Real Estate Remains Hot As Seattle Prices Reach a Boiling Point
Summer in the Emerald City is just starting to heat up, but real estate here has already reached record highs. The latest data from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS) shows the median price for a single family home in King County pushed past $1 million for the first time in May, up 10 percent from last year.
As the Seattle Times reports, much of the pricing pressure is from the Eastside, where the median single family home costs an eye-popping $1.7 million (up 17 percent). In Seattle, the median price for a single-family home is $965,000. That’s up about 6 percent from last year.
As some areas reach new heights, there are nascent signs of relief on the horizon. Beleaguered buyers, even motivated ones, have a limit on what they’ll pay.
The NWMLS notes, “For-sale inventory levels have increased dramatically year-over-year, which should help to stabilize home prices.” Seattle’s inventory crept up to 1.9 months in May. It’s still a long way from being balanced, but we’ll take what we can get.
At the same time, active listings in the city grew 44 percent. To help attract buyers, almost a quarter of listings (23 percent) took a price cut, Zillow recently reported. Compare that to 18 percent of listings taking a price cut a year ago. Even so, closed sales increased (just) 12 percent.
We’ve gathered info for Seattle’s neighborhoods to help you prepare for whatever the summer market has in store. You could look ahead with a “glass half full” perspective. You could just as easily view the data as “glass half empty” news. Or, better yet, you could just drink it. Anyway you look at it, Seattle real estate is going to be sizzling this summer, and we all need to stay hydrated.
List ordered by annual price growth.
Falling
8. Belltown/Downtown
Condos, condos everywhere, but who is going to buy them? Even with sales up almost 18 percent year-over-year, the city’s core is sitting on six months worth of condo inventory. Listings were up almost 50 percent from last year, but prices hit another slump.
Median price: $610,000
Year-over-year price growth: -7.6 percent
Months of inventory: ~6 months
7. North Seattle
This area, which includes everything north of Portage and Union Bay, and east of I-5, was one of the busiest in May. Active listings were up 43 percent and sales jumped 31 percent. The median price remains near the top of city neighborhoods, so a 3.5 percent discount in a sought-after area probably makes it even more desirable to would-be buyers.
Median price: $905,000
Year-over-year price growth: -3.5 percent
Months of inventory: 1.2
Rising
6. Ballard/Greenlake
May was a slog for these fan-faves. Even though active listings were up nearly 45 percent, closed sales increased just 2 percent and pending sales were down 8 percent. We’ll keep an eye out for a price correction in coming months to see whether sellers and buyers can agree on value or if price cuts are in store.
Median price: $889,444
Year-over-year price growth: 2.2 percent
Months of inventory: 1.4
4. Queen Anne/Magnolia (tie)
A healthy mix of single-family homes and condos help make this ever-popular area thrive. Condo listings increased 84 percent in May, and sales were up 31 percent. Condo prices increased 5.8 percent over last year to $557,000. Meanwhile, single-family listings increased 40 percent, and sales jumped 70 percent. The median price for a single-family home is the highest in the city: $1.4 million. Even at that price, demand remains strong.
Median price: $1,100,000
Year-over-year price growth: 3.3 percent
Months of inventory: 1.9
4. West Seattle (tie)
This may be another area to watch for better alignment of sellers and buyers on price. Listings increased dramatically in May—up 74 percent—as did inventory. However, with all that for-sale real estate, sales only ticked up 16 percent. Prices posted an annual increase, but they took a small hit (-3.4 percent) from last month. Buyers could have some leverage here, especially if homes have been sitting on the market for a while.
Median price: $821,240
Year-over-year price growth: 3.3 percent
Months of inventory: 1.5
3. SoDo/Beacon Hill
After a slow start to the year, these neighborhoods have hit their stride. Active listings increased 3 percent in May—the lowest of any neighborhood. But, compared to April’s 27 percent decrease in listings, May was a big step in a positive direction. In other good news for the area, sales skyrocketed 82 percent while prices grew almost 10 percent. If this is an area you’re interested in, you may need to move quickly to get what you want.
Median price: $680,000
Year-over-year price growth: 9.7 percent
Months of inventory: 2.2
2. Southeast Seattle
What a difference a couple of months make. After starting the year in price decline territory, the market in Leschi, Seward Park, and Mount Baker sprang to life in April. Median price increased nearly 18 percent from the year prior, and sales jumped 30 percent. In May, the median price posted another double-digit increase (12 percent), but sales took a 10 percent dip, the largest decline of any neighborhood. Cost-conscious buyers may have reached the limit on what they’ll spend.
Median price: $830,750
Year-over-year price growth: 12.2 percent
Months of inventory: 1.9
1. Central Seattle
Overall, prices in and around Madison Park and Capitol Hill increased 19 percent in May. But sales were down 8 percent year-over-year, even with a variety of property types and price points. Condos in the area are some of the most affordable in the city: $550,000. Yet, they saw sales decline 10.5 percent. The median price for a single-family home is $1,193,000, the second-most expensive in the city. Sales of those were down 6 percent in May. With active listings up 35 percent, we’re crossing our fingers for more balance in the months ahead.
Median price: $915,000
Year-over-year price growth: 19.1 percent
Months of inventory: 2.6
