices of materials will have a major impact on affordability,” said Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research, “and increases in construction costs will affect the prices of existing homes in addition to new homes.”

“The values of existing structures are based on their replacement cost,” he continued. “CoreLogic has estimated that the tariffs might increase the cost of home construction by 4% to 6% across the country, while household fixtures, such as appliances and cabinets, could increase in price by 10% to 20%.”

Key Takeaways

Active Listings

• The number of homes for sale increased 39.4% year-over-year throughout the NWMLS service area. There were 10,448 active listings on the market at the end of February 2025, with 24 out of 26 counties seeing a double-digit increase compared to February 2024. When compared to the previous month, active inventory increased by 207 listings (+2%), up from 10,241 in January 2025.
• The six counties with the highest increases in active inventory were Kittitas (+76.7%), Snohomish (+65.3%), Grant (+54.2%), King (+52%), Whatcom (+48.2%) and Chelan (+42.7%).

Closed Sales

• There were 4,268 closed sales of residential homes and condominium units in February 2025, an increase of 1.9% when compared to February 2024 (4,189). When compared to the previous month, the number of closed sales increased by 14.5%, up from 3,727 sales in January 2025.

Median Sales Price

• Overall, the median price for residential homes and condominiums sold in February 2025 was $630,000, an increase of 3.6% when compared to February 2024 ($608,111).

Source: NWMLS 3/5/25

Market Recap

Traditionally a quieter month in the winter season, January’s activity continued the year-over-year growth trends observed in market activity over the last twelve months. The number of closed sales increased by 10.8% year-over-year (3,727 in January 2025 compared to 3,364 in January 2024), and NWMLS brokers added 6,693 new listings to the database in January 2025, an increase of 35.1% compared to January 2024 (4,954).

“For-sale inventories are continuing to rise from historical lows, and that’s helping bring some life to housing market activity in the NWMLS area,” said Selma Hepp, chief economist at CoreLogic.

But questions still abound regarding one of the most critical aspects of today’s market – affordability – and the political and economic factors that influence it.

“Both prices and interest rates continued to increase, having a negative effect on affordability,” said Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research (WCRER) at the University of Washington. “The median price rose by nearly 4% to $615,000, while interest rates rose from 6.69% at the end of January 2024 to 6.95% now.”

“Moreover, new immigration policies are expected to have an inflationary impact on home construction costs,” he continued, “And the National Association of Home Builders has warned that tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico would have a significant impact on materials such as lumber and gypsum, while multiple researchers have documented the possible impact of immigration policy on labor supply for home builders.”

“All of this suggests that the affordability of homeownership, which has been declining, will continue to do so,” said Bourassa.

Key Takeaways

Active Inventory for Sale

• The number of homes for sale increased 44.6% year-over-year throughout the NWMLS coverage area, with 22 out of 26 counties seeing a double-digit increase compared to January 2024. There were 10,241 active listings on the market at the end of January 2025, compared to 7,084 at the end of January 2024.
• The five counties with the highest increases in active inventory for sale were Snohomish (+96.9%), King (+62.6%), Skagit (+54.4%), Kittitas (+53.8%) and Grant (+48.8%).
• At the current rate of sales, there are less than three months (2.75) of available inventory.

Closed Sales

• There were 3,727 closed sales of residential homes and condominium units in January 2025, an increase of 10.8% when compared to January 2024 (3,364).

 Median Sales Price

• The median price for residential homes and condominiums increased by 3.6% year-over-year from $593,500 in January 2024 to $615,000 in January 2025.
• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were San Juan ($850,000), King ($799,000), and Snohomish ($748,752), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Ferry ($239,000), Okanogan ($318,000) and Grays Harbor ($329,000).

Source: NWMLS 2/5/2025

Market Recap

Despite hopes among potential home buyers and sellers, as well as economists’ predictions, the Federal Reserve Bank’s three interest rate cuts in 2024 have not led to reduced mortgage rates or a significant boost in the housing market. Instead, as of January 2, 2025, mortgage rates have risen to 6.91%, their highest level since July 2024.

“The 30-year mortgage interest rate was actually higher at the end of 2024 (6.85%) than at the end of 2023 (6.61%),” said Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research (WCRER) at the University of Washington. He anticipates that mortgage rates will continue to frustrate the market. “We may well be experiencing the pains of adjusting to a new normal, with persistent interest rates of 6% or higher.”

Rising rates have been accompanied by a 4.3% increase in home prices over the past year, further exacerbating affordability challenges. However, the market has shown some signs of increased activity. Active listings and sales transactions were up by 25% and 19.8%, respectively, in December 2024 compared to the previous year, suggesting that buyers and sellers may be adjusting to higher borrowing costs.

While affordability remains a significant concern, these trends point to a gradual adaptation to the evolving landscape of the housing market.

Key Takeaways

Active Listings

• The number of homes for sale increased 25% year-over-year throughout the NWMLS coverage area, with 21 out of 26 counties seeing a double-digit increase compared to December 2023.
• The five counties with the highest increases in active inventory for sale were Snohomish (+46.1%), Douglas (+43.3%), Cowlitz (40.8%), Grant (+39.9%) and Skagit (+38.2%).

Closed Sales

• There were 4,812 closed sales of residential homes and condominium units, an increase of 19.8% when compared to December 2023 (4,018).

 Median Sales Price

• The median price for residential homes and condominiums increased by 4.3% year-over-year from $597,975 in December 2023 to $623,500 in December 2024. Prices decreased month-over-month by 3.33% when compared to November 2024 ($645,000).

• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were San Juan ($849,500), King ($800,000), and Snohomish ($744,995), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Ferry ($125,000), Adams ($292,300) and Pacific ($320,000).

Source: NWMLS 1/6/2025

Market Recap

The seasonal slowdown of the real estate market has begun, as evidenced by the month-over-month decrease of active listings by 15.1% from 14,795 active listings in October 2024 to 12,558 active listings in November 2024. However, the market still shows signs of improvement year-over-year, with a 23.4% increase in active listings and an increase of 24.7% in closed sales (5,446) compared to November 2023 (10,177 and 4,367 respectively). The missing piece of the equation for potential buyers continues to be affordability, with the median sales price increasing 7% to $645,000, compared to $601,342 in November 2023.

Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research (WCRER) at the University of Washington, sees reasons for optimism in the recent developments in the Washington Legislature intended to promote the production of more housing and thereby lower prices. Among some of the new laws coming into effect in the next couple of years will be an increase to density in residential areas and the promotion of accessory dwelling units (ADUs). “It will take time for these new laws to actually produce new housing,” said Bourassa, “but the expectation is that they will help in an important way to moderate the cost of homeownership.”

Key Takeaways

Active Listings

• The number of homes for sale increased year-over-year throughout the NWMLS coverage area, with 23 out of 26 counties seeing a double-digit increase compared to November 2023.

Closed Sales

• There were 5,446 closed sales of residential homes and condominium units, an increase of 24.7% when compared to November 2023 (4,367).

 Median Sales Price

• Although the median price slightly decreased by .77% from $650,000 in October 2024 to $645,000 in November 2024, prices increased year-over-year by 7.3% when compared to November 2023 ($601,342).

• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were San Juan ($857,500), King ($837,350), and Snohomish ($760,000), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Ferry ($209,900), Columbia ($262,000) and Adams ($309,150).

Source: NWMLS 12/4/2024

Market Recap

Closed sales increased by over 11% month-over-month, driven by a brief downturn in mortgage rates and a boost in buyer confidence amid hopes for continued rate declines. However, mortgage rates unexpectedly rose again from 6.08% at the end of September to 6.72% at the end of October. This increase correlates to economic data including strong job growth numbers but presents challenges for hopeful buyers. Meanwhile, home prices increased by 2.4% month-over-month on average, further dampening optimism.

“The only thing that seems certain about this market is that houses are not becoming more affordable, due to the ongoing combination of high interest rates and rising prices,” said Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research (WCRER) at the University of Washington.

Key Takeaways

Active Listings

• While the total number of properties listed for sale declined by about 6% when compared to last month, there was a 29.8% increase when compared to the same month last year, with 14,795 active listings on the market at the end of October 2024 compared to 11,403 at the end of October 2023.

Closed Sales

• The number of closed sales increased by over 11% when compared to last month, and by 22.5% when compared to the same month last year – 6,479 in October 2024 compared to 5,291 in October 2023. An increase in the number of closed sales year-over-year was observed in 22 out of 26 counties.

Median Sale Price

• Overall, the median price for residential homes and condominiums sold in October 2024 was $650,000, an increase of nearly 8% when compared to October 2023 ($602,000). When compared to last month, the median price increased 2.4% from $635,000 in September 2024.
• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were King ($865,000), San Juan ($825,000) and Snohomish ($753,000), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Ferry ($112,500), Pacific ($330,625) and Grant ($341,782).

Contact me for more details, or watch the 0.75 minute market snapshot video…

Source: NWMLS 11/6/2024

Market Recap

The further reduction of interest rates in September by the Federal Reserve provided a positive end-of-the-summer boost to the market. Double-digit increases in active and new listings and single-digit increases in median home prices demonstrated a tentative balance between the ongoing seller’s market and newfound buyer confidence.

However, experts caution that without deeper cuts to interest rates, housing affordability will remain out of reach for many would-be buyers. “Interest rates remain over double what they were just three years ago (6.08% at the end of September versus 3.01% at the same time in 2021 for 30-year fixed rate mortgages). This continues to have a major impact on affordability,” said Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research (WCRER) at the University of Washington. “It seems unlikely that the volume of transactions will pick up substantially without some significant improvement in affordability.”

Key Takeaways

Active and New Listings

• The number of homes for sale increased throughout the NWMLS coverage area, with 22 out of 26 counties seeing a double-digit year-over-year increase.
• There was a 31.4% increase in the total number of properties listed for sale, with 15,748 active listings on the market at the end of September 2024, compared to 11,983 at the end of September 2023.
• NWMLS brokers added 8,508 new listings to the database in September 2024, an increase of 12.7% compared to September 2023 (7,551).

Closed Sales

• The number of closed sales increased by 1.9% year-over-year (5,828 in September 2024) compared to 5,722 in September 2023.  
• 11 out of 26 counties saw an increase in the number of closed sales year-over-year, while 15 saw a decrease.

Median Sale Price

• The three counties with the highest median sale prices were King ($859,995), San Juan ($829,000), and Snohomish ($760,000), and the three counties with the lowest median sale prices were Ferry ($209,500), Adams ($270,000) and Columbia ($325,000).

• Overall, the median price for residential homes and condominiums sold in September 2024 was $635,000, an increase of 5.8% when compared to September 2023 ($600,000).

Contact me for more details, or watch the 0.75 minute market snapshot video…

Source: NWMLS 10/3/2024