Tight Housing Market

SEATTLE RANKS NO. 2 IN THE TIGHTEST REAL ESTATE MARKET SINCE 2006

Realtor.com has ranked the top ten areas having the tightest real estate markets in the country, and Seattle is number two on that list.  Not since 2006 has there been so few homes on the market, relative to the total number of homes in the area. The inventory of homes for sale almost never goes up in the autumn and winter, so things probably won’t improve over the coming months. Here is how the list stands today:

1) San Francisco Bay Area, CA (1 out of 332 homes for sale).

For Buyers, Fall May Be The Best Time

A slower fall season in home buying, traditionally the last two weeks or so of August, brought on by vacations and back-to-school activities, may coax uncommitted buyers to get off the fence, but the pace of sales will pick up once schools are back in session. There may be enticing mortgage rates available to home buyers this fall. Mortgage rates remain under 4 percent, certainly a positive for home loan borrowers. Last week the 30-year fixed rate averaged 3.78 percent, holding steady at this year’s low, as reported by Freddie Mac.