FOLLOWING RECORD GAINS FOR THE PAST 12 MONTHS, SEATTLE IS POISED TO CONTINUE ITS REIGN AS THE HOTTEST HOUSING MARKET IN THE U.S. IN 2018

Seattle has made seemingly endless headlines in recent months for its impressive housing market, and it seems no end is in sight as Seattle Times reports that the Emerald City has now maintained its position as the hottest market in the nation for 12 consecutive months. On top of boasting the largest home price gains of any other city, the Puget Sound also made headlinesfor 2018, as the annual “Emerging Trends in Real Estate” study ranked the city number one on its list, up from a fourth position in 2017. 

Looking at data from August 2017, Mike Rosenberg says Seattle’s 12-month reign is “the fifth-longest streak in the country since 2000, and the longest since Phoenix led the nation in home value increases for 13 months in a row from 2012 to 2013.” In looking to the rest of the nation, “home costs here [in Seattle] are growing at more than double the national rate of 6.1 percent.” What’s more, the second-place market, Las Vegas, saw an 8.6 percent growth, “nearly five percentage points less than Seattle.” In looking to Seattle’s West Coast peer markets such as San Francisco, the growth is almost astronomical, as home values are now growing twice as fast as those in the Bay Area, according to a recent Puget Sound Business Journal article. 

Rosenberg attributes the region’s growth to high paying tech jobs, competition amidst anemic inventory, the impact of foreign investment, and soaring rents, sentiments which echo the findings of the recently released “Emerging Trends in Real Estate” report and those previously noted by Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty and experts of The FutureCast Forum. 

Regarded as “an important measure of economic conditions,” Seattle Times reporter Jon Talton shared key findings from the report, which include a positive housing outlook, strong population growth and a well-diversified economy. He adds that “we benefit from having twice the U.S. average – 12 percent – working on STEM occupations.” Looking to the future, he says “overall costs, housing affordability and availability of construction labor” will be important considerations, in addition to “infrastructure improvements.” 

Want to know more about the latest housing market trends in the greater Seattle region? Read Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty’s latest insights on the S&P Case-Shiller report, dive into the third quarter market reports, or explore The FutureCast Forum, a collaborative of opinion leaders that explores the current and projected market fundamentals and trends influencing the Seattle/Bellevue metro area by 2020 and beyond. 

Original source on RSIR

FORBES CROWNS SEATTLE THE SECOND COOLEST CITY IN THE NATION

Following a recent report by Forbes and Bert Sperling which ranked the “coolness” of the 100 largest metro cities in the country, Seattle Magazine says that having taken the second spot, “you might even say we’re the municipal equivalent of Beyoncé, expensive denim jackets and cigarettes in the ‘70s.” As the article outlines, after looking at a number of factors including “entertainment and recreation options, the food and drink scene, transit choices, population growth and where young people are living,” Forbes crowned the Emerald City the second coolest city in the nation, behind only San Francisco. 

Among the factors helping Seattle’s cool factor are “recreation and the jointly weighted coffee shops and breweries.” And as Sperling observes, “a city’s desirability (or coolness, if you will) drives the housing demand up.” “It would be an anomaly if you found a place that was really really cool but was really really cheap,” he says. 

To be sure, Seattle’s housing market is on fire, as the latest CoreLogic Case Shiller index reveals that over the past 12 months, home prices in Seattle have increased 13.2 percent, far outpacing those in major U.S. cities across the country. Recent analysis by William Hillis, Research Editor with Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty, reveals that despite the run-up in Seattle home prices, the city is still more affordable relative to local incomes than any of its peer metro markets. Real estate analyst Mark Hanson observed that in Seattle, the difference between household income and income needed to buy a median-priced house is about 18 percent, where a city such as San Francisco is currently at 52 percent. 

