Bellevue, WAEastside Real EstateFor BuyersFor SellersIssaquah, WAKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WAWoodinville, WA September 15, 2011

How Many Real Estate Sales Were in Your Seattle-Eastside Neighborhood in August,

Seattle-eastside real estate sales results were so similar during June, July, and August I could have posted the same report with just a few exceptions each month!  Overall, 23% of the available homes sold in August, the same as June and July!

[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Eastside+of+Seattle&aq=&sll=47.610377,-122.200679&sspn=0.123598,0.359459&vpsrc=0&g=Bellevue,+WA&ie=UTF8&hq=Eastside+of&hnear=Seattle,+King,+Washington&t=m&ll=47.615847,-122.302272&spn=0.338201,0.11521&output=embed&w=425&h=350]

The only significant change happened in West Bellevue and East Bellevue and the Microsoft area around Redmond.  Both these areas had fewer home sales in August than in July.  It was most noticeable in the neighborhoods around Microsoft where sales have been consistently strong.  In July, 38% of the homes sold and in August the sales numbers dropped back to 24%.  The area still had the best return on the eastside, but it was more in line with other eastside neighborhoods.

There’s a good real estate market out there.  The last time we saw a similar real estate market was back in the years between 1998-2002.  The market during those years was what we considered to be a “normal” market,  not a crazy market.  Once again, we see a more “normal” market today.

How many homes sold in August, 2011 in your neighborhood?

(The odds of selling a home in each area is a result of the number of homes for sale divided by the actual number of home sales, so if 10 out of 100 homes sold, the odds of selling would be 10/100 or 10%)

The plateau:  Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City

The odds of selling a home were 21%.

Median sales price dropped: $479,895 to $475,000.

There were 725 homes for sale.

A total of 174 homes sold.

Redmond/East Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 24%.

Median sales price decreased from $494,900 to $479,950.

207 homes were for sale

A total of 60 homes sold.

South Bellevue/Issaquah

The odds of selling a home were 22%.

Median price decreased from $550,000 to $512,225

367  homes were for sale.

A total of 94 homes sold.

Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall/North Kirkland

The odds of selling a home were 23%.

Median price was down from $415,000 to $381,650.

589 homes were for sale.

A total of 148 homes sold.

Kirkland

The odds of selling a home was 22%.

Median price decreased from $641,000 to $595,000.

280 homes were for sale.

A total of 73 homes sold.

West Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 17%.

Median pricing decreased from $869,000 to $754,500.

169 homes were for sale.

A total of 40 homes sold.

Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation

The odds of selling a home were 21%

Median pricing decreased from $549,950 to $534,900.

319 homes were for sale.

A total of 79 homes sold.

If you’d like more specific information about your neighborhood or home, feel free to contact me.



Bellevue Real EstateEastside Real EstateFor BuyersFor SellersKing County Real EstateReal EstateSeattle real estate September 13, 2011

August Condo Sales on Seattle's Eastside Blew Past Last Year's Sales

Condo real estate on Seattle's eastside

Seattle-eastside condo sales

The number of condos to receive offers on Seattle’s eastside skyrocketed by 62% over last August.  This good news was coupled with 31% fewer condos on the market.   In August, there were 1032 condos for sale.  Two hundred thirteen received offers and sold, representing an absorption rate of 21%.

Even though the odds of selling a condo are far stronger now, there were a number of the sales that didn’t stay together.   Last month I reported 250 condo sales in July.  Now it looks like only 224 of these sales actually “stuck.”Twenty-six sales or 11% failed to close.

Sales fail for many reasons.  A condo may not pass inspection or an appraisal.  The buyer may not get financing or the condo complex itself may not fit financing guidelines.  This could be because there could be too many renters occupying units or there could be a pending lawsuit against the association.  Situations such as this could affect the buyer’s ability to obtain a loan, even if the buyer is well qualified to buy.  When obtaining financing for a condo, the condo and the association must also “qualify” in order for the loan to be approved.

Fortunately, the stock market volatility of last month did not slow the condo market down on the eastside. How did it affect your area?


For BuyersFor SellersReal EstateSeattle real estate September 7, 2011

There's a Good Real Estate Market in Seattle and on the Eastside

Seattle Skyline view from Queen Anne Hill.

Image via Wikipedia

The real estate market in Seattle and on the eastside is doing well. The Seattle Times just published a great article about something all of us Realtors working in the trenches already know.  It’s been good this year and has only gotten better as the year progressed.   The article in The Times compares this year to last, but, in fact, this year is the best the real estate market has seen for the past 4 years.

