So, what's "acceptable" appreciation?

[jenseattle]

My husband and I recently bought a house in Ravenna b/c we found ourselves without any decent rental options. With a large (100+ lb) dog and the need for a fenced-in yard, we were actually unable to find a decent house for a reasonable rent. That said, we took the plunge and have really been enjoying our new house.

I've read a lot on here that real estate has appreciated at such an alarming rate that it's a terrible investment right now. What I found interesting, though, was that our house has only appreciated at a little over 6%/year in the last 16 years (last sale was in '92). That doesn't seem extreme to me, so what's the deal? Is this completely out of the norm for most houses in this market? What is "decent" appreciation?

[Ubersalad]

Don't be lazy, dig deeper on this site, you'll find the answer.

[Alan]

That's nothing. I owned a place for 4 years and saw less than 10% appreciation over those four years.

Then I owned a condo for 5 years and only saw 3% appreciation over 5 years.

What does acceptable mean anyway?

[deejayoh]

it means what you'll accept!

I guess you just didn't ask for enough

Oh - and Jen, you might want to take a look at this post if you are looking for trends

http://seattlebubble.com/blog/wp-conten ... 6-2007.png

[barista]

6% per year doesn't seem extreme because probably you are used to seeing double digit appreciations lately. Historically the housing prices have barely kept up with the inflation which is normally close to 3%. So Now you know what your home should have appreciated at.

Don't feel bad about overpaying though. If you plan to stay in that house for 10+ years, I think it will work out eventually.

[jenseattle]

Whoa whoa whoa! So you mean our house **isn't** going to be worth 30% more next year?? We'll be ready to upgrade by that time!

Inflation (or roughly 3%) makes sense as an historical average. Luckily, we bought the house as a place to live, not as a money making venture.

[Markor]

Cities can gain in popularity relative to other cities. Increasing popularity should causes houses to appreciate at greater than the rate of inflation in the long run. I think Seattle is in that category, but increased popularity doesn't explain all of the appreciation.