Seattle Eastside Real Estate Buzz

10/19/2022

A big thank you to all of my clients who gave me such kind reviews with 5-Star Professional. I'm honored to be your broker, and to have received this award for 12 straight years now. https://www.facebook.com/FiveStarProfessional/posts/5909872972393071

Congratulations to Brooks Beaupain on winning the Five Star Real Estate Agent award in 2022! Share this post to spread the great news. Visit www.brooksbeaupain.com to learn more about Brooks Beaupain!

10/05/2022

A conversation I've been having with many clients lately...brilliantly encapsulated here by Matthew Gardner with all of the economic details that bring it to life:

Windermere Chief Economist Matthew Gardner digs into the data—and the dictionary—to give his take on whether we are currently in a housing recession.

09/15/2022

Economic news continues to be negative and very real to all of us; however, the "sky is falling" narratives about a repeat of the 2008 crash are likely unfounded. As I've discussed with many of you, the fundamental economic forces that caused the previous crash (low or negative home equity, rapidly declining prices/demand, and high inventory of homes flooding the market) are not in place now. In fact, it's still quite the opposite. Rising mortgage interest rates are certainly having a negative effect on demand, as they should; however, home equity is very high as a result of the past decade of value appreciation, prices have only fallen off slightly nationwide (more so in some markets than others), and overall inventory of homes for sale is still at a very low level on a historical scale. Here's a good article summarizing the above:

"The supply of homes for sale is just too short for the market to tank hard," Altos Research CEO Michael Simonsen said.

07/20/2022

As we struggle through a season of economic uncertainty, it's valuable to remember the long-term trajectory of the Seattle-Eastside region. We've been spoiled by the runaway competitive market of the past two years (not to mention the eight years preceding them going back to 2012), and certainly there are many caution signs in the market today; however, lest we worry that calamity is around the corner, let's remember what our local industries, companies, environment, and overall quality of life spell out...a world class region with long-term staying power that will continue to outperform most of the nation, and will bounce back from this difficult season as strong as ever. I'm betting on it.

CNBC, in their recent survey of best states for business in the US, ranks Washington #2. In their survey of best states to live, we rank #6. Not bad. We'll continue to be a desirable place both to live and to conduct business for all the reasons you can read in the links below, which portends long-term success for local real estate.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/13/americas-top-states-for-business-2022-the-full-rankings.html

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/14/these-10-states-are-americas-best-places-to-live-in-2022.html

01/18/2022

No local angle with this one...just some fun reading for those interested in luxury homes. Here's a list of the 10 most expensive residential real estate sales in the US last year:

Marc Andreessen’s $177 million Malibu dream house topped the list of luxury home purchases last year. See the other lavish properties in Palm Beach, the Hamptons and beyond.

01/10/2022

"After two years of scorching growth in the U.S. housing market, will there be a cool-down and possibly a fall in sales and prices in 2022, along with a return to some normalcy? Um, not exactly, several housing experts tell USA TODAY."

A good overview of where the market stands currently:

With one of the craziest stretches in real estate history continuing to spark demand for more housing, experts examine if a correction is on the way.

05/25/2021

I continue to have frequent conversations with clients, especially prospective home buyers, about the state of the market, and their fear of an impending bursting of the "housing bubble". I generally advise that while something like this is theoretically always possible, none of the data suggest that it is likely. The fear of a bubble is primarily driven by the significant rise in home values in recent years; however, data show that these rising prices have been driven by real demand, due to limited supply and favorable mortgage rates, coupled with strong credit and financial qualifications of buyers...while in the prior bubble that burst in 2007, the inflated prices were due to lax lending standards, speculative purchasing by buyers, and a huge percentage of short-term adjustable rate mortgages and under-qualified buyers. For a very thorough (30-minute) review of the prior bubble of the mid-2000s, compared to our current market, please take the time to watch Matthew Gardner's update this week. It is well worth your time if you'd like to understand the differences from an expert, data-driven perspective.

This video is the latest in our Monday with Matthew series with Windermere Chief Economist Matthew Gardner. In this month’s special episode, Matthew takes a deep dive into the data that helped him shape his Op-Ed piece for Inman News.   Hello there! I’m Windermere Real Estate’s Chief Economis...

12/16/2020

Here is a succinct review from the Puget Sound Business Journal of the phenomenon I've been discussing with many clients over the past several months. I don't anticipate mass numbers leaving town, as some have suggested; however, there will be a segment of the population with the ability to work remotely (and the approval of their employers to do so) who will make this choice. We will also see a good number of people (with the funds to afford it) choose to purchase a 2nd home in a desirable location, and split time between there and their current primary home in the Seattle/Eastside metro area. All good options...necessity is the mother of invention, and we're simply re-inventing our living choices as a result of this pandemic and the technological abilities that are available.

Chalk it up to work from home. If you can work from anywhere, why not live some place scenic, less expensive and more laid back than the city?

12/08/2020

A brilliant double-length final episode of Matthew Gardner's economic insights and musings. Here, he looks ahead to 2021, with timely and fact-based analysis of where we've been this year, and what it means for the next. I've discussed a number of these topics with many of you this year, so some of it will sound familiar, but it's great to see the key data points that affect our real estate market summarized so well.

In our final episode of "Monday with Matthew" for 2020, Windermere Chief Economist Matthew Gardner looks to the year ahead in his 2021 U.S. Housing Forecast,...

10/27/2020

Underscoring the Q3 Western WA report, Matthew Gardner's bi-weekly report touches on key national data which shows the blistering pace of single-family home sales around the country. Certainly not every market is at this level...some are above, and some are below, but the averages and medians show remarkable strength in the industry currently.

In today's episode of "Monday with Matthew," Windermere Chief Economist Matthew Gardner dives into three of the latest housing market data releases and gives...

10/27/2020

Terrific update from Matthew Gardner on the Q3 real estate market in Western WA. Indeed, we're seeing more people choosing to move outside the Metro areas as working from home has normalized; however, we're still seeing plenty of activity close-in as well. Low mortgage interest rates are a significant factor, propelling both purchase decisions and refinances. Notably, the large number of people choosing to stay put and refinance is a substantial cause of the low supply in our market, which is in turn driving demand and prices up.

The following analysis of the Western Washington real estate market is provided by Windermere Real Estate Chief Economist Matthew Gardner. We hope that this information may assist you with making better-informed real estate decisions. For further information about the housing market in your area, pl...

09/04/2020

The Eastside (and in this case Bellevue specifically) continues to be the beneficiary of Seattle's political issues. Amazon today confirmed its move to Bellevue, including thousands of additional jobs. Look for Eastside real estate to continue to surge in demand.

BELLEVUE, Wash. - Amazon announced Friday it is planning to bring 10,000 more jobs to Bellevue, in addition to 15,000 new jobs already planned for the East side city. It's the latest sign that Amazon is cooling on its hometown of Seattle in favor of what the company perceives as a more business-frie...