Ravenna- Roosevelt February 2011 Market Report

There were 5 closings of residential property in the Ravenna and Roosevelt neighborhoods of Seattle during February. And, I am not surprised. Last month end I reported that there were only 6 pending sales. I am much encouraged by the 19 pending sales on the books for the short month. The numbers are slightly skewed since I’ve combined Roosevelt and Ravenna for this report as well as keeping condos in with the single family units. Because of the light rail station now under construction in this neighborhood I expect to see growth beyond expectations.

With 19 contracts compared to the 36 active listings we should see more sellers in this area take the plunge. There is a pent up demand by buyers who have been waiting for interest rates to bottom out. 

For in-city Seattle north of the ship canal the statics include 57 closed sales in February, 143 pending sales and 344 active listings, for an Absorption rate of 6.0. All of these numbers are lower than last month.

This report includes single family homes, townhomes and condominiums.

You can see the active listings included: Ravenna Roosevelt February 2011 Market Report.

With 19 possible closings if March and the current shortage of listings I look forward to a month that will busy as more sellers will probably put their homes on the market.

If you live in the Seattle area, and in particular the North Seattle and the Ravenna or Roosevelt areas, give me a call and let’s discuss how to resolve your real estate issues.

Closings in any January are usually down because December is often a slow month. And this year is no exception. And, usually, many listings that haven’t sold go off the market at the end of the year. Sellers assess what their future holds and some decide to wait until “Spring” to re-list. Some rent their properties out hoping for better times. The smart ones are often the ones who stay on the market during a time of reduced inventory.

With 5 closed sales and only 21 active listings, the Absorption Rate is just a hair over 4. Definitely a seller’s market. I know there will be more homes coming on the market in the months ahead, but if you are prepared, now might just be the time.

For in-city Seattle north of the ship canal the statics include 116 closed sales, 211 pending sales and 743 active listings, for an Absorption rate of 6.4
This report includes single family homes, townhomes and condominiums.

You can see the listings included:

Ravenna Market Report.

With 8 possible closings if February and the current shortage of listings I look forward to a month that will not be as busy as it could be unless more sellers put their homes on the market.

People talk about shadow inventory, foreclosures, short sales and REO’s, and try to predict where the market is going and what will happen next. Rest assured that it is not going anywhere with any great speed. If you desire to buy or sell, now is as good as anytime in the foreseeable future.

This lovely house sold and closed in January of 2011 for $800,000 in Ravenna Park, directly across from the park.

If you live in the Seattle area, and in particular the north Seattle and the Ravenna or Ravenna Park areas, give me a call and let’s discuss how to resolve your real estate issues.

What does the Green Lake Market Report look like for 2010? One caveat first. This time of year we always have the lowest number of Active listings. Many listings expire at the end of the year and some sellers are reluctant to put them back on until the weather takes a turn for the better. That said, here's how things look today:

It's easy to see that the single family market fared much better than the condo market in 2010. Single family homes sold at just over a rate of 20 per month and that would give us an absorption rate of 3. Bear in mind that the listing inventory will continue to build as we move through the rest of winter and on into spring. But and AR of 3 is a pretty fantastic sellers' market.

The condo market was anemic, to say the least. Just a 2.5 per month average. With 21 on the market, that's a 9 month supply.

Single family homes sold in a range of from $188,000 to 1,280,000. There were 8 sales of over $1,000,000, while the average sales price was $480,674 and the median sales price was $435,500. Let's not even look at the condo figures.

January 2011 - Green Lake Active Listings

If you're planning to buy a home in Green Lake this year, you should start looking now. Take some time to learn what sells quickly and figure out carefully what you want in a home. The good ones still sell quickly.

Normally, the number of listings decline as the year wends its way to a close. This year is no exception. Some homes are taken off the market and will reappear in January. Others that might come on now will be delayed until after the first of the year. There is just too much to do this time of year.

