Seattle Region September Home Sales

Seattle-area home sales shot up from a year earlier for the third consecutive month in September amid especially robust sub-$200,000 sales. The median sale price dropped year-over-year for the 14th consecutive month, to the lowest level in seven years, as distressed property sales accounted for nearly half of the resale market, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 3,747 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow during September in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area encompassing King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. September's total sales fell 11.8 percent from August but jumped 26.2 percent from September 2010, according to San Diego-based DataQuick. The firm tracks real estate trends nationally via public property records.

A drop in sales between August and September is normal for the season, partly because many families try to close escrow and move before school starts in late summer. On average, sales have fallen 10.6 percent between August and September since 1994, when DataQuick's complete Seattle-area statistics begin.

September sales were the highest for that month in two years but were still 27.4 percent below average for a September, and they were the fourth-lowest sales for a September since 1994, behind 2010, 2008, and 1996.

However, total sales have been dragged down by an extraordinarily weak new-home market. Sales of newly built houses and condos rose 3.1 percent from a year earlier in September but were still the second-lowest on record for that month. The Seattle-area resale market has fared much better, posting a 30.7 percent gain in house and condo sales in September compared with a year earlier. Resales in September were the highest in four years, though they were 23.4 percent below average for a September.

The number of homes that sold for less than $200,000 in September rocketed 71.0 percent from a year earlier, which is at least partly the result of improved affordability this year thanks to price declines and ultra-low mortgage rates. Sales between $200,000 and $600,000 rose 6.8 percent in September compared with a year earlier, while sales in the $600,000 to $900,000 range increased 27.1 percent. ($600,000-to-$900,000 sales represented 8.2 percent of all September transactions, while sub-$200,000 deals accounted for 32.5 percent of the market and $200,000-to-$600,000 sales accounted for 56.8 percent).

In the Seattle area's multi-million-dollar luxury market, 17 homes sold in September for $2 million or more, down from 22 multi-million-dollar sales in August and 18 in September 2010. During the first nine months of this year, 140 Seattle-area homes sold for more than $2 million, a tad less than the 143 that sold during the same nine-month period last year. The figures are based on public records, where either a price or loan amount is available.

Across all price segments in September, buyers paid a median $259,000 for all new and resale houses and condos sold in the three-county Seattle region. That was down 1.7 percent from the prior month and down 9.1 percent from a year earlier.

September's median was 29.1 percent lower than the Seattle area's peak $365,200 median in June 2007. The last time the median was lower than this September's $259,000 was in September 2004, when it was $258,240.

Another key price measure, the median paid per square foot for resale single-family detached houses, dipped to $158 in September - the lowest since $154 in January this year. September's figure fell 2.5 percent from August and fell 11.2 percent from a year earlier. The median paid per square foot has fallen year-over-year for 13 consecutive months and in September was 33.9 percent lower than the peak $239 median paid per square foot in June 2007.

At the county level in September, the median price paid per square foot for resale detached houses fell 7.5 percent year-over-year in King County, while it dropped 13.5 percent from a year ago in Pierce County and fell 12.2 percent in Snohomish County.

Distressed property sales - foreclosure resales and "short sales" combined - represented 47.1 percent of the Seattle area's resale market in September, which was the highest since March.

Foreclosure resales - properties foreclosed on in the prior 12 months - represented 29.1 percent of the resale market in September, up from 28.6 percent in August and up from 21.9 percent a year earlier. The peak was 32.8 percent in March this year.

Short sales - transactions where the sale price fell short of what was owed on the property - made up an estimated 18.0 percent of Seattle-area resales in September - the second highest level, behind 18.1 percent in June 2010, for the current real estate cycle. September's figure was up from 16.1 percent in August and 13.2 percent a year ago. Two years ago it was 13.6 percent.

In September, lenders foreclosed on 1,033 single-family houses and condo units in the region, down 19.7 percent from August and down 22.4 percent from a year earlier. During the first nine months of this year, however, 10,311 homes were foreclosed on, up 24.4 percent from the same period last year. The figures are based on the number of Trustees Deeds filed with county recorder offices.

Many distressed properties are purchased by investors and first-time buyers.

Absentee buyers - mainly investors - accounted for 16.7 percent of the Seattle area's September home sales, about even with 16.6 percent in August but up from 14.7 percent a year ago. Absentee buyers paid a median $196,500 in September, down 1.8 percent from August and down 14.6 percent from a year earlier. While many of these buyers are investors, they can include second-home buyers and others who indicated at the time of sale that the property tax bill would be sent to a different address.

Many investors are among today's cash buyers, who accounted for 19.9 percent of all September sales, down from 22.2 in August and 20.6 percent a year earlier. Cash buyers paid a median $208,809 in September, down 4.7 percent from August and down 15.9 percent from a year ago.

In September, 23.5 percent of Seattle-area purchase mortgages were government-insured FHA loans, a popular, low-down-payment choice among first-time home buyers. That was down from 24.7 percent in August and 33.3 percent a year earlier. The September FHA level was the lowest since June 2008, when FHA-insured mortgages made up 19.0 percent of all home loans.

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA MSA

Number of sales	Sep-10	Aug-11	Sep-11	YOY %Chng
Resale houses	2,052	3,022	2,667	30.00%
Resale condos	439	703	588	33.90%
New homes	477	523	492	3.10%
All homes	2,968	4,248	3,747	26.20%

Median sale price	Sep-10	Aug-11	Sep-11	YOY %Chng
Resale houses	$290,950	$269,950	$265,000	-8.90%
Resale condos	$222,043	$198,250	$180,000	-18.90%
New homes	$306,310	$300,000	$298,110	-2.70%
All homes	$285,000	$263,398	$259,000	-9.10%

Media calls: Andrew LePage (916) 456-7157

Source: DataQuick; DQNews.com