Home Values in Your Seattle Community
Wondering about
HOME VALUES in Your
Community? (Seattle)
WHO SHOULD YOU BELIEVE?
WHO SHOULD YOU BELIEVE?
WHO SHOULD YOU BELIEVE?
Are you trying to time the market in order to make the smartest real estate move?
We all wish we had a ringing bell to alert us of the perfect time to buy or sell a
home, but even industry experts disagree about the condition of the current market
and when a given real estate cycle begins or ends.
For instance, during the first quarter of 2008, the S&P/Case-Shiller Index
reported that their 20-city composite saw a 12.7 percent year-over-year decline,
while the OFHEO (Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight) reported
that national prices were up 0.6 percent. Meanwhile, NAR (National Association of Realtors®)
marked an annual decline of less than1 percent.
Why the discrepancies? First, how each of these bodies evaluates numbers is vastly
different. The Case-Shiller Index only accounts for numbers in 20 metropolitan
service areas, excluding many markets that consistently show home appreciation.
In addition, Case-Shiller only counts repeat sales of the same house and
doesn’t include condominium and new construction sales, which can drastically
affect home appreciation in a specific community. In contrast to national numbers
quoted by the Case-Shiller Index, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho multiple listing
services look at all home sales, including condominiums and new construction, for
its reports. In the meantime, none of these national experts can tell you exactly what’s
happening in your local community. A report on the Seattle housing
market by OFHEO found that homes in Seattle appreciated over 64
percent the past five years. And, as you can see , home values here in King County remained
even with last year’s numbers while the national data aggregators showed decreases
from 3-14 percent year over year. The statistics quoted in the media don’t
offer much help in terms of understanding the current value of a single home. When
the median price increases, this can reflect higher overall home values. Or,
it can simply mean that more expensive than inexpensive homes sold during a period.
A decrease in the median price usually indicates that more inexpensive
than expensive homes sold during that period. Many foreclosure properties
are in the lower price ranges. In areas where the median sales price is declining
dramatically, a higher volume of lowerprice foreclosure sales could be a
contributing factor. When it comes to timing the market,
make sure you have all of the facts before making a guess. There is no ringing bell,
but there is plenty of accurate information to be had…if you know where to look.
Search For Homes:View All Homes On The Market
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