July
30

Looking at the local real estate numbers for the month of June, I’ve noticed some pretty encouraging trends. Here’s what stood out to me:

Fewer Homes Listed, More Under Contract
For starters, the year-over-year positive movement is encouraging. Compared to 12 months ago, Whatcom County has 372 fewer homes (-10.5%) listed for sale and 107 more homes (8.5%) under contract. This is an improvement that will hopefully sustain itself over the second half of the year.

Pending Sales Up, Closed Sales Down
It’s also reassuring to see that the number of pending sales are at their highest level since the credit bubble burst nearly two years ago. Year-to-date pending residential sales are up 8.5%, while closed sales are down 19%. However, the number of closed sales for 2009 are increasing in the last two months.

Tax Credit Working
All of this means the $8,000 tax credit is working: low interest rates and declining inventories have helped to reactivate buyers in the more affordable price ranges. The federal tax credit of up to $8,000 is available for qualified first-time home buyers purchasing a principal residence before December 1, 2009.

Home buyer tax credit

More info on this tax credit for first-time home buyers can be found here.

Median, Average Prices Down
The overall median price in Whatcom County is down 6.3% and the average price is down 10%. While the median and average sales prices for Whatcom County homes are both down, prices have flattened over the past seven to nine months.

Neighborhoods
Data shows some local neighborhoods are rebounding faster than others. It appears to be a transitional market, and accurate neighborhood information is critical for buyers and sellers.

Short Sales Are A Drag
Short sales continue to be a drag on the market, frustrating agents, buyers and sellers. Even though we have fared better than most areas of the country we still have an abundance of short sales. This is a big reason the median price is shifting down to levels equal to 2006.

Inventory Levels Down, But Balancing
Residential inventory levels are down 10.5%, but local inventory levels are trending toward a more balanced market, with sales below $350,000 showing a Seller’s Market.

For the month of June, Whatcom County monthly inventory levels were at 7.6 months (meaning it would take an average of 7.6 months to sell all of the currently available inventory). Year to date, the monthly inventory level in Whatcom County was at 12 months. Six months is considered a balanced market.

This trend varied very little throughout the individual cities in Whatcom County, with Bellingham at 5.2 months of inventory for the month of June. When we look at more expensive homes, they averaged 24 months in the county, while Bellingham was at 18 months.