This chart represents the total number of Sequim vs. Port Angeles homes sold from 2003 through 2009 in the price range from $200,000 to $800,000 (site built only).  Click on the chart for a full size view.

Sequim home sales in 2009 are below 2003 sales, and Port Angeles home sales in 2009 are just above 2003 levels.  It’s been a tough year for real estate, and we’re a long way from the record setting year in 2005.  Actually, 2005 was Sequim’s biggest year with 409 homes sold, but 2006 was Port Angeles’ best year with 255 homes sold.  [Source of Data:  Olympic Listing Service]

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The Sequim and Port Angeles Home Sales Report is brought to you by Chuck Marunde.  We are closing in on the end of 2009, so how do monthly home sales look this year?  Here’s a chart showing monthly home sales comparing Sequim and Port Angeles site built homes sold in the price range of $200,000 to $500,000.  This would include the vast majority of homes sold in our area.

Of course, it is no surprise that November and December are slow.  These are the slow winter months when buyers have turned their attention to family and to the holiday celebrations.  November through March tend to be the slower months as shown in this chart.  This year sales did not perk until May, but if the economy is healthy or on the mend, we could see buyers making their move in March of 2010.  We did see an unusual spurt of buyer activity in October, rather late in the year for so many buyers to make their close.  The increase in sales of homes in other parts of the country, low interest rates, and the $8,000 tax credit were all factors.

Some who are planning on buying here in the spring would be wise to make their move now when they won’t be bidding against so many other buyers.  If there is a time of year when the buyer’s negotiating power is at its highest, that time is now.

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Sequim Home Sales Report is brought to you by SequimRealEstateNews.com and Chuck Marunde.  In this chart we are looking at the total homes sold in Sequim compared to Port Angeles from January 1st to Thanksgiving of each year from 2003 through 2009.  I’ve weighted the data parameters to get a more accurate picture of the market.  Homes sold are site built only and from $200,000 to $800,000.

So far in 2009 Sequim has sold 163 homes and Port Angeles has sold 120 homes.  The gap between the two cities has closed somewhat from previous years, particularly since 2005.  In 2005 Sequim sold 70% more homes than Port Angeles, but in 2009, Sequim only sold 36% more homes than Port Angeles.  Why?  First, retirees make up the bulk of Sequim’s buyers, and many retirees are waiting out the recession.  While Port Angeles buyers also includes many retirees, the buyer population is a little broader.  Second, home prices in Port Angeles are less than in Sequim, and in difficult economic times Port Angeles will draw buyers away from Sequim.

Not shown in this Sequim Home Sales Report is a comparison of homes sold in Sequim and Port Angeles just for the month of November of 2009 (up to Thanksgiving, at least through the 23rd).  Using the same parameters, the total homes sold thus far in November in Sequim were 13 compared to only 3 in Port Angeles.  Sequim still remains the major retirement community on the Olympic Peninsula.  (Source of data:  Olympic Listing Service)

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Sequim home sales have picked up recently in the last couple of months, as they have around many parts of the country, but this chart helps put things into a long term perspective.   This chart represents Sequim home sales compared to Port Angeles home sales for the first 10 months of 2009 (specifically Jan. 1 to Oct. 25).

Sequim was the big winner in 2005 for the first 10 months with sales of 309 homes, and Port Angeles lagged behind with only 139 homes sold.   These are   single family site-built homes only.   Not included are multi-family, condos, and mobile homes.

Sequim home sales began a downward slide from its peak year of 2005 to today, and Port Angeles peaked in 2007 with 175 homes sold.   I find it interesting that while Sequim’s sales are down to 118 thus far this year, Port Angeles seems to have a safety net at about 100.   Last year was at 101 and this year so far Port Angeles home sales are at 96.

While we are still waiting patiently for a good long-term indication of strong growth in home sales and in home building, I have noticed a short-term increase in sales of existing homes and lots.   That has brought our current numbers up substantially, or Sequim and Port Angeles would have both been substantially below 118 and 96, respectively.

In my opinion Sequim has seen the bottom of this chart and sales will level and begin to move upward over the next year.   Port Angeles is harder to predict.   I think Port Angeles could see Sequim take some of its sales away, and Port Angeles may struggle to develop any kind of significant upward trend on a chart like this.   I think the Port Angeles economy will have to see some strong underlying movement to push the real estate market a bit.

Sequim Home Sales Report courtesy of Chuck Marunde, J.D.

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Here’s a vignette of Sequim home sales in the month of August in each year from 2005 through 2009 for both Sequim and Port Angeles.   There are two graphs here.   The first one includes homes from $225,000 to $700,000, and the second graph narrowed the range slightly to include homes from $275,000 to $700,000.

Notice the difference.   The difference is slight but revealing.   See if you can interpret the reason for the difference, especially in August of 2009.

