November’s home sales rose modest 2 percent, surprising some Northwest MLS Brokers

KIRKLAND, WA, December 6, 2010 – Northwest Multiple Listing Service members recorded a few pleasant surprises last month.  Pending sales during November outgained the same month a year ago, marking the first year-over-year increase since April, when the tax credits expired.

Also noted as encouraging were an upswing in relocation sales, shrinkage in the number of new listings added to inventory, and a year-to-date volume of closed sales that is outpacing 2009.

Northwest MLS director OB Jacobi described last month’s gain in the number of transactions written as “surprising.”  “That’s surprising, since November is typically one of the slowest sales months of the year, and this year we essentially lost a week to poor weather conditions.” Jacobi, the general manager at Windermere Real Estate Company, also reported increased activity at open houses last month.

Jacobi suggested the increase  in sales was due in part to an uptick in interest rates that motivated some buyers to move forward, combined with a desire for people to be in their new homes before the holidays.
Members of NWMLS, which covers 21 counties in Washington, reported 4,987 pending sales of single family homes and condominiums during November.  That volume of mutually accepted offers was up about 2 percent from twelve months ago, when brokers logged 4,888 pending sales.

In the four-county Puget Sound region, pending sales rose more than 2.8 percent, from 3,829 a year ago to last month’s total of 3,938. That’s the highest November volume since 2006.

“We're seeing an upswing in relocation sales after a long lull, which indicates a positive sign in terms of local hiring,” Jacobi remarked, adding, “Employers traditionally want new hires in place by the first of the year, so sales are happening now.”

House-hunters have ample choices in most price ranges, with inventory currently priced from $15,000 for a manufactured home in Shelton (Mason County) to a $28.8 million home on Mercer Island.

Inventory is up slightly (1.6 percent) from twelve months ago, but fewer new listings were added during November compared to a year ago. At month end, NWMLS tallied 36,835 active listings of single family homes and condominiums in its database, which compares to the year-ago total of 36,266 listings.

Members reported 6,340 new listings during November, about 6.8 percent fewer than a year ago when they added 6,801 residential properties.  Last month’s additions included 5,401 single family homes and 939 condominiums.

The shrinkage in new listings coming onto the market is lowering the month’s supply of inventory in those areas, noted J. Lennox Scott, chairman and CEO of John L. Scott Real Estate. Area-wide, there is about a 7.3 month supply at the current sales pace. King County has about a 5.7 month supply. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported a 10.5 month supply at the end of October.  (A market with a supply of approximately six months is considered balanced, favoring neither buyers nor sellers.)

With inventory plentiful, brokers say buyers are taking their time before making any decisions.

“Move-up buyers are moving into the market,” Jacobi said, but noted, “They know value and have the luxury of time.  Buyers are willing to wait for the right home at the right price, and then they jump on it. A few years ago, the hares were driving the market.  Now it's the tortoises. Today's buyer's motto seems to be: Slow and steady wins the race.”

Commenting on move-up buyers, Lennox Scott noted an increase in home sales last month in the mid-price ranges in both Seattle and the Eastside.

Prices on sales that closed last month dipped below year-ago totals.  The median price area-wide for November’s closed sales of single family homes and condominiums was $250,000, down about 5.7 percent from the year-ago figure of $265,000.

In King County, prices edged up slightly, from $337,000 to $340,000.  Clallam, Grant, Jefferson, Okanogan, San Juan, Skagit and Whatcom counties also reported year-over-year price gains.

Condominium prices continue to slump.  The median price for last month’s closed sales was $204,500, down more than 11 percent from twelve months ago when the median price was $229,950.

Through eleven months, the volume of closed sales for 2010 is slightly ahead of 2009 (up 1.2 percent).

Tight credit continues to worry brokers, despite favorable affordability conditions.

Everyone is wondering how long interest rates are going to remain low, but that's impossible to predict with certainty,” observed Lennox Scott. “At the moment at least, they're at near-historic lows, but every one percent increase in interest rates reduces buying power by 10 percent. And this can have a significant impact on a person's ability to buy a home,” he stated.

