A Visual of Seattle’s Inventory

 

 

 

Inventory Update – Supply and Demand

In several parts of the country, the real estate market has picked up. However, as the saying goes, “all real estate is local”. Even if Seattle is moving, that doesn’t necessarily mean our local market is moving. There can even be pockets of the market (price, type of home, etc) that are moving while others are stagnant. If you would like additional details on what is happening in your neighborhood or price point – or a neighborhood or price point you are interested in moving to – please contact me directly.

Let’s take a look at our real estate market in terms of listings and new pendings in Seattle, a general overview (May 2010- April 2012.) I like to look at this information because these two numbers will show me the scope of the inventory and what is being consumed (supply and demand).

In the chart:
The blue area represents listings – or the total inventory (active inventory) and the green area represents new pendings (the amount of the
inventory that is being consumed). As the blue area starts to decrease and the green area starts to increase, this is indicative of a reduction in inventory.

As you can see those lines are getting closer and closer together. In fact, in April, our total active listings were
only 1244 and our pendings were 690, numbers not seen since late 2007.

What does this mean for buyers:

Buyers in our area are beginning to see the turn. Properties that are attractive and are priced right are pending quickly –  sometimes with multiple offers. This means buyers need to make sure they have loan preapproval and are savvy shoppers. Work with a real estate agent such as myself to determine a fair market value of the property before making an offer. As demand increases and inventory is consumed, prices will begin to increase.

What does this mean for sellers:

Sellers in our area are breathing a sigh of relief. Homes that have been on the market for a long time are finally starting to move if they are priced right. Sellers who may have had a listing expire in the last few years should meet with a real estate agent to perform a comparative market analysis on the property to help determine a fair asking price.

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