Escrow no sure therapy for subprime ills
With one important exception, lenders price loans on the assumption borrowers will include taxes and insurance premiums in their monthly…
Second Quarter 2007 Western Washington Real Estate Market Update
From John L. Scott HQ:
A Balanced Market
A shifting market has created a change in approach for both buyers and sellers in Western Washington. As inventory grows, sellers are seeing fewer multiple-offer situations and are pricing their homes accordingly. Increased inventory means more selection for buyers, but home price appreciation is still on the rise, creating a sense of urgency for many of them.
April
The spring got off to a mixed start. Pending sales (offers accepted but not yet closed) on single-family homes were down 7.5%, but condo sales saw an increase of 4%. The median price for a condo was up almost 20%, while single family homes were up only 11%.
May
The median price of a home in King County in May was $469,000, up 9.6% over last year. In Pierce country, the median price was $281,000. While pending sales were on the decrease, sales of million-dollar-plus homes was up 28.5%.
June
The last month of the second quarter saw much of the same activity as the previous two months. New listings were up 51%, pending sales were down 12%, and the median price of a home was up almost 6%. Economists expect healthy appreciation to continue through the end of 2007.
Second Quarter Overview
Though pending sales are down in our area, Western Washington continues to demonstrate its real estate health when compared with much of the nation. Nationwide, the average supply of inventory is almost seven months. Overall in Western Washington, supply is five months. In King County, supply is about three months.
The increase in inventory can be misleading. Homes in close-in neighborhoods, particularly those in the price range a median income family can afford, are quite limited. Homes that fit those two criteria are still seeing large open house attendance and, in some cases, multiple offers.
What’s Your Home Worth
If you are interested in finding more information about the value of homes in your neighborhood, or more specifically your own home, please feel free to contact me at anytime.
I’d be more than happy to discuss a comparative market analysis of your current home. I can help you map out a successful property marketing and price strategy plan. And together we can work to make your vision for your next home come true as well.
Reminder to buyers: Be diligent on reviews
Q: After we bought our home in Shoreline last year, we learned that the seller and the seller’s agent knew that two houses were about to…
Homebuyers still wild about the West
Aside from being Oregon’s capital city, Salem doesn’t have much to boast about. Most downtown restaurants close by 7 p.m. and Lefty’s & …
Zillow Frustrations
I received an email today from a woman who contacted me through my website because she is absolutely fed up with Zillow. She currently has a listed home on the market (nwmls and not listed through me). The issue is, and I’ve heard about this time and time again, is that Zillow is not showing the correct information on their website regarding the house thus showing a substantially smaller Zestimate than what the home is currently listed at. The square footage on the county website shows the correct amount but Zillow shows less, resulting in a lower Zestimate.
Zillow’s attempt to help solve this kind of problem is to allow owner’s to make changes to their Zillow data. That’s great and all, but the issue still remains, that when a buyer types in a property address to see what the value is, one of the first thing they see is the Zestimate compared to what it’s listed at and that’s going to turn off a lot of potential buyers if the price is way off. She’s sent emails to Zillow (not sure about phone calls) with no response. I recommended she seek some legal counsel to see if they can’t get Zillow to modify their data.
What would you recommend this seller do since Zillow is hurting her chances of selling her home? Are you a Seller or Realtor who has had this issue with your clients? What have you done to help rectify this situation?