Buyers have gotten a nice reprieve from higher interest rates. Rates are down ¾ point from two weeks ago. This is welcomed news for both Buyers and Sellers. As expected, the Fed did not raise interest rates at the November meeting.
There’s been a lot of speculation on where rates will be in 2024. At the beginning of 2023, Fannie Mae, Wells Fargo and Mortgage Bankers Association’s predictions for 4th quarter 2023 mortgage rates ranged from 5.2% to 6.1% and by 4th quarter 2024 their predictions were from 4.4% to 5.5%. Not surprising, all three have revised their 2024 predictions upward and now range from 5.85% to 6.7% for 4th quarter 2024. Obviously these are just predictions. Interestingly, Wells Fargo and the Mortgage Bankers Association are more in sync with their predictions and Fannie Mae is the high number.
So, what’s been happening locally? New listings have slowed quite a bit in the past few weeks and are down roughly 30% in both NW Seattle and SW Snohomish. Homes going under contract in SW Snohomish are also down by 31%. Surprisingly, homes going under contract in NW Seattle are up by 6%. As we move into the holiday season, both Buyer and Seller activity will continue to slow.
The number of new listings with review dates is down for the past two weeks from the previous two weeks. 29% of new listings in both NW Seattle and SW Snohomish for the past two weeks had review dates. This is down from 41% for NW Seattle and 35% for SW Snohomish for the previous two weeks.
The sold price per square foot in both markets has held relatively steady. SW Snohomish is up just slightly, and NW Seattle is down 4.5%.
Hopefully, Buyers will take advantage of the recent drop in rates and we’ll see an uptick in contracts.
If you are thinking of selling, please join us for our next Home Selling Seminar this coming Thursday, November 9th. It is a fun class where we can get all your questions answered.
Until next time!
And as always, if you have any additional real estate questions, feel free to call/text us any time! We’re always here to help!
STEVE HILL
Broker | REALTOR® | Luxury Advisor | Premier Director
CELL 206-769-9577
SANDRA BRENNER
Managing Broker | REALTOR® | MCNE | SRS | CRS®
CELL 206-271-7100
WINDERMERE REAL ESTATE / FN
12250 Greenwood Ave N
Seattle, WA 98133
MAIN 206-367-4720
brennerhill.com
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