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Kitsap Real Estate Local Markets in April 2011
By Admin
There doesn’t seem to be any compelling revelation about the US real estate market right now. While the economy seems to be improving, house prices continue to fall as distressed properties are sold either as bank owned or through short-sales. In our market last month, 37% of closed sales were distressed properties. Bank owned sales outnumbered short sales by 4 to 1. The number of distressed properties (total number in default or foreclosure as reported by RealtyTrac) in Kitsap County has fallen (see graph). Current efforts by state and federal regulators may slow the foreclosure process, possibly mitigating the effect on market prices. This article from the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal gives a good list of references for homeowners who potentially face foreclosure.”
Going forward, another change about to hit our housing market is a reduction in the conforming loan limits, probably back to $417,000, as of October 1st. Here is the section from the Treasury’s “Reforming America’s Housing Finance Market” released in February:
Reducing conforming loan limits. The conforming loan limit is the maximum size of a loan that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are allowed to guarantee. In order to further scale back the enterprises’ share of the mortgage market, the Administration recommends that Congress allow the temporary increase in limits that was approved in 2008 to expire as scheduled on October 1, 2011 and revert to the limits established under HERA. We will work with Congress to determine appropriate conforming loan limits in the future, taking into account cost-of-living differences across the country. As a result of these reforms, larger loans for more expensive homes will once again be funded only through the private market.
Each month we publish a snapshot of several local markets to show variations in our larger Kitsap County real estate market. Kitsap County’s residential inventory in March (1458 listings) is about 3% higher than February and about 13% lower than a year ago. The County has a listing inventory turnover rate of about 6.9 months, quicker than the 10.5 month turnover in February. Inventory turnover varies greatly by price. This improvement in turnover rate has been driven by the under $200k market, where there was 4.5 months of inventory. All higher price ranges have more than 9 months of inventory. Kitsap County’s 3 month moving average of median closed sale price ($238,998) is about 1% lower than last month and is about the same as a year ago. The number of pending sales in March was down 22% compared to a year ago and was up about 10% from February. The links to regional market trends below will show both tables and graphs that further enhance the data reported below.
See Kitsap County graphs at http://www.bprowse.com/kitsap_market_trends.
Bainbridge Island Real Estate
Bainbridge Island residential properties were selling for a March median price of $501,500, about 1% less than in February and 4% lower than a year ago. The more stable three month moving average closed sale price fell 4% from last month to $485,708 and is 16% lower than a year ago. The Kitsap County 3 month moving average median price is about the same as it was a year ago. The 3 month moving average for Bainbridge Island’s number of closed sales is 12% higher than a year ago. The 3 month moving average of closed sales is down 12% Countywide from a year ago. The 3 month moving average number of Bainbridge pending sales in March was down 7% from a year ago. The number of active listings on Bainbridge (166) rose 4% from February and is about 14% lower than a year ago. The inventory turnover (total homes on the market divided by number sold last month) is 5.9 months, much better than the 11.4 months in February and also faster than the 8.8 months of a year ago. Bainbridge Island is a buyer’s market.
See tables and graphs at http://www.bprowse.com/bainbridge_island_market
Bremerton Real Estate
Statistics are for the Bremerton downtown core and west to Kitsap Lake. The market for other parts of Bremerton and its suburbs should be similar. Bremerton homes were selling for a month end median price of $117,000 at the end of March, 18% lower than a year ago and about 22% lower than last month. The more stable 3 month moving average median price ($132,333) was about 10% lower than a year ago and 11% lower than last month. The Kitsap County 3 month moving average median price is about the same as it was a year ago. Bremerton’s 3 month moving average for number of closed sales is 22% lower than a year ago and 5% lower than last month. The 3 month moving average of closed sales is down 12% Countywide from a year ago. The 3 month moving average number of Bremerton pending sales is down 42% from last year. The number of Bremerton active listings (110) is 35% lower than a year ago. The inventory turnover (total Bremerton homes on the market divided by number sold last month) is 6.1 months, faster than the 7.4 month turnover last month and better than the 6.5 month turnover a year ago. This improved turnover rate reflects the rapid turnover of homes under $200k in our current market. The Bremerton market is still a buyer’s market.
See tables and graphs at http://bprowse.com/bremerton_market
North Kitsap Real Estate
Statistics here are for Kingston, the largest of the remaining housing markets in North Kitsap. Activity in Kingston should be representative of the other nearby communities. Kingston homes were selling for a month end median price of about $247,500 at the end of March, 14% lower than a year ago and 28% higher than last month. Because of the relatively lower sales volume in Kingston, a couple high priced sales (or lack thereof) can make a big change in the statistics but may not mean much of change in the market. The more stable 3 month moving average ($233,333) of closed sale price is 24% lower than a year ago. We have low inventory and few sales. The Kitsap County 3 month moving average median price is about the same as it was a year ago. The 3 month moving average of Kingston closed sales was the same as a year ago, while the number of pending sales fell 55% from a year ago. The 3 month moving average of closed sales is down 12% Countywide from a year ago. The number of active listings in Kingston (49) is down 28% from a year ago - very low. The inventory turnover (total homes on the market divided by number sold last month) is 12.2 months, slower than the 10.5 month turnover reported last month but somewhat better than the 13.6 month turnover of a year ago. Kingston is still a buyer’s market.
See tables and graphs at http://bprowse.com/north_kitsap_market
Poulsbo Real Estate
These statistics are for Poulsbo, including the downtown core, from the head of Liberty Bay southeast to Ne-Si-Ka Bay, and parts north to Sawdust Hill Rd. Other parts of Poulsbo and its suburbs should have similar trends. The March median sales price for Poulsbo was $279,800, down about 13% from a year ago and up about 2% from last month. The more stable three month moving average closed sale price was $293,891, about 2% lower than a year ago. The Kitsap County 3 month moving average median price is about the same as it was a year ago. The 3 month moving average number of closed sales in Poulsbo fell 23% from a year ago. The 3 month moving average of closed sales is down 12% Countywide from a year ago. Poulsbo’s 3 month moving average of pending sales was unchanged from a year ago. The Poulsbo listing inventory (110) is 11% higher than a year ago but down 1% from last month. The inventory turnover (total homes on the market divided by number sold last month) remained unchanged at 10 months compared to last month, and is a slower than the 5.2 months reported a year ago. Poulsbo is a buyer’s market.
See tables and graphs at http://bprowse.com/poulsbo_market
Silverdale Real Estate
Homes in Silverdale were selling for a March median price of about $265,000, 13% lower than a year ago and 2% lower than last month. Silverdale’s more stable 3 month moving average median closed sale price was $268,333, 5 percent higher than last month and 2% higher than a year ago. The Kitsap County 3 month moving average median price is about the same as it was a year ago. The 3 month moving average for Silverdale’s number of closed sales is 12% lower than a year ago. The 3 month moving average of closed sales is down 12% Countywide from a year ago. The 3 month moving average of Silverdale pending sales in March was 28% lower than a year ago. The number of active listings in Silverdale (98) is 7% higher than a year ago. The inventory turnover (total homes on the market divided by number sold last month) is 14 months, slightly faster than the 18.8 months reported last month and quite a bit slower than the 7.1 month turnover of a year ago. Silverdale is a buyer’s market.
See tables and graphs at http://bprowse.com/silverdale_market
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