I see the improvement in the real estate market every time I’m in front of the computer checking out the market activity in the NWMLS.   Almost every day the number of sales surpasses the number of new listings, always a good thing.  Showing activity is pretty consistent for many listings and,  if it isn’t, then a home is overpriced.  There have been homes selling with (gasp!) multiple offers.  And last, but not least, sales numbers are higher, which means buyers are finding homes they’re happy with and think are a good enough value to make an offer.  (Note: My comments relate only to those listings that are priced right as there are still many homes languishing on the market.)

The number of homes on the market has already reached its peak for the year.  The number just dropped below 11,000 for the first time since May 9th of this year.  We’re passed the peak in the number of homes for sale as the peak almost always falls in July of each year.  This year the peak happened during the last week in June when there were 11,453 properties for sale in King County.

I expect the stronger real estate market to continue through the year.  Many people are surprised when I tell them that September and October can be strong months to sell a home.  Of course, our beautiful weather may slow us down for this week as people continue to play in the sun, but I do expect the fall to be an  active real estate market.

I’ll be posting more data on the August real estate market as the information becomes available, so stay tuned.

What is your real estate market like now?  Have you seen an improvement this year?

Bellevue Real EstateBellevue, WAFor BuyersFor SellersIssaquah Real EstateIssaquah, WAKing County Real EstateKing County, WAKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WASammamish, WA Real EstateSeattle real estateWoodinville, WAWoodinville, WA Real Estate August 16, 2011

How Many Homes Sold in Your Seattle-Eastside Neighborhood in July, 2011?

[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Bellevue,+WA&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=23.403932,58.271484&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Bellevue,+King,+Washington&ll=47.610377,-122.200679&spn=0.310148,0.910492&z=10&output=embed&w=425&h=350]

How many homes sold in June, 2011 in your neighborhood?

It’s uncanny to see how similar July real estate sales on Seattle’s eastside were to June’s sales results.  On most of the eastside, the numbers varied only slightly from June.  Twenty-three percent of the homes for sale on the eastside sold, with the Redmond and Bellevue area around Microsoft leading the way with 38% of the homes selling.  In the majority of eastside neighborhoods, the chance of selling a home ranged between 20-23%.

The odds of selling a home in each area is a result of the number of homes for sale divided by the actual number of home sales, so if 10 out of 100 homes sold, the odds of selling would be 10/100 or 10%)

The plateau:  Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City

The odds of selling a home were 20%.

Median sales price dropped: $539,950 to $519,000.

There were 771 homes for sale.

A total of 165 homes sold.

Redmond/East Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 38%.

Median sales price increased from $422,475 to $429,950.

189 homes were for sale

A total of 85 homes sold.

South Bellevue/Issaquah

The odds of selling a home were 24%.

Median price decreased from $599,475 to $578,500.

380  homes were for sale.

A total of 110 homes sold.

Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall/North Kirkland

The odds of selling a home were 23%.

Median price was down from $499,950 to $369,475.

598 homes were for sale.

A total of 158 homes sold.

Kirkland

The odds of selling a home was 23%.

Median price decreased from $549,900 to $541,500.

288 homes were for sale.

A total of 76 homes sold.

West Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 20%.

Median pricing decreased from $1,299,000 to $1,074,475.

175 homes were for sale.

A total of 42 homes sold.

Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation

The odds of selling a home were 20%

Median pricing increased from $548,000 to $549,000.

337 homes were for sale.

A total of 75 homes sold.

If you’d like more specific information about your neighborhood or home, feel free to contact me.



Bellevue Real EstateFor BuyersFor SellersIssaquah Real EstateKing County Real EstateKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WA Real EstateSeattle real estateWindermere Real EstateWoodinville, WA Real Estate August 12, 2011

Real Estate Sales Continued to be Strong on Seattle's Eastside in July, 2011

Real Estate Sales Activity on Seattle's Eastside

Seattle Eastside Real Estate Sales Through July, 2011

The chart above speaks for itself.  July real estate sales were going strong on Seattle’s eastside.  More homes sold in July than in any  month since May, 2010. 

Will this surge in real estate sales continue?  Since the news regarding the stock market from last week, it remains to be seen if August will hold up to the sales growth we’ve seen since December of last year.

The number of properties for sale in King County still remains low compared to the last few summers when King County had over 14,000 properties for sale.   As of August 8th, there were 11,091 properties for sale in King County.  Here on the eastside, there were 2863 available properties.   If you compare the number of homes for sale on the Eastside this July to last July, there were 17% less homes and condos on the market this year.

