Bellevue Real EstateBellevue, WAFor BuyersFor HomeownersFor SellersIssaquah Real EstateIssaquah, WAKing County Real EstateKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateReal Estate NewsRedmondSammamish, WASammamish, WA Real EstateSeattle real estateWA real estate April 8, 2010

What Were The Odds of Selling Your Seattle-Eastside Home in March, 2010?

real estate activity on Seattle's eastside in March, 2010

Seattle- Eastside Real Estate Sales, March 2010

The odds of selling a home on the Eastside in March, 2010 ranged from a low of 18% to a high of 34%, with an average 27% absorption rate. (The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.)

March, 2010             2923 homes for sale      778  homes sold         27% odds of selling.

February, 2010        2706 homes for sale      506 (was 599)   homes sold       now 18% (was 22%) odds of selling.*

March, 2009            3711 homes for sale       305 homes sold             8% odds of selling.

*Adjusted from previous month’s numbers to reflect the actual number of homes sold and closed. Each month some sales  fall apart and don’t close.  A lower number of home sales may be reported at a later date to show the actual number of sales that did close.

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March, 2009 Seattle-Eastside real estate market compared to March, 2010:

  • Home sales were up in all Seattle-Eastside cities, a trend which we’ve seen since the first of the year.
  • Last week, we hit 12,726 properties for sale in King County, exactly 3000 more properties than the first week in January.
  • This week we saw the first significant drop in the number of King County properties for sale as the number dropped by 120 to 12,606.  There’s only been one other week this year where the amount of homes for sale dropped and that was only by 8 homes.
  • On Seattle’s eastside the number of homes for sale continues to rise as over 200 more homes came on the market this past month.
  • The median price was down by 7%, the same as last month.  (Keep in mind this is comparing last March’s numbers to this March and is not an indication of the total drop in price for the year.)
  • Home sales on Seattle’s Eastside:   up 85%!
  • Number of homes for sale on Seattle’s Eastside:  down 21%

Best odds of selling: Redmond, near Microsoft, and East Bellevue with the greatest odds of selling. Thirty-four percent of the homes got offers.  

Worst odds of selling: West Bellevue, with only 18% of the homes getting accepted offers.

Biggest increase in sales from last year: The plateau cities of Sammamish and Issaquah, plus Fall City and North Bend, with 154% increase in the number of home sales from last year.

Smallest increase in sales from last year: Redmond and Carnation, with an 18% increase in home sales over last year.

Decline in real estate sales from last year: None on the eastside. More homes sold in all areas of the eastside this March than compared to March, 2009.

The peak of homes for sale in 2008: July,  4370 homes.

The peak of homes for sale in 2009: June,  3859 homes.

The number of eastside homes for sale at the start of 2010: 2584 homes

The number of eastside homes for sale now: 2923 homes.

Rate of home sales that failed and did not close: 16%

What have you seen happening in your area?  Are real estate sales popping?

For The Seattle Times view of the March, 2010 real estate market, check out this link. KPLU had a piece earlier this week about last month’s real estate activity.

What’s in store  for April?  What do you think will happen?  I suspect the market will continue to be very strong, particularly in more affordable price ranges. Will our more positive real estate market continue after the April 30th deadline for the home buyer tax credit?

Bellevue Real EstateFor BuyersFor SellersIssaquah Real EstateKing County Real EstateKirklandMarket StatisticsReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WA Real EstateSeattle real estateWA real estateWindermere Real EstateWoodinville, WA Real Estate March 15, 2010

What Were The Odds of Selling Your Seattle-Eastside Home in Feb, 2010?

Seattle Real Estate Activity

Seattle-Eastside Residential Real Estate Statistics-Feb 2010

The odds of selling a home on the Eastside in February, 2010 ranged from a low of 16.5% to a high of 29%, with an average 22% absorption rate. (The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.)

February, 2010        2706 homes for sale      599  homes sold,          22% odds of selling.

January, 2010         2588 homes for sale,     (n0w 477) 539 homes sold,     (now 18%) 20% odds of selling.*

February, 2009      3574 homes for sale,      264 homes sold,              7% odds of selling.

