KPLU Local News
(2010-04-05)
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Pat Grimm says the increased activity is like a return to normalcy. He's the owner/broker of Windermere Real Estate on Capitol Hill in Seattle, where he's once again seeing quick sales and lots of multiple offers.
"We haven't had a normal spring market in the last couple of years. It came late last year, in '08 arguably it didn't happen. So (this activity)'s a refreshing sign."
And for the first time in years, million-dollar homes are selling again - as well as entry-level properties. He attributes the uptick to fairer pricing, low interest rates and federal tax credits which expire at the end of the month. But at the same time, he says there's a lot more uncertainty now than before the big crash. Many pending deals are falling through.
"And it's a variety of different things - everything from financing to inspection items to the fickleness of buyers, the fickleness of sellers "
Grimm says sixty days from now we'll know what the market is really doing, when reports show whether all the sales now on the books actually go through and whether the expiring tax credits cause a drop in pending sales.
Despite increased activity, year-over-year prices inched up by less than 1% in King County - where the median price for a house is now $367,000. Prices dropped Snohomish and Pierce counties, by 11 and 6 percent respectively.
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