Housing market slowdown expected in region, realtors group says
Published 10:24 am Thursday, October 8, 2015
KIRKLAND — Scarce inventory, new rules for mortgage closings and affordability concerns will likely slow home sales around Western Washington during the remaining months of 2015 and into early 2016, according to spokespersons from Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
The latest statistics from the MLS show a double-digit drop in inventory, a double-digit jump in closed sales, and a near double-digit increase in prices from a year ago.
“We simply can’t sustain double-digit increases in sales when inventory levels continue to drop every month,” said OB Jacobi, president of Windermere Real Estate. “We’re on the cusp of a housing market slowdown,” he said.
New rules for mortgage closings and rising interest rates were also cited as a cause for a possible slowdown.
Despite an expected slowdown, closed sales through the first nine months of this year are running 16.6 percent ahead of the same period a year ago, with median prices up 9.2 percent.
The MLS report for September shows pending sales continue to outnumber new listings, resulting in inventory declines in most of the 23 counties in its service area. That imbalance leads to rising prices.
Prices in Kitsap County were up 4 percent from a year ago.
For September, the MLS reported 2.39 months of supply system-wide, about the same as the figure for August. The shortages were most acute in King County, with about 1.4 months of supply, and Snohomish County, with about 1.9 months of supply. Industry experts use a range of four-to-six months as an indicator of a balanced market.
“The frenzied market on the Seattle side is taking a toll on Kitsap home prices,” said MLS chairman Frank Wilson, the branch managing broker at John L. Scott in Poulsbo. Prices there rose 4 percent from a year ago. He reported good traffic at open houses in Kitsap County, quick acting buyers when a new listing appears, many multiple offer situations, and an increase in investor interest.