In July there were 2863 homes for sale and 646 of these homes received offers and sold.  The absorption rate, the number of homes that sold during a month compared to the number for sale, was 22%. 

But what’s also important to note is 12% of the sales from June failed.   I had reported 661 sales in June, but this month I see only 587 of them stayed together.

The bottom line is more homes are selling than previously, but it’s also hard to keep the sales together.  Failed sales can be the result of poor inspections,  trouble with the buyer’s financing, an appraisal that does not agree with the sales price or a buyer getting cold feet and backing out.

How is the real estate market doing in your area?  Do you see similar trends?

Bellevue Real EstateBellevue, WAFor BuyersFor SellersIssaquah Real EstateIssaquah, WAKing County Real EstateKing County, WAKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WASeattle real estateWoodinville, WAWoodinville, WA Real Estate July 19, 2011

How Many Real Estate Sales Were in Your Seattle-Eastside Neighborhood in June, 2011?

[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Bellevue,+WA&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=23.403932,58.271484&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Bellevue,+King,+Washington&ll=47.610377,-122.200679&spn=0.310148,0.910492&z=10&output=embed&w=425&h=350]

How many homes sold in June, 2011 in your neighborhood?

June continued to be a strong month for real estate sales on Seattle’ eastside.  In fact, June may have been the strongest month for real estate sales on Seattle’s eastside in four years.  The Puget Sound Business Journal stated more homes sold this month than in recent months.  Every area did far better than previous months and previous years.   The Redmond and Bellevue area around Microsoft led the pack with almost 40% of the homes selling.  Almost every other area had a minimum of 20% of the homes selling.  More homes are selling than we’ve seen in years, but there are still a lot of homes that are languishing on the market.  Know your competition, so your home will land in the 20%+ homes that are selling.

A past client of mine is moving back to the eastside after about 5 years.  He was really surprised to hear that the homes near Microsoft are actually more affordable than those in South Bellevue.  The Bellevue Schools are getting a lot of press because several of the high schools are landing on top 100 lists of the top high schools.  But in reality, parts of Bellevue have  been more expensive for years because of the easy I-90 access to Seattle.  This may explain why the area around Microsoft is usually the hottest real estate market.  It’s a great location, close to jobs, has good schools, and slightly more affordable housing prices.

The odds of selling a home in each area is a result of the number of homes for sale divided by the actual number of home sales, so if 10 out of 100 homes sold, the odds of selling would be 10/100 or 10%)

The plateau:  Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City

The odds of selling a home were 23%.

Median sales price dropped: $525,000 to $494,950.

There were 765 homes for sale.

A total of 190 homes sold.

Redmond/East Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 38%.

Median sales price decreased to $449,900 from $482,500.

193 homes were for sale

A total of 79 homes sold.

South Bellevue/Issaquah

The odds of selling a home were 21%.

Median price decreased from $599,994 to $519,000

364 homes were for sale.

A total of 91  homes sold.

Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall/North Kirkland

The odds of selling a home were 23%.

Median price was down from $419,973 to $369,950.

572 homes were for sale.

A total of 147 homes sold.

Kirkland

The odds of selling a home was 19.5%.

Median price decreased from $624,950 to $535,000.

286 homes were for sale.

A total of 71 homes sold.

West Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 20%.

Median pricing decreased from $890,000 to $719,950.

181 homes were for sale.

A total of 43 homes sold.

Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation

The odds of selling a home were 20.5%

Median pricing increased from $474,950 to $549,900.

331 homes were for sale.

A total of 77 homes sold.

If you’d like more specific information about your neighborhood or home, feel free to contact me.



Bellevue Real EstateBellevue, WAFor BuyersFor HomeownersFor SellersIssaquah Real EstateIssaquah, WAKing County Real EstateKing County, WAKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WASammamish, WA Real EstateSeattleSeattle real estateWoodinville, WAWoodinville, WA Real Estate July 13, 2011

How Strong Were June, 2011 Real Estate Sales on Seattle's Eastside?

Home Sales on Seattle's Eastside Through June, 2011

Seattle-Eastside Real Estate Sales Through June, 2011

How strong were June, 2011 real estate sales on Seattle’s Eastside?  This summer’s real estate market is going to stay stronger than what we usually see during a Seattle summer. Traditionally, the highest number of homes for sale during a year comes near the end of July.  With this increased competition, it can make it more challenging to sell your home.  Although the number of eastside homes for sale has increased each month, the increase is nothing like the numbers we’ve seen during June of the last few years.

