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