Tag Archives: homes

Real estate update: Kitsap home prices up to end year

real.estateThe Kitsap real estate market ended 2015 on a high note. At least for sellers.

The median price for houses and condominiums in the county was $266,500 in December, a 13.4 percent increase from December 2014, according to numbers released this week by Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

Kitsap’s overall median home price for 2015 was $258,500, besting 2014 by 8 percent.

Home sales in December were in line with previous years. The county’s already depleted home inventory continued to shrink, with 629 active listings at the end of the year.

We’ll have a more in-depth look at the 2015 real estate market a little later this month, when NWMLS releases its annual report.

In the meantime, here’s a graphical look at key trends in Kitsap:

And here’s a map showing the year-over-year change in median price and closed sales for all the submarkets within the county. Wave your mouse over the graphic to see additional stats (and feel free to share using the embed button):

‘Severe’ shortage ahead for Kitsap home market

RealEstate_FILE01_21275712_ver1.0_640_480The number of homes for sale in Kitsap County slid below 1,000 in September, setting the stage for a lean real estate market this fall and winter.

“Since new listings coming to market usually slow during the fourth quarter, we are looking at a severe shortage of inventory heading in to the spring market of 2016,” Frank Wilson, managing broker at John L. Scott in Poulsbo, said in a news release.

A total of 977 homes were for sale in the county in September, about 30 percent fewer than in September 2014, according to numbers released by Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

New listings were actually up 7 percent in September from the previous year, with 407 homes coming on the market. But those new listings were easily outpaced by pending sales.

Low inventory has dogged the Kitsap real estate market all year, even as builders rush to bring new neighborhoods online:

 

Despite strong demand and a skeletal inventory, price increases have been gradual in Kitsap.

The countywide median home price (including condominiums) inched up to $260,000 in September, a 4 percent increase from September 2014.

The median home price for the first three quarters of 2015 was up 7.5 percent from the same period of 2014.

Kitsap Association of Realtors CEO Mike Eliason sees incremental price increases as a positive.

“Even in spite of a marketplace where you had multiple offers on listings, the great news is the median price hasn’t had a double digit increase,” he said.

Here’s a look at median home prices across the county:

And here’s a graphic showing sales and inventory trends:

Kitsap home prices slip, sales still strong

After climbing steadily all year, Kitsap home prices finally dipped in August.

The median price for a home in the county (including condos) was $259,950 last month, down from $275,000 in July, but still 7 percent higher than a year ago, according to Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

While prices slipped, sales activity remained strong. A total of 557 home sales were pending in August, 19 percent more than in August of 2014.

Pending sales easily outpaced new listings in the county, keeping inventory low. The 1,033 active listings in August were 34 percent fewer than in August 2014.

Kitsap home prices may finally be headed up

For a while it seemed Kitsap’s real estate market was defying the basic law of supply and demand.

Real Estate for sale in Bremerton on Wednesday, January 16, 2012. MEEGAN M. REID / KITSAP SUNSales were high, inventory was low, but somehow prices hardly seemed to budge.

That trend appeared to changed over the last couple of months.

The median price for a home in Kitsap was about 7 percent higher in March of this year than in March 2014, according to numbers from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

April saw a more convincing 9 percent year-over-year price jump (see chart below).

The median price of a home (including condos) topped $250,000 in April, already rivaling last year’s peak summer prices. Bainbridge Island set the pace with a median price of $641,500.

The median asking price for active listings in April was $297,950, 11 percent higher than April 2014.

Here’s a peek at price trends:

Familiar sales and inventory trends continued through April. Pending sales activity remained strong and the inventory of available homes remained extremely low.

The months supply of homes — the number of months it would take to sell off all the homes on the market if no listings were added — slipped to 2.38.

That’s a low supply, but actually just about average for Western Washington at the moment. King County recorded a 1.3-month supply in April, as Northwest MLS reported record pending sales across the region.

Here’s a graphical look at sales and inventory trends in Kitsap:

Hot Kitsap real estate market favors sellers

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A low inventory of homes and ravenous demand have set up a seller’s market in Kitsap.

Pending sales in March were 23 percent higher than in March 2014, according to numbers released this week by Northwest Multiple Listing Service. Closed sales were up 35 percent from the previous year.

More than 500 homes came on the market in March, but it wasn’t enough to sate the appetite of buyers. Inventory remained very low, with 840 active listings.

The months supply of homes — the number of months it would take to sell off the available inventory if no more homes were listed — dropped to 2.4 months. A 4- to 6-month supply typically indicates a balanced market.

“Dramatic increases in sales combined with severe decreases of inventory have led to a robust marketplace primarily benefiting sellers,” said Mike Eliason, CEO of the Kitsap County Association of Realtors.

Prices may finally be heading up in the county. The median price for Kitsap closed sales in March was $240,523, a 7 percent increase from 2014.

The year-to-date median price (including sales in January, February and March) was $235,000, up from $225,000 in the same period of 2014. (See a breakdown of prices by area at the bottom of this post, or click here).

Here’s a graphical look at Kitsap real estate trends:

And here’s a look at median prices in various areas:

Bainbridge Windermere office changes hands

WindermereLogoColorWindermere Real Estate West Sound, Inc. recently bought the Bainbridge Island Windermere office from longtime owner Jim Laws, according to a news release.

Windermere West Sound is owned by Carter and Tori Dotson, and Mike and Molly Pitts, all island residents. They have offices in Kingston, Poulsbo and Silverdale.

The Windermere West Sound owners expect few changes at Windermere Bainbridge, which is home to 33 agents and five staff members. The office reported 485 closed sales last year, according to the release.

Windermere Real Estate Bainbridge Island is located at 840 Madison Ave. N. and can be reached at 206-842-5626.

Real estate: Demand still easily outpacing listings

Kitsap County home buyers are still gobbling up houses faster than they can come on the market.

Home inventory remained very low in February, with 830 active listings at the end of the month. That was despite an uptick in new listings (15 percent higher than in February 2014).

Pending sales were up 24 percent compared with the same time last year, according to fresh numbers from Northwest Multiple Listing Service. 

The median price for a home in Kitsap bumped up $10,000 from January to February, reaching $235,000.

Here’s a graphical look at real estate activity last month:

Real estate: 2015 begins with familiar trends

Kitsap County’s real estate market picked up in January right where it left off in December.

Sales activity was brisk. Inventory continued to scrape bottom.

According to Northwest Multiple Listing Service, there were 225 closed sales reported in Kitsap in January, the same number as in January 2014.

Pending sales, on the other hand, were up 16 percent from January 2014, promising a boost in closed sales early this year.

The number of available homes in the county just keeps dropping. There were 843 homes available in January, almost 30 percent fewer than in January 2014. Continue reading →

Kitsap home prices heat up; activity still cool

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Home prices in Kitsap took a jump this summer. But hot weather seemed to cool off real estate activity.

Prices were up in June and July compared with 2013, perhaps reflecting competition for the relatively small supply of available homes.

The median price for closed sales last month – $255,050 – was 6.5 percent higher than in the same month last year, according to numbers released by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service. (It should be noted prices took an odd dive in July 2013):

Homes were selling for more across much of the county in July:

Continue reading →

A quick look at mid-year real estate numbers

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I’ll be taking a more detailed look at real estate market trends for the first half of 2014 later this month (after I get done with this).

In the meantime, I’ve compiled a quick graphical snapshot of our year so far, with numbers courtesy the Northwest Multiple Listing Service. It’s fair to say there were few fireworks: Continue reading →