Tag Archives: inventory

Home sales remained strong in November

RealEstate_FILE01_21275712_ver1.0_640_480Real estate sales activity remained elevated in Kitsap last month, as did home prices.

Pending sales in the county were up 16 percent in November compared with November of 2015, while closed sales were up 30 percent, according to Northwest Multiple Listing Service. 

A sales surge was reported across the Puget Sound region.

“November’s pending sales for the four-county area of King, Snohomish, Pierce and Kitsap were the highest since 2005,” John L. Scott CEO J. Lennox Scott noted in a NWMLS news release.

“Every time interest rates increase 0.5 percent we see these surges because buyers become anxious about increasing rates – but on a historical basis rates are still amazing,”

Those eager buyers competed over a dwindling supply of home listings.

In Kitsap, 330 new listings came on the market in November, bringing the number of homes for sale in the county to 758. Inventory was down only 1.3 percent from November of 2015, but still very low compared with previous years.

Homes sold in Kitsap in November fetched a median price of $280,000, up about 8 percent or $21,000 from the same time last year.

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

And here’s a map showing real estate stats by submarket. Hover your mouse over each area for details.

Real estate report: Supply of homes for sale is gradually increasing

After scraping bottom last winter, the supply of homes available for sale in Kitsap increased gradually since March.

Notably, the number of home listings active in September nearly matched the number reported in September of 2015 (see chart below). Concomitantly, this surge affected other housing sectors. For example, if you were to read a review of Liberty Home Guard, you’d know how much the cost of warranties has dwindled. This was one of the many effects of the surge in home listings.

There were 593 listings added last month, a 21 percent increase from the previous year, according to a report from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

Based on the stats, Kitsap remains squarely a seller’s market.

Real estate professionals consider a market balanced when it has a four- to six-month supply of homes, meaning it would take four to six months to sell off all the houses available if no new listings were added.

B0015078797--870950Kitsap had just a  2.15-month supply of homes in September. In other words, the market would need about 1,000 more active listings or a slowdown in sales to achieve some balance.

But even an incremental increase in supply could be good news, as sales activity didn’t cool off all that much in September.

Pending sales were down in the county from August to September — as is typical for the season — but were up 13 percent from September of 2015. The 448 deals closed in September marked a 15 percent increase from 2015.

Home prices remained elevated. The median price for houses and condominiums sold in September was $284,999, a 10 percent jump from last year.

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

And here’s a map showing real estate stats by submarket. Wave your clicker over each area to see details:

Kitsap real estate market was still hot in August

Kitsap’s real estate market ended the summer season with a bang.

Listings, sales and prices were all up in August, according to the latest numbers from Northwest Multiple Listing Service. 

More “for sale” signs popped up across the county last month, with 591 new listings added. About 970 homes were available in August, down 6 percent from August of 2015, marking a slight improvement in inventory from earlier in the year.

Sales continued at a torrid pace. More than 630 homes were pending in August, a 13 percent increase from last year. Closed sales were up 22 percent.

Kitsap’s median home price (including condominiums) bumped up to $292,000, up 12.3 percent from August of 2015.

Here’s a graphical look at real estate trends in the county:

And here’s a map showing real estate statistics by submarket:

Kitsap’s median home price hits $285,000

real.estateThe median price for homes sold in Kitsap County reached $285,000 last month, as sales activity ramped up and inventory remained low.

The median price for May was 7.6 percent higher than in May of 2015, according to report from Northwest Multiple Listing Service. 

price.change
CLICK HERE FOR A MAP SHOWING YEAR-OVER-YEAR PRICE CHANGE BY SUBMARKET

The year-to-date (January-May) median home price for the county was $266,914, up about 11.5 percent from the same period of last year.

Prices have increased most dramatically in West Bremerton, where homes are selling for 40 percent more so far this year than in 2015.

Despite the price jump, West Bremerton remains the county’s least expensive submarket.

Home sales also ticked up in May. Pending sales were up 9.4 percent from May 2015, while closed sales jumped 12.5 percent.

The number of homes available for sale inched up to 734, with 608 listings added. Inventory remained 23 percent lower than a year ago.

The months supply of homes — the number of months it would take to sell off all homes on the market if no new listings were added — rested at 1.85. A market is considered balanced when it has a four- to six-month supply.

“Inventory is being squeezed from all directions,” Frank Wilson of John L. Scott in Poulsbo, said in a statement released by NWMLS. “With less than two months of inventory, every new listing seems to draw multiple offers.”

Wilson doesn’t see the inventory crunch easing “for some time to come.” Even if the Fed raises interest rates, he believes shortages will persist because of the backlog of buyers.

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

And here’s a map showing real estate stats by submarket. Wave your clicker over each area to see details:

Real estate update: Low inventory, high demand still define market

This map shows the percent change in active home listings from February 2015 to February 2016 for each Kitsap submarket. You can hover your mouse over the map to see how active listings fluctuated during the past four years.

Kitsap homebuyers were still picking through a thin selection of houses February, but the lack of inventory didn’t dampen sales.

About 600 homes were listed for sale in the county last month, 28 percent fewer than in February 2015, according to Northwest Multiple Listing Service. (You can see where inventory declined the most using the interactive map embedded above.)

real estateSales activity in February was still stronger than a year ago. NWMLS reported 483 pending sales (up 9 percent) and 263 closed sales (up 13 percent) for the month.

The homes that sold in February were on the market for an average of 65 days, which was 26 fewer days than in February 2015, according to stats made available by Pacific Northwest Title. Continue reading →

‘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:

Real estate: Low inventory blamed for slow sales

Real estate activity was slow in the first two months of 2014, but it’s not for lack of buyer demand, according to real estate professionals.

Pending home sales are down across Western Washington, according to the Northwest Multiple Listing Service. In Kitsap County, year-to-date pending sales were down at the end of February (706) compared to 2013 (728).

Industry professionals say there are plenty of prospective buyers, but a low inventory is stymieing sales. New listings and active listings in Kitsap are both lower than in 2013.

Frank Wilson, director of NWMLS and managing broker of John L. Scott in Poulsbo, said selection should improve as spring arrives.

“As we swing into our spring market, more listings will be added,” he said, in an NWMLS release, adding the increase in listings will be “tempered by an increase in buyers, too.”

The shortage of available homes may be driving prices up. The median price for Kitsap pending sales in February was $283,231, higher than in January and higher than February 2013.

Below is the NWMLS recap for February: Continue reading →