Blog - Seattle Real Estate Agents - Seattle Homes for sale in WA

As Barron's just stated in a July 14, 2008 article, could we be at the bottom or close to the bottom in our housing downturn?

In this new world of Blogging and the Internet we come across many different things everyday. We see and hear all the troubling news about how bad the Seattle Real Estate Market is and how bad the National economy is, and today we even read someone saying that he thought we are in a full fledged depression. As Dave Neihaus would say "My Oh My" where are these people coming from. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and there have always been the doom sayers out there but lets look at some facts here about the Seattle Real Estate Market.

We recently received a sales analysis from one of the Title Companies we work with here in Seattle and the following numbers are very interesting. These are resale numbers for homes in different locations and neighborhoods around and in Seattle. These are sales figures from May of 2007 through May of 2008

Area......................# of Sales YTD......................................Average Price YTD
...............................2008.........2007.....%Change......2008..............2007........%Change


Ballard.......................231..........316.......-27%.........$518,242.......$525,907......-1%
Bellevue....................376..........617.......-39%.........$900,769.......$931,086......-3%
Federal Way.............227..........361.......-37%.........$320,164........$333,990.....-4%
Green Lake..............450..........647.......-30%.........$630,758........$601,366......+5%
Issaquah...................181...........226.......-20%........$587,158.......$632,334......-7%
Kent...........................400..........647.......-38%.........$330,833.......$363,762......-9%
Magnolia....................180..........264.......-32%.........$821,126.......$804,701......+2%
Mt Baker....................249..........409.......-39%.........$839,440.......$751,435....+12%
Snoqualmie................116..........164.......-29%.........$477,729.......$504,367.....-5%
Renton.......................445..........695.......-36%.........$405,149........$447,133......-9%
Vashon Island.............45...........54.........-17%........$464,354........$491,971.....-6%

Interesting numbers aren't they? While you have to be careful about any statistics you put together or read as they can be slanted or spun in various ways, we believe while it may still be a bit early to tell, but we could be close to the bottom. Even so, we look at our market in Seattle as having huge potentials for buyers right now. There has never been so much inventory and prices are soft. But as you can se from the number above, while all the areas are experiencing a slow down in number of sales, prices have dropped in some areas, stayed pretty much the same in others, and have risen in others.

The Seattle Real Estate Market holds some really good opportunities at this time for the smart buyer. Over the last couple of years for example, there have been a very large number of Town Homes built in close-in neighborhoods. Some of these Town Homes are in good locations and some are not, but what they all have in common is that you now have a very motivated seller and good inventories to choose from. The same is true for many condo buildings so there are some very good deals to be had, but you have to understand pricing in this market and know how to get the best property at the best price. There are great opportunities but you have know what you are doing. And because of the traffic and now the cost of fuel, the close in neighborhoods will experience even more demand over the next several years.

And now because of gas prices and little to no possibility that they will be going down any time soon, will that "drive until you can afford what you want in a house" mentality be gone soon? There will be increasing pressure for those homes in close-in neighborhoods. And as you see by the above numbers those areas prices haven't been effected very much during this slow down as it is. But there are really good homes in these neighborhood that will sell for much less than they should over the next several months. This is a great time to buy in Seattle, we are convinced of that, but you have to buy smart, you have to know the market and the city. Today there are 88 Active Listing on Magnolia and Queen Anne between $600,000 and $800,000. Last year at this time there were maybe 40. What we have always found is that about 2 out of every 20 Listings are really good homes to buy. Today we know of that 88 homes Listed that there are 12 excellent homes to buy at about a 10% saving over last years prices. Now, we don't recommend that you buy home today if you plan on selling it again in two years, but if you are going to be in a home at least 5 years, this may be the best time to buy that we have has in almost 20 years.

Labels: Buying Homes in Seattle, Seattle Real Estate Market Conditions

Yesterday I was listening to a local radio station in Seattle in my car. The host had a guest on that was talking about what makes a person and country happy. This was in response to a recent report listing the Happiest Countries in the World. A recent study from Britain's University of Leicester came up with a range of statistical data they devise to rank the world's happiest nations.

Denmark ranked number one, then Switzerland, Austria, Iceland, Bahamas, Finland, Sweden, Bhutan, Brunei, and Canada, round out the top 10. Zimbabwe and Burundi were at the bottom. China came in No. 82, India ranked 125, and Russia was 167. The U.S. came in at 23. According to the study, the countries that are happiest are those that are healthy, wealthy, and wise, with the most important factors being health, the level of poverty, and access to basic education. Population size of the country also played a role. Smaller countries with "greater social cohesion and a stronger sense of national identity" scored higher, while those with the largest populations scored far worse.

Now this guess, I didn't get his name or where he was from other that I think he graduated from Yale University has his opinion on what makes people happy. His list were: #1 Purpose in Life, #2 Success Level, and #3 Control of their Life. He went on to say that people that are doing things that they consider to be significant, things that help other people tend to be the happiest. The the success level of ones career or endeavor will make a person happy and lastly the amount of control a person has over their life is very important to ones happiness.

Now some you may be asking how we are going to turn this into something to do with real estate...well read on!

This guy belongs to some research group that I don't know the name of but they have done a lot of research regarding peoples happiness. What they found in questioning thousands of people is that the time these people are the least happy is during their morning and evening commutes to and from work. He said this was the case because during this time you are "not in control, the traffic is." He even said something like "so people that have moved out into the suburbs to live a quite peaceful life are finding that they are not as happy as those that live closer to work and the commute time a a lot less." See we got there. :-)

We have always believed that homes that are located in the "close-in" Seattle neighborhoods will have greater value now and will continue to have greater value over the long run from those homes located father out from the center of the city. Now with gas prices, a growing population, and more traffic issues with little to no good and economical solutions for them, "in-city" homes should continue to be the best investments. And, there are some of the best opportunities we have seen since 1999 to buy homes in the city right now. Inventories are high, you don't have the pressure to make a quick decision, there are NOT bidding wars anymore, and prices are down by as much as 10% to 15% from where they were in at the peak in May of 2007.