NAR’s chief economist, Lawrence Yun, expects the recent sales pattern to continue. In remarks accompanying NAR’s latest report on the housing market, he described it as experiencing an uneven recovery. The temporary foreclosure stoppage in some states is likely to have held back a number of completed sales, he noted.  “Still,” he said, “Sales activity is clearly off the bottom and is attempting to settle into normal sustainable levels.”

Northwest Multiple Listing Service, owned by its member brokers, is the largest full-service MLS in the Northwest. Its membership includes more than 24,000 brokers and agents. The organization, based in Kirkland, currently serves 21 counties in Western and Central Washington.

Statistical Summary by Counties: Market Activity Summary - November 2010

Nov 2010 Single Family Homes + Condos	LISTINGS		PENDING SALES	CLOSED SALES
	New Listings	Total Active	#Pending Sales	# Closings	Average Price	Median Price
King	2,457	11,867	2,014	1,331	$418,341	$340,000
Snohomish	1,058	5,129	854	572	$277,901	$254,975
Pierce	994	5,636	843	625	$233,591	$208,500
Kitsap	306	1,714	227	187	$263,642	$230,000
Mason	74	735	51	28	$195,329	$155,000
Skagit	152	1,104	91	78	$270,730	$233,500
GraysHarbor	111	943	55	43	$125,527	$119,900
Lewis	87	769	58	33	$165,110	$145,000
Cowlitz	96	632	73	50	$158,578	$158,250
Grant	60	576	42	45	$171,050	$162,900
Thurston	287	1,676	212	220	$235,620	$215,000
San Juan	23	435	19	8	$744,188	$510,000
Island	127	972	62	47	$301,538	$240,000
Kittitas	49	464	45	35	$234,273	$190,900
Jefferson	39	489	24	23	$286,757	$293,000
Okanogan	25	386	19	16	$227,219	$198,000
Whatcom	215	1,665	200	144	$258,987	$243,500
Clark	35	285	27	20	$203,116	$196,500
Pacific	33	386	16	23	$149,644	$124,000
Ferry	6	55	0	2	$69,250	$69,250
Clallam	47	440	20	31	$287,240	$219,000
Others	59	477	35	22	$180,245	$179,500
MLS TOTAL	6,340	36,835	4,987	3,583	$310,447	$250,000

4-County Puget Sound Region Pending Sales (SFH + Condo combined)
(Totals include King, Snohomish, Pierce & Kitsap counties)

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
2000	3706	4778	5903	5116	5490	5079	4928	5432	4569	4675	4126	3166
2001	4334	5056	5722	5399	5631	5568	5434	5544	4040	4387	4155	3430
2002	4293	4735	5569	5436	6131	5212	5525	6215	5394	5777	4966	4153
2003	4746	5290	6889	6837	7148	7202	7673	7135	6698	6552	4904	4454
2004	4521	6284	8073	7910	7888	8186	7583	7464	6984	6761	6228	5195
2005	5426	6833	8801	8420	8610	8896	8207	8784	7561	7157	6188	4837
2006	5275	6032	8174	7651	8411	8094	7121	7692	6216	6403	5292	4346
2007	4869	6239	7192	6974	7311	6876	6371	5580	4153	4447	3896	2975
2008	3291	4167	4520	4624	4526	4765	4580	4584	4445	3346	2841	2432
2009	3250	3407	4262	5372	5498	5963	5551	5764	5825	5702	3829	3440
2010	4381	5211	6821	7368	4058	4239	4306	4520	4350	4376	3938

Copyright © 2011 Northwest Multiple Listing Service

Need to Avoid Foreclosure? Follow 10 Common-Sense Guidelines!

Here’s a fact that may surprise you – lenders hate foreclosures almost as much as you do! After all, they’re losing money and have to follow a complicated legal process to take the property back. This tells you, if you’re facing the possibility of foreclosure, that it’s in your best interest to work with your lender. 

So, if you’re having trouble keeping up with your mortgage payment, contact your lender immediately and inform them of the situation. Also, you can contact a HUD-approved Housing Counseling Agency or call them Toll FREE (800) 569-4287 or TTY (800) 877-8339 

Now, if you’re unable to make your mortgage payment, I recommend you follow the guidelines below. They’re straight from HUD with some additions on my part. 