This year, the number of homes for sale is increasing, but at a much slower pace than last year.  In King County as a whole, there are 11,320 properties for sale.  Last year at the end of July, there were 14,639 properties on the market. This translates to 33% fewer homes on the market in King County this year.  On the eastside, there were 15% less homes for sale in June.  Since there’s still a great selection of homes for sale, the smaller number of available homes increases the odds of a home selling.

In fact, we had multiple offers on two listings this week alone.  I find we have a lot of showings on our listings, so buyers are definitely out there more than they usually are in the summer months.

The number of sales this past month dipped a little from the previous month, but only by 12 homes.  In May, we saw the highest number of homes sell in a month so far this year.  As a reminder, in April of last year, there’s a very high number of home sales.  This was artificially high as buyers tried to “cash in” on the tax credit.  This year, the sales numbers are not inflated by any other issue.  Real estate sales are fueled by the amount of job hiring in the area and by buyers who are more willing to move on with their lives, literally.

In June 2011, there were 2880 homes for sale and 661 of these homes had offers. The absorption rate, the number of homes that sold during a month compared to the number for sale, was 23%.  Almost one quarter of the Seattle eastside homes for sale sold in June.

How is the real estate market doing in your area?  Is it as strong as what we’re seeing here or is a little slower.

Bellevue Real EstateFor BuyersFor SellersIssaquah Real EstateKing County Real EstateKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WA Real EstateWoodinville, WA Real Estate June 15, 2011

How Many Real Estate Sales Were in Your Seattle Eastside Neighborhood in May, 2011?

[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Bellevue,+WA&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=23.403932,58.271484&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Bellevue,+King,+Washington&ll=47.610377,-122.200679&spn=0.310148,0.910492&z=10&output=embed&w=425&h=350]

How many homes sold in May, 2011 in your neighborhood?

May real estate sales are proof again that real estate is local. Seattle eastside real estate is doing relatively well when compared to the last few years and to other parts of the country.  Regardless of what the national news reports about real estate, Seattle area real estate sales are better than most parts of the country.

In most eastside areas, roughly 1/4-1/3 of the homes on the market sold.  In some areas of the eastside, such as East Bellevue, Redmond near Microsoft, and Kirkland, more than 30% of the available homes sold.   These areas tend to shine, particularly East Bellevue and Redmond, near Microsoft. These neighborhoods have a mix of housing styles and prices and are located close to good schools and jobs.  The areas that are further out tend to be on the slower end of the sales spectrum. More home buyers in today’s market are looking for the convenience of living close to amenities.

I also should qualify my statements regarding the market.  Prices are not up, but remained stable in some areas and lost ground in others.

Seattle’s eastside has a “normal” real estate market when considering the market over the last few years.  A “normal” market means everything is happening from homes selling the minute they hit the market to homes taking months to sell and at reduced prices. The “hot” homes are selling.  “Hot” homes are great values with a good price tag, are staged and ready to go.  The homes that are not “hot” are taking a long time to sell and go through several price reductions before getting an offer.

From the Seattle Times Eric Pryne:

While the rise in pending sales was more modest on the Eastside, King County’s priciest area, closed single-family sales in May actually were up 6 percent from the same month last year — bucking the countywide trend — while prices fell just 4 percent, less than half the countywide drop.

Windermere’s Deasy attributed that in part to hiring by major Eastside employers. “People will start to see houses sell before they have a chance to act on them,” he predicted.

Eastside condo sales also were up from May 2010, climbing 15 percent. Countywide, however, condo sales fell nearly 4 percent, and the median price — $215,000 — was down 14 percent.

(Click on the cities below to see real estate trends for the past 5 years.  You’ll find the median pricing for each city and whether the number of homes for sale and the number of sales went up or down.  The odds of selling a home in each area is a result of the number of homes for sale divided by the actual number of home sales, so if 10 out of 100 homes sold, the odds of selling would be 10/100 or 10%)

The plateau:  Sammamish, Issaquah, North Bend, and Fall City

The odds of selling a home were 22%.

Median sales price dropped: $559,880 to $487,000.

There were 752 homes for sale.

A total of 186 homes sold.

Redmond/East Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 34%.

Median sales price decreased to $409,000 from $480,000.

189 homes were for sale

A total of 73 homes sold.

South Bellevue/Issaquah

The odds of selling a home were 29%.

Median price decreased from $624,975 to $538,000.

342 homes were for sale.

A total of 113  homes sold.

