Prices are down, and sales are up, a combination that is helping to shake the doldrums out of the Seattle real estate market. The median price decrease is partly attributed to the increase in sales at the lower end of the market. The following article from HousingWire explains this in further detail.
July home sales in the Seattle region increase year-over-year for the first time in three years, led by an increase of transactions on homes below $300,000.
The growth of sales in lower house prices also contributed to a drop in the median sales price, ending a three-month-long streak of month-to-month gains, according to MDA DataQuick.
There were 4,221 sales of new and resale houses and condos in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metropolitan statistical area (MSA) encompassing King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. That’s an increase of 8.8% from July 2008 and 2.5% from June 2009.
It’s the highest sales total in the region for any month since October 2007 and ended a 37-month-long streak of year-over-year declines. It marks the second-lowest July total since 1994, when MDA DataQuick began compiling statistics on the region.
Last month, 48.9% of existing home sales were for less than $300,000, up from 46.5% in June and 37.6% in July 2008.
The median price dropped to $300,160, down 3.8% from $312,000 in June 2009 and down 11.7% from July 2008.
Foreclosure resales represented 16.9% of all resale activity in July, steady from June 2009, but up 5.8% from July 2008. Foreclosure resales peaked in January this year at 23.9%.
This article has been republished from HousingWire. You can also view this article at HousingWire, a mortgage and real estate news site.
