Before we begin May’s reporting roundup, let’s have a little review of the year so far.
January
Barb Lamoureux, owner and broker with Lamoureux Real Estate in Everett, said the typical slow December market is over. She’s seen signs the market is picking up, including a significant increase in open house traffic and even some multiple offers on properties. Her agents are expecting a busy spring.
February
February housing activity around western Washington signaled signs of an emerging spring market with a noticeable increase in open house traffic, reports of multiple offers and a big jump in pending sales from the previous month.
March
NWMLS director Dick Beeson believes the local market has “reached bottom – or pretty darn close.” Even though inventory continues to grow, Beeson acknowledged, “so does optimism among buyers, sellers and agents.”
April
Spring did start slowly, said Coldwell Banker Bain agent Margo Hass Klein. But she said traffic in the last couple of weeks has increased by at least 10 percent at open houses.
May
“We still haven’t had summer hit us yet as the weather remains cool, wet and cloudy. I expect both temperatures and the market to heat up as summer approaches,” commented Dick Beeson, broker/owner at Windermere/Commencement Associates in Tacoma. “Open house traffic is picking up and buyers are coming off the sidelines to make buying decisions.”
I’m starting to wonder if maybe, just maybe “open house traffic” isn’t quite the best measure of real estate market health.
Read on for the this month’s roundup with all the blind real estate agent optimism you can eat.
