King County, Seattle, and Bellevue Real Estate Blog

Pending and closed sales have risen in Washington just a month after most homebuyers took a break after the expired first time buyer tax credit.

I've written before that the months leading up to the expiration of the first time buyer tax credit was something along the lines of a marathon. Correspondingly, we could expect the runner to need a break after completing the race.

That break was May.

This is June and the runner is getting back to training. This is great news in the continued recovery of the Greater Seattle real estate market.

For the Northwest Multiple Listing Service's 21 county area, pending sales (mutually accepted purchase and sale agreements) for single family homes and condos rose 5.8% from May to June while closed sales rose 8.9% for the same time period.

Additionally, closed sales for June were up 12% compared to the month of June last year.

Fewer homes are being purchased when compared to the beginning of the year, but prices continue to improve. The median and average prices of single family homes in King County again rose in June after also rising in May:

• June Median/Average - $383,000 / $485,597
• May Median/Average - $379,000 / $458,736
• April Median/Average - $375,000 / $443,653

A large portion of the sales are a result of buyers who entered a contract to purchase prior to April 30th and closed the actual sale in May or June. With slower pending activity in May and June I won't be surprised if prices inch back down a bit, but I don't expect too much of a dip as long as the US gets back to hiring. More on that coming soon...

Ultimately, I'm happy to see that buyers are becoming more active as we get into the summer season.

Posted By: Robert Wasser - King County, Bellevue, and Seattle Real Estate Blog