Full disclosure: The Tim is employed by Redfin.
Last Wednesday Redfin released their May market data. Here’s an excerpt from the narrative (which I also wrote):
For the most part selection around Seattle continued the unseasonal shrinkage we’ve been pointing out all year. However, there may yet be some hope on the horizon as we move into the summer. Redfin Maple Valley Agent Lori Bakken is seeing a shift in the attitudes of potential sellers as they put aside their expectations of a quick price recovery. “Sellers are ready to be realistic, they’re accepting the loss,” said Lori.
…
Sales are picking up just as they do every year as we head into the summer, but they’re still quite a bit below where they were last year (as the tax credit was ramping down). Redfin Eastside coordinator Christine Golborne attributes the continued slump in sales to an ongoing sense of unease among potential buyers. “I think there’s a lot of distrust in the marketplace,” explained Christine. “People think that pricing is still going to go lower.”
It’s basically the same story we’ve been repeating all year so far: Slumping sales and sagging inventory. I suspect the market may linger through this kind of malaise for quite some time to come…
You can download the full spreadsheet from Redfin here, and as usual, I’m going to map the data here.
In the map below each zip code with enough sales in May is shown as a dot, with the size of the dot determined by the number of sales in that zip code in the month. Each dot is color-coded based on whichever measure you select below the map. You can view the month-over-month or year-over-year changes in inventory, sales, median prices, or median prices per square foot. There is also a county selector that allows you to narrow, expand, or modify the view to your liking.
Sales volume is still slipping in most places, but continues to rise in a few. The biggest winner in King County was Des Moines (98198), where sales shot up from 15 in April to 27 in May. King County’s biggest decline was in Snoqualmie (98065), where sales fell 59% from 17 in April to 7 in May.
Here are the zip codes with the most SFH sales in May in King, Snohomish, Pierce, Thurston, and Kitsap County:
- King: 98042 — 54 sales.
- Snohomish: 98012 — 62 sales.
- Pierce: 98391 — 77 sales.
- Thurston: 98503 — 43 sales.
- Kitsap: 98366 — 30 sales.
Inventory continued falling in most places in April, declining month-to-month in 41 King County neighborhoods, flat in 3, and rising in 28. Year-to-year continues to come in worse: 12 neighborhoods saw inventory increase, 2 were flat, and the remaining 59 are all lower than a year ago.
The median price fell from a year ago in 51 King County zip codes, and rose in just 14. The median price per square foot was down in 56 zip codes and up in just 9.
Anything stand out to you about your neighborhood in this month’s data?