*Adjusted from previous month’s numbers to reflect the actual number of homes sold and closed. Each month some sales  fall apart and don’t close.  A lower number of home sales may be reported at a later date to show the actual number of sales that did close. (see explanation below)

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February, 2009 Seattle-Eastside real estate market compared to February, 2010:

  • Home sales were up in all Seattle-Eastside cities.
  • The number of homes for sale has begun its “spring creep up”.  The year started out at the lowest point in three years.  We’re now seeing more on the market.  Expect to see a jump in homes for sale with the March report coming next month.
  • The median price was down by 7%.  (Keep in mind this is comparing last February’s numbers to this February and is not an indication of the total drop in price for the year.)
  • Home sales on Seattle’s Eastside:   up 103%!
  • Number of homes for sale on Seattle’s Eastside:  down 25%

Best odds of selling: Redmond, near Microsoft, and East Bellevue with the greatest odds of selling. Twenty-nine percent of the homes got offers.  

Worst odds of selling: West Bellevue with only 16.5% of the homes getting accepted offers.

Biggest increase in sales from last year: South Bellevue with 193% increase in the number of home sales from last year.

Smallest increase in sales from last year: West Bellevue, with a 52% increase in home sales over last year.

Decline in real estate sales from last year: None on the eastside. More homes sold in all areas of the eastside this February than last February, which is no big surprise.

The peak of homes for sale in 2008: July,  4370 homes.

The peak of homes for sale in 2009: June,  3859 homes.

The number of eastside homes for sale at the start of 2010: 2584 homes

The number of eastside homes for sale now: 2706 homes.

Rate of home sales that failed: 12%

For a media perspective on February’s real estate trends, check out this article from The Seattle Times.

Will our more positive real estate market continue after the April 30th deadline for the home buyer tax credit? What do you think?

Bellevue Real EstateFor BuyersFor SellersIssaquah Real EstateKing County Real EstateKirklandRedmondSammamish, WA Real EstateSeattle real estateWA real estateWindermere Real EstateWoodinville, WA Real Estate February 10, 2010

What Were The Odds of Selling Your Seattle-Eastside Home in January, 2010?

January, 2010 Seattle-Eastside Home Sales

Seattle-Eastside Real Estate, January, 2010

The odds of selling a home on the Eastside in January, 2010 ranged from a low of 12% to a high of 28%, with an average 21% absorption rate. (The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.)

January, 2010         2588 homes for sale,      539 homes sold,          27% odds of selling.

December, 2009     2584 homes for sale,     419(now 358) homes sold    16%(Now 14%) odds of selling.*

January, 2009,        3144 homes for sale      248 homes sold              9% odds of selling.

*Adjusted from previous month’s numbers to reflect the actual number of homes sold and closed. Each month some sales  fall apart and don’t close.  A lower number of home sales may be reported at a later date to show the actual number of sales that did close. (see explanation below)

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January, 2009 Seattle-Eastside real estate market compared to January, 2010:

  • Home sales were up in all Seattle-Eastside cities.
  • The number of homes for sale dropped to the lowest number since February, 2007.
  • The median price was down by 1.8%.  (Keep in mind this is comparing last January’s numbers to this January and is not an indication of the total drop in price for the year.)
  • Home sales on Seattle’s Eastside:   up 76%!
  • Number of homes for sale on Seattle’s Eastside:  down 27%

Best odds of selling: Redmond, near Microsoft, and East Bellevue are back on top as the areas with the greatest odds of selling. Twenty eight percent of the homes got offers.  Last month the area had the worst odds on the eastside.

Worst odds of selling: West Bellevue with only 12% of the homes getting accepted offers.

Biggest increase in sales from last year: Redmond, near Microsoft,  and East Bellevue with 103% increase in the number of home sales from last year.

Smallest increase in sales from last year: West Bellevue, with a 35% increase in home sales over last year.

Decline in real estate sales from last year: None on the eastside.

The peak of homes for sale in 2008: July,  4370 homes.

The peak of homes for sale in 2009: June,  3859 homes.

The number of eastside homes for sale at the start of 2010: 2584 homes

The number of eastside homes for sale now: 2588 homes.

