After the Pierce County housing market got off to a dreadful start at the beginning of 2012, median prices and annual sales finished the year on a brighter note, according to year-end data released Thursday by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
Home sales -- single-family residences and condos -- rose 5.06 percent to 9,588 units last year from 9,126 units from 2011, the data show.
And although median prices didn’t show a year-over-year increase, they didn’t fall either.
Pierce County median prices finished the year unchanged at $190,000 in 2012 from 2011, the combined single-family residence and condo data show.
King County’s median price for 2012 was $327,000, up nearly 5 percent from 2011, according to the same data.
Lakewood-based Allen Realtors President Mike Larson said the county’s housing market during the final six months of the year was terrific, with both values and sales volumes showing improvement.
That momentum has continued into January, he said.
“We sure didn’t miss a beat in the new year,” Larson said.
Some other Pierce County housing data from the Northwest MLS recap:
• A single-family residence purchased in 2003 still showed price appreciation in 2012, rising in value 9.24 percent. But prices have fallen for the homeowner who purchased in 2007, when median prices peaked at $281,400.
• The median price of a three-bedroom, single-family residence in 2012 was $179,500. In King County, it was $320,000.
• Last year's housing market also was defined by falling inventory levels. The number of homes -- single-family residences and condos -- for sale in the county fell from 4,142 units in January to 2,734 units in December.
• Twenty-two single-family residences sold for more than $1 million in 2012, while 23 condos sold for more than $500,000 last year.
• In King County, 945 single-family residences sold for more than $1 million, and 555 condos sold for more than $500,000 in 2012.
Rolf Boone: 360-754-5403
rboone@theolympian.com
theolympian.com/bizblog
@rolf_boone
Single-family residence median prices for some school districts in Pierce County for 2012
-Tacoma School District: $150,000.
-Puyallup School District: $205,225.
-Bethel School District: $185,000.
-Clover Park School District: $178,500.
Source: Northwest Multiple Listing Service
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