Brokers in King, Kittitas Counties report solid uptick in April activity on most metrics

Despite higher-for-longer interest rates that constrained purchasing power for some buyers, brokers across much of Washington reported solid gains in both pending and closed sales during April.

In its latest report, Northwest Multiple Listing Service also noted listing activity improved last month in 23 of the 26 counties it serves.

Last month’s volume of new listings jumped 31.9% compared to the same month last year. Year-over-year (YOY) new listing activity in King County rose 28.9% while in Kittitas County it increased more sharply at 70%.

At month end, buyers could choose from 9,813 active listings of single-family homes and condominiums. That’s a gain of 1,699 units (up 20.9%) from twelve months ago. House hunters in King County had a choice of 2,768 active listings, up 8% from the year-ago total of 2,561. Would-be purchasers in Kittitas County had a much larger selection than 12 months ago. At month end there were 269 active listings versus 176 for the same period last year—a whopping 53% increase.

While improving inventory offered buyers some relief, inventory measured by months of supply still reflects a seller’s market.

At month end, NWMLS reported 1.68 months of supply overall, far less than the four-to-six–month threshold many industry experts use as a gauge of a balanced market. Kittitas County was within that range with about 5.5 months of supply. The selection in King County was relatively sparse with only 1.27 months of supply.

The larger area-wide selection prompted an increase in mutually accepted offers.

Northwest MLS brokers notched 7,792 pending sales during April, up about 9.2% when compared to the same month last year. Pending sales in King County rose nearly 14%. In Kittitas County, there were 12% more YOY pending sales (74 versus 66).

Closed sales system-wide jumped more than 9.5%. NWMLS members reported 5,847 completed transactions during April, up from the year-ago figure of 5,338.

King County was among 10 counties that experienced double-digit gains in YOY closed sales during April. Closings spiked nearly 16.4% in the state’s most populous county.

Kittitas County was among a dozen counties that had fewer closed sales last month than a year ago. Sales there fell 3.9% last month.

With only two exceptions, median sales prices increased last month versus 12 months ago. Area-wide, prices were up 7.9%. King County prices jumped 10.7%—from $790,244 to $875,000. Kittitas prices surged even more, at 11.3%.

Prices for single-family homes (excluding condos) rose 11.5% across the NWMLS service area. In King County, the jump was 12%, propelling the median price for a single family home closer to the $1 million mark. Homes that sold in King County last month fetched a median price of $980,000 up from the year-ago figure of $875,000.

Kittitas County, the YOY median price for a single-family home increased from $524,995 to $549,197 for a gain of 4.6%.