Volume 5 2021 Issue

Mariko MitsuiBrokers detect good news for home buyers, citing
gains in listings and moderating prices
Finally, some good news for home buyers! Sizeable increases in newlistings compared to a year ago and reports of moderating prices “might mean
we are seeing some relief for buyers,” suggested John Deely, a board member
at Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
At month end, April’s active listings stood at 5,616, yet during the month,member-brokers added 12,043 new listings of homes and condos. There was ajump of more than 57% from the same month a year ago when the pandemic
shutdown began. Compared to March, the volume of new listings rose 14%,and even compared to two years ago (April 2019), new listings were up about3%.
April’s month-end inventory of 5,616 listings was a year-over-year (YOY)drop of 45%; a year ago, there were 10,282 active listings in the MLS
database.
Pending sales continue to surge, keeping inventory depleted. Brokers
reported 10,583 pending sales during April, up nearly 47% from a year ago
when they logged 7,207 mutually accepted offers. Last month’s pending sales
dipped slightly (2.58%) from March.
“At long last, May is here. Historically, we see a nice uptick in new listings
every May. This increased availability and selection will be present
throughout the summer,” suggested J. Lennox Scott, the chairman and CEO ofJohn L. Scott Real Estate. He tempered his prediction by noting there is alarge backlog of prospective home buyers, a situation he says will “keep themarket in a state of ‘instant response’ for each new resale listing.”
Even with some improvement in listings, the MLS report shows only ninecounties have more than one month’s supply of inventory. Areawide, there is
only 0.64 months of inventory, with even less supply (0.57 months) in thefour-county Puget Sound region.
With supplies depleted, prices continue to climb. Brokers reported 8,791
closed sales of single family homes and condos during April, nearly 50%
higher than the year-ago total of 5,866 completed transactions. Year-over-year
prices on closed sales surged 25%, from $452,030 to $565,000. Nearly every
county had double-digit gains.
Prices on single family homes rose about 26.5%, while condo prices
increased by a more modest 12%.
Although bidding wars are common, Deely said some brokers are reporting
things may be starting to moderate related to pricing. “Brokers tell us somesellers who have been pushing the envelope on their home price are now
experiencing longer list times and, in some cases, have had to drop theirprices.” He emphasized sellers need to price appropriately. “With things
starting to return to normal, the off-the-chart activity placing sellers in thedriver’s seat may be moderating,” he remarked.
Market Activity Summary for April 2021
Listings
Single Family

New

Homes & Condos Listings

Closing Sales

TotalPending

Active# ofAverage

MedianClosings

PricePrice

Mariko Osterberg

with access to paid sick leave and the increase in unemployment
insurance claims. A score was then assigned to each state based on
those metrics, and Washington state's economy ranked as the least
impacted so far by the pandemic. Specifically, the study found that theEvergreen state has: One of the highest shares of workers who are able
to work from home; A higher than average number of employees
returning to work after being unemployed; A higher than average
share of workers with access to paid sick leave.

Breakouts! – Residential SOLD Average
April 2021 (King/Snohomish County) SOLD Average
Area (Area Code)Average $Average $ 2021 VS

Apr. 2021

Apr. 2020

2020

Auburn-Federal Way (110-310)$ 595,411$ 481,834

23.57%

Kent-Maple Valley (320-340)$ 667,726$ 549,122

21.60%

West Seattle (140)$ 878,399$ 766,347

14.62%

SODO-Beacon Hill (380-385)$ 781,755$ 773,4071.08%

E.lake-Madison-Capital Hill (390)$ 1,449,238$ 1,177,315

23.10%

Queen Anne-Magnolia (700)$ 1,471,273$ 1,204,454

22.15%*Belltown-Downtown Seattle(701) $ 762,159$ 781,782-2.51%

Ballard-Greenlake (705)$ 957,233$ 891,298

7.40%

North Seattle (710)$ 1,164,946$ 991,422

17.50%

Shoreline/Richmond Beach (715) $ 934,714$ 790,692

18.21%

Bellevue Downtown (520)$ 3,409,210 -11.92%$ 3,002,845

Mercer Island (510)$ 2,687,125$ 1,688,210

59.17%

Bellevue South-Newcastle (500)$ 1,670,360$ 1,181,699

41.35%

Renton Highlands-Downtown (350) $ 812,881$ 651,417

24.79%

Microsoft-Bellevue East (530)$ 1,505,156$ 1,143,942

31.58%

Kirkland Downtown (560)$ 2,228,018$ 1,219,804

82.65%

Redmond (550)$ 1,226,353$ 947,477

29.43%

Issaquah-Sammamish (540)$ 1,283,828$ 975,416

31.62%

Juanita-Bothell-Woodinville (600) $ 1,221,613$ 905,561

34.90%

Bothell North-Mill Creek (610)$ 947,172$ 744,590

27.21%

Edmonds-Lynnwood (730)$ 837,980$ 658,61027.23%

Everett-Mukilteo-Snohomish (740) $ 699,852$ 567,355

23.35%*Condominium SOLD Average

Millennials driving home prices;
Entry level homes see greatest gains
Another home price index shows double digit annual price increases,
this time for March, and the CoreLogic HPI also has the highestmonth-over-month gain we have seen in the present environment. Thecompany says there was an 11.3 percent national rate of appreciation
during the month while prices were up 2.0 percent from February.
The company says the 2021 spring homebuying season is on track tooutpace trends seen in 2019 and 2018. Millennials are driving thedemand, accounting for 54 percent of home purchase applications overthe last year.

King

4,602

2,212

3,977

3,402

$936,621$750,000

Snohomish

1,898

632

1,630

1,285

$676,104$630,000

Pierce

1,844

696

1,657

1,490

$512,729$490,000

Gina Brown (NMLS#115337)

Weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®)

Total

8,344

3,540

7,264

6,177

$708,485$623,333

Senior Loan Officer

May 12, 2021

425-766-5408
gina@gmgloan.com
www.loansbygina.com

Regional BreakdownWashington’s economy the least impacted
Washington state's economy has weathered the coronavirus pandemic
better than any other state in the nation, a newly released study has
found. The report, by personal finance website WalletHub, compared the50 states and the District of Columbia across 13 key metrics, including
the share of employment from small businesses to the share of workers

Average Rates
Fees & Points
APR

30-Yr
FNMA

30-Yr
FHA

15-Yr
FNMA

2.750%

2.250%

2.00%

5/1
ARM
-*All loans are with a one point origination fee.

2.886%3.103%

2.244%-**** 5/1 ARM’s are not pricing right now due to liquidity issues
with the Forbearance due to COVID 19** Owner Occupied / Single Family Residence
740 credit score and 20% down payment for conventional

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