Over 37% Of Seattle Area Homes Take a Price Drop In Past 30 Days
In King County the number of homes for sale surged up 66% in the past year — and 86 percent just in the city of Seattle — the biggest rise in more than a decade.
Meanwhile, the share of homes with price drops has been posting year-over-year gains consistently since late March. Currently in just the past 30 days starting with September the 26th, 37.2% of Seattle area homes taken a price drop totaling the largest percentage in more than a decade for this statistic as well.
Note: “We define a price drop as a listing price reduction of more than 1 percent and less than 50 percent.”
After years of strong price growth and intense competition for homes, buyers are taking advantage of the market’s easing pressure by being selective about which homes to offer on and how high to bid. Additionally, there are some early signs of a softening market, and the increase in price drops may be another indicator that sellers are going to have trouble getting the prices, and the bidding wars, that they may have just months ago. Instead, many are finding their homes are sitting on the market without much interest until they start reducing their prices.
The latest numbers from Northwest MLS show wide-ranging changes in the volume of active listings when comparing the 23 counties in the report. In Clark County, inventory doubled from a year ago to lead the list based on percentage gains. King County was runner-up with a 74.3 percent increase, rising from 3,329 active listings a year ago to 5,803 at the end of August.
For sellers it takes having a good agent with an in-depth understanding of average days on the market, sold price, price-per-square-foot, and percentage of current active properties with recent price reductions — these statistics are vital in helping sellers understand the current market and effectively position their home to sell.
While the numbers are all available on the local multiple listing service (MLS), it’s important that you dig deep in times of a quick turn like we’re now experiencing. Doing a 180-day CMA can be mis-leading. Homeowners and agents should tighten your parameters and see what’s going on in the past 30-45 days. Dig even deeper and see what the actual list price would have been on January 1st, contrasted with homes that closed in April (The peak of our Seller’s Market), and then look at the current price of the home based on comps. In most cases, while down considerably from the April high, home prices are still up 5-7% over January.
The current drop runs counter to normal seasonal patterns: During the same three-month period last year, prices actually went up by $16,000. However, compared to a year prior, prices are still up 2.9 percent across the county, but that was the smallest increase in four years. It’s a far cry from the double-digit growth that had become the norm over the last few years.
SEE: Are your sellers ready for a buyer's market?
In a market where we’re seeing more inventory, sellers may choose to use price reductions to continue to generate interest in their home for sale or make special offers such as higher commissions offered to agents who bring in a buyer or closing credits for buyers directly. Ultimately however, the market dictates the appropriate price for any given home.
At The Cascade Team we use an 18-Point Analysis to bring you the most accurate assessment possible when it comes to your home's value. We factor in Sold Homes, Pending, Pending Inspection, Builder, Size, Beds, Baths, School, Year Built, Upgrades, Lot Size Assessments, Condition, View, Curb Appeal, Title Issues & Easements. In addition to this data, our local agents with on-the-ground insights help to recommend the initial price.
Still sometimes, we just need more exposure to the market, or more time to hear feedback, and then we’ll work with our clients to adjust the price accordingly.
You can learn more about The Cascade Team and our marketing HERE
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