Home Prices in Seattle Market Fall After Hitting Record High

Home prices across greater Seattle have slid after hitting a record high, with a summer chill in the market.

The typical price for a single-family home in King County in June fell to $965,000, from more than $1 million in May, the Seattle Times reported, citing figures from the Northwest Listing Service. That’s still 3 percent higher than a year ago.

The median price for a condominium in King County was $555,000 in June, down from $595,000 the previous month, but up 5 percent from a year ago. Condo prices stayed flat in Seattle.

“A lot of buyers have been beat up with affordability and rates really not coming down,” Seattle Windermere agent Mike Ferreri told the Times. Home insurance costs included in the monthly mortgage payment are also on the rise.

“They go and they take a vacation because maybe if they come back and buy a house, they won’t be able to afford a vacation next year,” he said.

The downturn comes as higher mortgage rates have driven some potential buyers out of the market, or into more affordable suburbs, according to the Times. Inventory remains low, with potential sellers loath to list their homes and assume more expensive loans for new houses.

Prices rose mostly on the Eastside, where a typical single-family home sold for $1.6 million in June, up 13 percent from a year ago. The median price for a home in Seattle was $957,000, up 3 percent.

A typical single-family home sold for $830,000 in Snohomish County, up 7 percent from last year; $563,500 in Pierce County, up 3 percent; and $577,500 in Kitsap County, up 5 percent.

Pending home sales fell in June from the previous month, and were either flat or down from a year ago in counties across the region.

Seattle-area single-family homes sold for an average 3 percent above their list price this spring, below the 2022 peak of 13 percent, according to Redfin.

Many people are facing “buyer fatigue,” Seattle Redfin agent Bliss Ong told the Times. “There is no urgency. We have a lot of people looking but not feeling they have to pull the trigger.”

— Dana Bartholomew