Rate of home sales that failed: 15%

Why home sales fail to close:

  • This can be the result of inspections in which buyers and sellers do not agree, an appraisal that does not justify the sales price, lenders who do not package the loan properly or the great number of short sales that are out there.
  • Short sales are sales in which the selling price for a property is less than the price owed to the bank, so the seller is “short.”  Many of these offers do not stay together because it often takes months for a short sale to get approved by the bank.  There’s no guarantee the bank will accept an offer.  I’ve heard only 4% of the short sales actually close in King County.  Since there’s a huge number on the market, if you’re someone willing to take a chance and accept that your offer may never be looked at or accepted, then a short sale may be a way to go. With the extension of the home buyer tax credit, home buyers have more time to go after short sales.  However, months may still be needed to get the short sale closed, if it is to close at all. Since most buyers truly want to purchase a home and close on it, I would recommend NOT making offers on short sales.  I’d also recommend reading as much as you can about short sales before attempting to make an offer on a short sale. This way you’ll be prepared if you choose to go the route of a short sale.
Bellevue Real EstateFor BuyersFor SellersKing County Real EstateKirklandReal EstateRedmondSammamish, WA Real EstateSeattle real estateWA real estateWindermere Real EstateWoodinville, WA Real Estate January 13, 2010

What Were The Odds of Selling Your Seattle-Eastside Home in December, 2009?

Seattle-Eastside Residential Sales, December, 2009

The odds of selling a home on the Eastside in December 2009 ranged from a low of 11% to a high of 20%, with an average 16% absorption rate. (The absorption rate is the number of homes for sale in any given month divided by the actual number of homes sold that month.)

December, 2009     2584 homes for sale,     419 homes sold           16% odds of selling.

November, 2009    2943 homes for sale      503 (now 457)homes sold    17% (now 15.5%) odds of selling.*

December, 2008    3413 homes for sale       207 homes sold              6% odds of selling.

*Adjusted from previous month’s numbers to reflect the actual number of homes sold and closed. (see explanation below)  Each month some sales  fall apart and don’t close.  A lower number of home sales may be reported at a later date to show the actual number of sales that did close.

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December, 2008 Seattle-Eastside real estate market compared to December, 2009:

Several important trends this month:

  • Home sales were up in all Seattle-Eastside cities.
  • The number of homes for sale dropped to the lowest number since March, 2007. This is a huge factor in our real estate market.  For most of the past two years, there’s been a large number of homes on the market.  In 2005 and 2006, when the real estate market was booming, we saw the numbers of homes for sale on the eastside in the 2000-3000 range.
  • The median prices were down by 3%.
  • Home sales on Seattle’s Eastside:  up 81%!

Sales prices: down 3%.

Number of homes for sale: down 24%.

Best odds of selling: For the third month in a row, the cities of Sammamish, Issaquah, Fall City, Snohomish, and North Bend, with 20% of the homes selling.

Worst odds of selling: West Redmond, near Microsoft, and East Bellevue with 13% odds of homes selling.

Biggest increase in sales from last year: West Bellevue, with 279% more home sales, which translates to 34 home sales in 2009 vs. 9 home sales in 2008.

Smallest increase in sales from last year: East Bellevue/Redmond area around Microsoft with a 6% increase in sales over last year.

Home sales in Bellevue and Redmond were tops for several years and have now dropped off when compared to other eastside cities.

Decline in real estate sales from last year: None on the eastside.

The peak of homes for sale in 2008: July,   4370 homes.

The peak of homes for sale in 2009: June,  3859 homes.

The number of homes for sale at the start of 2010: 9726 homes

Rate of home sales that failed this month: 9%

Why home sales fail to close:

  • This can be the result of inspections in which buyers and sellers do not agree, an appraisal that does not justify the sales price, lenders who do not package the loan properly or the great number of short sales that are out there.
  • Short sales are sales in which the selling price for a property is less than the price owed to the bank, so the seller is “short.”  Many of these offers do not stay together because it often takes months for a short sale to get approved by the bank.  There’s no guarantee the bank will accept an offer.  I’ve heard only 4% of the short sales actually close in King County.  Since there’s a huge number on the market, if you’re someone willing to take a chance and accept that your offer may never be looked at or accepted, then a short sale may be a way to go. With the extension of the home buyer tax credit, home buyers have more time to go after short sales.  However, months may still be needed to get the short sale closed, if it is to close at all. Since most buyers truly want to purchase a home and close on it, I would recommend NOT making offers on short sales.  I’d also recommend reading as much as you can about short sales before attempting to make an offer on a short sale. This way you’ll be prepared if you choose to go the route of a short sale.
  • My team and I are closing on a short sale this week.  The original offer was written in August.  There were two lienholders, two banks with mortgages on the property, which complicated the process.  Short sales can happen, but a buyer has to expect a rocky ride through the sales process, if the banks actually respond to the offer.  Be ready for most anything and most of all, be patient and not under any time constraints.