There are some serious shoppers out there though. There always are. The changes that cause people to move don't pay much attention to holidays. Be that as it may, the Ravenna neighborhood in Seattle currently has 18 single family homes on the market. The average asking price is just under $500,000 and the median price is just over that. The high and low are $725,000 and $247,000.

Ten homes are currently under contract. The median listing price of these homes is $399,000. So one can see that the entry level buyer is active in this market while the move-up and higher end buyers are currently standing pat. That's somewhat surprising as there may never be another opportunity to get a fairly hefty mortgage at such a low interest rate.

Over the past 90 days there have been 20 closings for Ravenna. The lowest sale price was $325,000 while the highest was $771,900. The average sales price for the 20 listings was $492,099 and the median was $481,000. Very similar to the data on the active listings while the pendings show a much lower profile.

The solds are in red on the map below. The pendings in yellow and the active listings in green.

If you have any questions about the Ravenna market please give me a call. I'd be happy to help you with your real estate needs.

Many properties in Ballard go pending in September

  

This home will be held open Sunday, 9/26/2010 from 1:00-4:00. If you are looking to for a home in beautiful Ballard, please stop by and say hello. I'll be happy to see you. 

I've spent the last few days looking over the inventory for Seattle single-family homes north of the ship canal. One of the features on the agent accessed multiple listing service website is called market watch. With the market watch tool I can designate a particular of the region and observe changes in real time. I've set my search for this area to tell me how many status changes are made within the past 24 hours. What I've noticed lately is that the number of new listings has been very close to the number of listings marked pending. This indicates to me that listings are selling as fast as they are coming on.

I've divided up the area I watch into 4 zones. The far west and near west for locations west of the I-5 corridor, and the near east and the far east for areas east of I-5. 

The absorption rate is the number of months it will take to sell off current inventory. Considering May's number of sales, the northend of Seattle is in a Seller's market. Rates below 4 are considered so. Rates of 4-6 are considered normal and rates above 6 are considered a Buyer's market.  The absorption rate for the entire north Seattle area is a low 2.95.

Usually this time of year the inventory of homes on the market is growing and peaks around the first of September. If you've been thinking of selling now might just be the best time of this year to put your home on the market. If you would like more detailed information about your neighborhood, please give me a home. If you are ready to list your home, let me show you how I would market it and help you get the highest possible price in the least amount of time.

 In Seattle at the end of May, there were 4,577 listings. This includes single family homes, townhomes, condominiums and multiunit properties. A large inventory considering that there were only 774 closed sales during the month of May. What is also unusual is that there were 1,735 properties under contract. Was May an unusually busy month, or are there about 1,000 transaction in short sale limbo?  

Anyway, this results in an Absorption Rate of 6.2, or there isa 6.2 month supply of properties for sale.

I searched further and found the following:

• There were 208 multiunit buildings on the market and only 8 sold. A 26 month supply of multifamily housing available.
• There were 1,611 condominiums for sale, and 190 closed transactions. An absorption rate of 8.5.
• As for single family homes, there were 2,758 homes on the market, including side by side townhomes. There were 576 closed transactions. A seller’s market at 4.8. Maybe, maybe not.

From talking with lenders, brokers, buyers and sellers, I’ve determined the following:

• It’s tough to get loans for multifamily purchases.
• It’s just as tough to get a loan for a condominium. Many of them were projects where they don’t yet have the lender number of required sales (50-70%) before they can close any transactions.
• Much (418 units) of the single family home market consists of connected housing, i.e. zero lot line townhomes. These homes have very much the feel of condominiums as they have shared walls and little land to enjoy as a homeowner. Townhomes are selling slower than stand alone homes.

   

  There is the old saw, that at the right price, anything will sell. That may not be true for some condominiums, or buildings that won’t finance. If the homeowners whose homes are not selling would correctly price their properties, the absorption rate would come down.

  Summary:

  It’s a great market for stand-alone single family homes. Financing is available at exceptionally low rates.
  Condominiums are plentiful but financing is difficult.
  Investor buying is slow because of the high down payment required and the high interest rates attached to the loan.

All data derived from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.