Home Sellers Return on Mercer Island as Prices Rise

This post was compiled from data and press releases from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS).

Mercer Island is one of a handful of areas in King County seeing monthly increases of homes on the market after hitting record-lows in real estate inventory in 2012, according to the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

While sellers in King County declined by 26.7 percent in May compared to last year, there were 112 homes and condos for sale on Mercer Island, a 9.8 percent increase. Across the state, a 16 percent increase of new listings was heralded as a positive sign by real estate professionals, according to a NWMLS press release. Sixty-four new properties were listed on Mercer Island — 18 more than May 2012.

"It has been refreshing to see more listings coming on the market, but with overall inventory remaining low the competition among buyers is still fierce for homes that are priced properly," said NWMLS director Kathy Estey, a managing broker at John L. Scott in downtown Bellevue.

Real estate inventories remain a far cry from "normal", however. The average number of homes listed for sale during the busy summer months on Mercer Island is usually closer to an average of 200 homes, based on NWMLS real estate data over the past decade.

And local prices continue to rise. Forty-two homes houses and condos sold in May on Mercer Island for a median price of $842,500, a 16.6 percent increase over last year when the same number of homes sold. Sales of single-family homes are driving the market with 35 sold at a median price of $888,000, a 3.8 percent increase. Seven condos sold at a median price of $297,000, a 12.3 percent increase.

The median price for a house or condo in King County last month was $375,000, a gain of 15.4 percent.

"We're seeing the trajectory of home prices beginning to soften and the number of days on the market decline,” observed Mike Grady, president and COO of Coldwell Banker Bain. “The trends suggest inventory levels are slightly more sustainable, but we're still clearly in a seller's market. For the foreseeable future, buyers will continue to pay more the longer they wait to purchase a home."

The increases appear to be the leading edge of a Seattle-area real estate market on the upswing. Home sales rose to the highest level for an April in six years amid a surge in $200,000-plus transactions, according to San Diego-based real estate company Data Quick. The median sale price moved above the $300,000 threshold for the first time in 33 months, erasing roughly half of its loss during the housing bust, a real estate information service reported.

Buyers looking for condominiums will find slim pickings. Condos currently account for only about 10 percent statewide of the available inventory, and even less on Mercer Island — just eight were listed in May.

Mercer Island also saw a large jump in pending sales compared to last May, with 52 offers under contract. In the Seattle-Tacoma-Everett metro area, counties had more modest gains in pending sales: King (up 6 percent) Snohomish (down 5.8 percent) and Pierce (up 10.6 percent).