The difference that hit me as I studied the data is how the Sequim and Port Angeles real estate markets are different.   Prices of homes are higher in Sequim, so in the second chart we see a greater number of homes sold in Sequim in the month of August compared to Port Angeles.   In the first graph Sequim sold almost twice as many as Port Angeles, but in the second graph Sequim sold almost three times as many when we increased the selling price by $50,000 on the bottom end.

Is this a trend?   I believe it is.   Sequim is simply becoming more and more popular, especially for retirees.

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The national media has published several articles in the past week that home sales are up and that our real estate market may be on the upswing.   Business Week reported today that home sales are up with an article entitled, “Signed home-purchase agreements in the U.S. rose in June to the highest monthly level in two years, according to the National Association of Realtors’ pending home sales index that was released on Aug. 4.”   I saw a local agency   today with a sign saying that the inventory is down, apparently suggesting that home sales are up in Sequim and Port Angeles, too.   But are they really?   Is the real estate market finally headed upward?

First, you know that it is popular in sales to claim the positive, whether it is true or not, to get people to take action.   It’s done all the time as a sales technique across America in every product line.   The sales pitch must create a sense of urgency to convince buyers that if they wait any longer, they will miss out.   By suggesting that sales are up, buyers will feel they must make that offer on a house   quickly before they lose out, before the home they want is sold, before the inventory is depleted, before interest rates go up, and so on.

Second, you must also know by now if you are a regular reader of this real estate blog (which is now the largest real estate blog in all of Sequim and Port Angeles), that I will put the truth and your interests before my own, even if it means I might not make a commission.   This blog is about telling readers the truth on all real estate issues.   So let me take on this question, “Are home sales up in Sequim and Port Angeles?”   (more…)

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Sequim and Port Angeles homes sold during the first six months of 2009 total 115 houses in the main price range of $200,000 to $500,000.   This represents the vast majority of homes sold in Clallam County in Washington.   This is down, as expected, to 11% of the total homes sold in this price range in the past five years.   We see in this chart a steady decline from 2005 through the first six months of 2009.

There is some proof that good things are on the horizon.   Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller Home Price Index for 20 major cities rose 0.5 percent in May from its level in April. This is the first rise in this index since July 2006.   This chart shows sales from June of 2008 through June of 2009.

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No surprise that homes sold in Sequim in the first six months of 2009 in the price range of $200,000 to $500,000 have dropped this year compared to past years.   Not since 2002 have we had these numbers.   Here’s a chart representing sales for the first half of the year over the past 10 years.

The data includes site-built homes only, no mobiles or manufactured homes, and I weighted the data to include the vast majority of homes sold, which is between the prices of $200,000 and $500,000.   This is the price range most buyers want in the Sequim area.   Only 63 homes sold in Sequim in the first half of this year.   This is valuable information for buyers and sellers.

You can view (and bookmark) all our Sequim Home Sales Reports.   All our reports are available 24/7 and are never deleted.

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Sequim home sales and Port Angeles home sales from January 1st through June 23rd (today) of 2009 are shown in this spreadsheet.   I’ve weighted the data to more accurately reflect the market by only including homes from $150,000 to $600,000.   This range represents something close to 95% of the homes sold.

The columns from left to right represent the number of bedrooms, the total number of listings, the total number of these listings that sold, the average listing price, the average sales price for those that actually did sell, the ratio of the listing price to the selling price, and the days on market for those that actually sold.   Those that did not sell are either expired (about a third of all the listings expired without a sale), or their DOM continues to increase (not shown in this spreadsheet).

It’s no surprise that the largest number of homes listed for sale are three bedroom.   That is the standard, and even for retirees, having one spare bedroom for company or family and a third room for a study or computer room is popular.   Of these three bedroom homes, a third of the homes listed did not sell and the listings expired (not shown in the data here).   Of those remaining listings in this category, only a fourth of them sold in this first six months of the year.   The average selling price was 95% of the listed price.   That means a home listed for $400,000 sold for $380,000.

All of this is worth knowing when it comes time to negotiate the purchase of your own home.

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Home sales in Sequim and Port Angeles from 2000 to 2009 for March, April, and May are shown in this graphic.   Of course 2005 was the banner year for sales here, as it was in many parts of the country, and 2009 shows us that only 55 homes sold in this three month period.   I’ve weighted the chart for better accuracy by eliminating houses sold outside the bell curve, because the vast majority of homes sold in Sequim and Port Angeles are within the price range of $200,000 to $500,000.

What isn’t showing up in this chart for 2009 is the burst of buyer activity for homes that are currently under contract but not yet sold (closed), which means they won’t show up in the data for another one to three months.   There has been a burst of buyer activity here in this three month period.   Buyers are motivated by low interest rates as well as bargains in the inventory.

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