by MITCH DIETZ
The local housing market continues to perform better with home sales up a healthy 8% in 2012. Last year was the first in six where Thurston County had a rise in sales. At the same time, homes available for sale were down 26%, while prices were essentially flat.
Many areas around the Puget Sound have seen rising sales for a longer period. King County, for instance, has experienced rising sales since the middle of 2010. The steady increase in demand, coupled with a significantly lower supply of homes (King County had a 46% drop in inventory last year), had home prices on the rise again. Last year, King County’s median home price was up 7.4% year over year.
In January, we saw the good trends continue. Home sales in Thurston County jumped 23% over January 2012. The number of homes for sale is down 22% from a year ago. We are trending toward to seller’s market in many areas throughout the region, but mostly in the price ranges below $250,000. Our inventory is at a nearly eight year low.
The pent-up demand for homes, occasioned by people delaying moves during the period of falling prices, is certainly being unleashed. People are coming back to the table armed with the buying power of low interest rate loans. If the demand continues, we should see moderately rising prices throughout 2013. January was a good start with the median home price was up 2.4% year over year.
These numbers are healthy sign for 2013. We will continue to watch the trends and share the forecasts as we move throughout the year.
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