Original source on RSIR

What a Difference a Year Makes: Downtown Seattle Condominium Market Values Swell 28% in 2016

Eager homebuyers rallied during the first half of 2016 increasing unit absorption and median home prices by 48% and 28%, respectively according to analysis of Northwest Multiple Listing Service data released as of June 30th. The typical condominium is selling in just over a month with a median home value of $575,000. However, a closer look reveals that 135 of the 381 condominium closings so far this year were in the INSIGNIA condominium tower, a new construction development (and one remaining developer-owned unit in the Four Seasons Private Residences) whereas there were effectively no new construction deliveries or closings during the same term in 2015. When removing this spike of higher-priced, new inventory in the overall resale market still expanded by 22% year-over-year but total resale closings actually decreased 5% with 246 homes in 2016 (including a few resales at INSIGNIA) against closings of 258 units in the first half of 2015.

“These market results were anticipated given the rising demand and relatively anemic supply being added to the skyline,” said Dean Jones, President and CEO of Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty. “I wish I could point to a cure for homebuyers hoping for greater affordability but the answer is supply and that can take years to develop.”

Below are a collection of graphs illustrating the changing market that compare the first half of 2015 with the first half of 2016, both with new construction and resale (All) as well as exclusively resale homes (Resale).

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To be sure, much of what’s occurring in the development of downtown Seattle has been a common discussion about supply and demand. In 2013, Jones prognosticated on this very topic in an interview with Seattle Magazine’s Publisher’s Series in which he mentioned the northern migration of downtown Seattle and a condominium comeback, although nearly three years ago the housing market was still very much in recovery mode.

Then, earlier this year 425 Business Magazine tapped Jones about the trends for urbanization, this time with a focus on the Eastside. He notes that the rising trend for foreign direct investment in the region and a propensity for in-fill development will have even the much smaller Eastside urban landscape soon looking more like a skyscraper city before long.

Most recently the state of the in-city housing market has less to do with projections but evidenced by consumer response. Among the newly constructed in-fill condominiums in the region (either in development or planned), which includes INSIGNIA, LUMA, Gridiron and now NEXUS, 80% of the homes have already been reserved, pending or closed.

“That’s just one of the reasons we’ve been so successful with NEXUS,” said Michael Cannon, Director of Sales for NEXUS. “We’re well positioned both in our geographic location as well as our time in the development cycle. Buyers have clearly been waiting for the next generation of high-rise living and at NEXUS, ‘X’ marks the spot.”

Cannon says homebuyers have a remarkably clear view of the future as downtown Seattle is moving north and NEXUS is in the heart of a new multi-billion dollar vertical village.

*Information gained from sources deemed reliable but cannot be guaranteed.

Seattle Among the World's Most "Future-Ready" Cities

In a recent article published by the Seattle PI, Daniel Demay declares “Seattle among the World’s Most ‘Future-Ready’ Cities,” according to a report released by Dell. As Demay begins, “say what you will about the tech boom in Seattle – it’s good for having a future-ready economy” as it was ranked 13th among 50 cities around the world.

Referencing the release from Dell, the article reads, “‘We live in a digital age in which the power of innovation to transform our world is all around us,’ said Liz Matthews, Dell’s executive director for corporate brand and purpose, in the release. ‘The cities where we live are faced with new challenges every day, from supporting a growing population and building a thriving culture, to fueling economic opportunity for everyone.’”

Demay continues with an explanation of the study, describing that it “measures whether people had the right skills to drive social and economic change, whether the infrastructure was ready to support progress and whether the economy could help sustain innovation and growth.”

Among the highlights? Education, “with 92 percent of adults holding a high school diploma and 23 percent having earned a master’s degree or higher” in addition to “internet access, with 88 percent internet adoption, putting it sixth in the world and No. 3 among large U.S. cities.”

Given that the Daily Journal of Commerce reported last December that Seattle’s population could surpass San Francisco’s by 2040 and that there are exciting new projects in the pipeline including NEXUS, recently announced by The Burrard Group, preparing for growth in the Emerald City is increasingly important and it feels good knowing that Seattle ranks well among the most renowned cities worldwide.

Read the Full Report Released by Dell >>