Guideline 1: Definitely Don't Ignore the Situation! 

With foreclosure, there’s a natural tendency to hope the whole situation will just go away if we ignore it. This is not a wise choice because the farther behind on the payments you fall, the more difficult it’ll be to re-instate your loan and the more likely it’ll become that you’ll lose your home. So, take the foreclosure “bull” by the horns and deal with the situation right away. 

Guideline 2: Contact Your Lender Immediately! 

As I said earlier, lenders hate foreclosure nearly as much as you do. So, most have options to help you through tough financial times. It depends on the lender, but such options may include: 

• modifying the mortgage length or interest rate. 
• waiving fees or penalties. 
• deferring payments through temporary forbearance.
• increasing monthly payments to cover past due amounts.
• modifying an adjustable-rate mortgage to a fixed rate, etc.

Guideline 3: Open and Respond to All Lender Mail Right Away!

Normally, the first notices you receive from a lender will give you one or more of the options listed under Guideline 2. So, definitely open that mail immediately because those options can help you through a rough time. If you don’t open the mail or toss it out, you’re only making matters worse because they may include notices of pending legal action. And, believe me, foreclosure courts don’t accept any excuses regarding failure to open mail! 

Guideline 4: Know Your Mortgage Rights!

Always learn the specifics of your loan documents so you know what your rights and those of the lender are under the terms of the contract if you can’t make the payments. If you don’t understand the contract provisions, talk to a counselor or a real estate attorney. Also, remember that foreclosure laws and time frames vary by state. This means you need to contact the appropriate state office to learn what’s involved in the foreclosure process.

Guideline 5: Understand Foreclosure Prevention Options!

HUD has free and valuable information on options for preventing foreclosure (also called loss mitigation). These options can be found on the internet at http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page?_pageid=33,717348&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL.

Guideline 6: Contact a HUD-approved Housing Counselor! 

HUD funds free or very low cost housing counseling nationwide. The counselors can help you understand the law and your options, organize your finances and represent you in negotiations with your lender if you need this assistance. Find a HUD-approved housing counselor near you or call (800) 569-4287 or TTY (800) 877-8339.

Guideline 7: Evaluate Your Spending and Budget. Budget, Budget!

After healthcare, your first priority should be keeping your house. So, that means you need to look at where your spending goes and “cut out the fat.” By that, I mean zero in on “optional” expenses – cable TV, memberships, daily trips to the coffee shop, eating out, etc. If you’re not careful, these expenses can tear the heart of your budget, and they’re easily avoided! All the money saved by foregoing these items can go to making your mortgage payment. Also, delay payments on credit cards and other "unsecured" debt until you’ve have paid the mortgage.

Guideline 8: Employ Your Assets!

You may well have assets that you can sell for cash and apply to your mortgage payments. These could include items like a second car, jewelry, a whole life insurance policy, etc. Also, if anyone in your household can get an extra job, it’ll bring in additional income. Even if that income isn’t great, the effort demonstrates to the lender that you’re willing to make sacrifices to keep your home

Guideline 9: Avoid Foreclosure Prevention Companies!

I repeat – avoid these companies! Some are legitimate; some are scam artists. In either case, you don’t need to pay them hefty fees for foreclosure prevention! Sometimes those fees can amount to two-to-three months’ worth of mortgage payments! Why do this when, for free, you can work with a counselor or with the lender?

Guideline 10: Don't Lose Your Home to Foreclosure Recovery Scams!

You may be contacted by firms claiming that they can stop your foreclosure right away if you sign a document appointing them to act on your behalf. If that’s the case, tell them to get lost! This is a scam where you end up signing over the title to your property and becoming a renter in your own home! 

Never, ever sign a legal document without reading and understanding all the terms and getting professional advice from an attorney, a trusted real estate professional, or a HUD-approved housing counselor! Want to talk more about options for preventing foreclosure? Contact us right now at and we can provide you with that information!