Brokers say housing activity seems to be trending in direction of a normal seasonal market

Published on: March 6, 2023

Open house traffic has been brisk around Western Washington, signaling the start of the spring market, suggested brokers at Northwest Multiple Listing Service. They noted softening prices are enticing some would-be buyers, while others remain on the sidelines hoping fluctuating mortgage rates will stabilize or decline.

“It’s a very interesting market, comprised of primarily serious buyers and sellers,” remarked Northwest MLS board member Mike Larson, managing broker at Compass Tacoma. “Rates and inflation appear to be under control, giving buyers a window of opportunity before things possibly get crazy again,” he added.

Newly released statistics from the MLS for February show upticks in new listings, pending sales, closed sales and median prices compared to January, but when compared to the same month a year ago, figures for those metrics declined:

• Brokers added 5,231 new listings of single family homes and condos to inventory last month, about one-third fewer than twelve months ago.
• Pending sales declined 19%, from the year-ago total of 7,697 to 6,230.
• Year-over-year (YOY) closed sales dropped 17.3%, from 5,147 to 4,258 transactions.
• Median prices slipped 1.7% areawide, from $585,000 to $575,000.  

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