Pierce County median home price stays stable
Pierce County’s median home price in January remained well under where it was a year ago at this time, but figures released Wednesday by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service showed a few encouraging signs for homeowners and sellers.
The median price for residential homes and condos came in at $235,000 last month – unchanged from December, up from November, but still down almost 10 percent from January 2008. The county’s median home price – the midpoint of all sales – has declined year over year for 15 of the past 16 months.
The county reported 659 pending sales, up 26 percent from the previous year. Meanwhile, the number of homes for sale dipped 18 percent from last January to 6,183.
In King County, the median price dropped 8 percent over the year to $364,137. Pending sales were down 11 percent over the year and active listings decreased by almost 3 percent.
Both the shrinking inventory and increased pending sales in Pierce County are signs that the market might be stabilizing, said Glenn Crellin, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research in Pullman.
A larger-than-usual number of homes for sale has been one of the factors keeping prices low. The increase in pending sales, however, suggests that some demand might be coming back, Crellin said.
But he’s not terribly optimistic.
“I’m delighted the numbers are as good as they were, but I’m not sure it’s going to be maintained especially with the national economy in as severe of a recession,” he said.
The housing market has fallen in the last two years as demand slowed, prices declined and more homes ended up in foreclosure as homeowners were unable to afford their loans.
More foreclosures could be on the way in Pierce County as adjustable-rate mortgages continue to reset. The real estate market was still chugging along in 2006, meaning people were still getting loans. Those rates will likely reset this year, translating into higher payments, Crellin said. (The foreclosure rate is much higher in other parts of the country, such as California, where prices fell farther and faster.)
In Pierce County, one in four pending sales in January was a short sale, according to Dick Beeson, broker/owner of Windermere/Commencement Associates said. A short sale is one in which the proceeds are less than the balance owed on a loan and is usually an attempt to prevent foreclosure.
Local real estate agents said the number of bank-owned properties and short sales on the market are keeping prices down and frustrating homeowners who want more for their properties. Some are choosing to wait and are taking their homes off the market.
Bill Riley, owner of Gateway Real Estate in Puyallup, said his office is telling sellers that they need to be serious “because their competitor is either a bank or a short sale.”
On the other side, buyers are getting some great deals.
Andrew Welch, managing broker for Windermere Port Orchard, said he just sold a 2,300-square-foot log home on 7 acres for $440,000. The sellers had bought it for $600,000 two years ago.
Pat Maddock, an agent with Coldwell Banker Bain, said he’s been busy the past month. He sold two homes on Super Bowl Sunday. But he’s keeping expectations realistic.
“I resist counseling my clients that the market is getting hot … that the record-setting years are back. They are not, they are absolutely not. If we get back to a balanced market by this summer, that might be the best we can hope for,” he said.
Kelly Kearsley: 253-597-8573
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