Woodinville/Bothell/Kenmore/Duvall/North Kirkland

The odds of selling a home were 28%.

Median price was down from $451,126 to $375,000.

541 homes were for sale.

A total of 177 homes sold.

Kirkland

The odds of selling a home was 30%.

Median price decreased from $575,000 to $538,500.

282 homes were for sale.

A total of 94 homes sold.

West Bellevue

The odds of selling a home were 29%.

Median pricing increased from $1,280,000 to $1,350,000.

167 homes were for sale.

A total of 51 homes sold.

Redmond/Education Hill/ Carnation

The odds of selling a home were 21%

Median pricing decreased from $519,950 to $411,950.

325 homes were for sale.

A total of 74 homes sold.

If you’d like more specific information about your neighborhood or home, feel free to contact me.



Bellevue Real EstateFor BuyersIssaquah Real EstateKing County Real EstateKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WA Real EstateSeattle real estateWoodinville, WA Real Estate June 9, 2011

May Real Estate Sales Were Strong on Seattle's Eastside

Real Estate Sales on Seattle's Eastside

Seattle Eastside Residential Real Estate Sales Through May, 2011

On Seattle’s eastside, there have been 6 straight months with an increase in the number of real estate sales.  There’s clearly a trend here, although some people do not agree there’s a trend in Seattle real estate.  The trend in sales is matched by the slower increase in the number of homes for sale.  If you look at May last year, there were 3360 homes for sale on the eastside and this year there were only 2733 homes for sale.

The number of homes that sold in May, 2011 is close to the highest number of sales for last year, which happened in April.  Last year sales were inflated by the tax credit.  This year there’s no tax credit available.  This year’s real estate sales are fueled by buyers who feel comfortable moving forward and purchasing homes because prices are down, they want and need to buy. Interestingly, when I speak with buyers at open houses they tell me they’re  seeing some of the good homes moving rather quickly. The buyers are taking notice and buying those homes that are priced well.

In May 2011, there were 2733 homes for sale and 720 of these homes had offers. The absorption rate, the number of homes that sold during a month compared to the number for sale, was 26%.  One-fourth of the Seattle eastside homes for sale sold in May.

How is the real estate market doing in your area?

For BuyersFor SellersReal Estate May 26, 2011

Yet Another Reason to Work with a Buyer's Agent

Recently, I was reminded yet again about why it’s so important to have your own agent when buying a home.

Here’s what reminded me of this.  Buyers were interested in purchasing one of my listings, however they already had an offer on another home.  I found this out because their Realtor happened to mention it to me.  She probably shouldn’t have said something to me because she was representing the buyers. It was not something she should have disclosed, but that discussion is for another post.

My point is if these buyers had gone through the listing agent when they made the offer on the first house, there’s no way this situation could have occurred.  The agent could not have represented these buyers on another purchase when the buyers had an offer on the agent’s listing.    Having their own agent allowed these buyers the flexibility to write an offer on another home, while keeping the first offer in place.  Their agent told me if the buyers really wanted my listing, they would back out of the first offer and walk away from their earnest money.   They’d already gone through an inspection on the other home and had no legal reason to back out of the offer, but would have done so if they decided to go forward with my listing.

Could these buyers have done this if they had gone through the listing agent to buy the first home?  Absolutely not.  The listing agent has a fiduciary responsibility to the sellers, obviously, so the agent could do absolutely nothing to jeopardize the sellers’ interests, such as writing up an offer on another home for the buyers.

This situation reminded me of how many times I’d been in negotiations while representing a buyer and another home came on the market that was better for the buyers.  Each time I immediately contacted my buyers and we went and looked at the other home.  Each time they bought the new listing instead of going with the first offer.   It was easy to do for each of these buyers.  I was still keeping an eye out for new listings even as we worked on the offers.  We just jumped in the car and quickly took a look at the new listing.

Most people think it’s great to go through the listing agent to buy a home.   For some people and for some situations that works beautifully.  But what if you decide you want out of the sale?  You want out of the transaction to buy another home or because of an inspection issue or because you’ve changed your mind.  It’s much harder to do when the agent who wrote the offer represents the seller, too.

You never know what can happen.  It’s best to give yourself options and have your own agent so you don’t close the door to any opportunities.  Your agent can give you advice on anything and everything, unlike the agent who represents a seller.  Shouldn’t you have that level of service available to you?  After all, buying a home is a huge decision and you should have resources that are completely available to you at your finger tips.

Can you think of other situations where your buyer or you as a buyer benefited from having your own agent?