May 2020 Market Update

With the ongoing pandemic response, we've been eagerly awaiting the market statistics for April which would be our first indication of how the market responded to the initial stages of the 'Stay At Home' orders put in place in Washington.  Overall the news is good, if not great, for real estate especially when compared to other parts of our economy.

Market Volume is down an average 34% across all measures from April 2019 to 2020. This is not a surprise, and in fact, is better than the 40-60% decrease we expected.

Inventory is up slightly to 1.3 months... still firmly in a Seller's market, which is further supported by Average Days on Market dropping to 5 days and List to Sell price ratio staying high at 101.8%.

Market values are increasing as well rising $10,000 in April to $650,000 which is a 1.6% increase in the past month, and a 4% increase for the past year.

The key factors driving this health in our market include:

Interest Rates are in the low 3% range for conforming conventional mortgages which makes homes more affordable for buyers.

Buyers with stable income and down payments outside of the stock market are staying active.

The stable and growing demand from Buyers combined with low-interest rates is enhancing Sellers' confidence to take action to move up, downsize, or relocate across town.

As with any changing market, there opportunities and risks... if you'd like to know more and want strategies to navigate them with confidence give us a call.