September market stats have been published by the NWMLS. Still no good news for buyers. Listings are scarce, sales are strong, and prices dipped, but no more than they do every year in the second half of the year…
Tag: NWMLS
NWMLS: Seattle housing market shows no signs of slowing in August
Every month I hope to see some good news for buyers in the numbers. Every month I am disappointed. Listings are still in short supply, sales are strong, and prices just keep going up at a breakneck pace. Sorry, buyers…
NWMLS: Listings and Sales Slip, Prices Edge Up in July
July market stats have been published by the NWMLS. Let’s dive into the numbers for July.
Prices keep climbing as listings are still scarce. What more is there to say? So far this year we haven’t seen any movement in the trends that point to some kind of change coming soon in the market.
New Listing Absorption Dropping Rapidly From December High
By request, here are a few alternative takes on recent home listing activity. Since one of the biggest issues driving the current crazy market is a lack of enough home listings, we can get an idea of whether or not there is any relief on the horizon for buyers by looking at listing activity.
First up, here’s a chart I just created: New listing absorption. This is a simple look at the ratio of pending sales to new listings. If more homes are going pending in a month than there are being listed, this ratio goes above 100 percent, which is obviously not great for buyers.
…what’s interesting to me about this chart is that just last December we saw new listing absorption an all-time high of 159%, while as of June it has fallen to almost the lowest level since the market bottomed out in 2011. However, this is obviously a very seasonal metric, and the low point for the year usually comes in June or July, so it would not be surprising if this is the lowest level we see this year.
NWMLS Falsely Inflates Seattle’s Population Growth
It’s time once again for a reporting roundup, where you can read my wry commentary about the news instead of subjecting yourself to boring rehashes of the NWMLS press release (or in addition to, if that’s what floats your boat).
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For a month that saw home prices shoot up to insane new all-time highs, the quotes from home salesmen in this month’s release are surprisingly calm.
I do want to address one glaring error in the release, though:
Seattle’s growing population is another likely factor. Recent U.S. Census Bureau data shows Seattle is gaining about 1,100 residents per week, an “astounding” figure, said MLS director Diedre Haines.
That number is false. The most recent data available shows a growth rate of less than half that level…