The Market After One Month of

Many are wondering how the ‘Stay At Home’ order will affect the housing market short and long term, and at the fourth week of the order, we are starting to see the first indications.

Are Homes Selling?

Yes… when we look the nearly 2000 homes listed in King County since the order was issued, we see 48.6% of all listings pending, contingent or sold. This roughly translates to 2 months of inventory, which is Seller’s market territory. In addition, we see average marketing times for pending and sold homes are 5-7 days.

These stats are consistent when we focus on Seattle, where 47.9% of homes listed received a contract in an average of 7-9 days.

On the Eastside (Bellevue. Kirkland, Redmond), things were just a bit slower about the same 44.9% homes listed receiving a contract in 5-9 days on marketing.

How Does Activity Compare?

When we compare the first three weeks of April this year with the same period last year, we see:

April Vs. Last Year

• For Sale: Down 22%

• New: Down 33%

• Sold: Down 23%

• Pending: Down 39%

When we compare compare the first three weeks of April with the same period in March, we see:

April vs. March 2020

• For Sale: Up 10%

• New: Down 42.5%

• Sold: Down 18.7%

• Pending: Down 28.4%

What Are Values Doing?

It’s too early to know at this point. Sold values are a lagging indicator, so we’ll need to be at least 45-60 days to get enough data for this to be meaningful. While there are a few completed sales for properties listed since the order, these sales are likely from quick closing, competitive buyers with a greater probability of higher sales prices than may be indicated in the broader market.

What Does It All Mean?

Again, it’s too early to know with certainty, however the early indications are cautiously optimistic. While a large number of buyers and sellers are remaining on the sidelines, we do see healthy buyer activity in balance with seller activity. As long as this remains in balance, the market will be healthy and reasonably predictable. Sellers will confidently bring their homes to market knowing they will sell, and buyers will confidently search for homes knowing they’ll find the home they need and want.