I am pleased to present a look at housing market trends for the fourth quarter of 2018, from the shores of Bainbridge Island’s waterfront homes and in-city living opportunities to the Eastside’s most distinguished residences.
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I was recently holding an open house when a curious neighbor came into the home to check out the new improvements and ask about current market conditions. After showing her the home and added value/improvements made by the seller—and asking her to tell everyone she knew—I briefly explained that we are going through a market correction, which began in mid-May (like a light switch on May 10th), and touched on the probable causes. I went on to say that current market conditions seem to have stabilized: generally, sales have increased and inventory began decreasing around mid-October (I saw it October 18th). I summed it up quickly with, “I believe it’s a great time to buy.” She looked at me and said “yeah, but what would you say to your friend or a family member. How would you advise them?” I shrugged and smiled as I replied, “I just did.”
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LinkedIn recently released their monthly Workforce Report, which outlines national and local employment trends using data obtained by LinkedIn users. Here I outline key trends from Seattle’s report. In November 2018, hiring was 1.2 percent higher than it was at this same time last year, though seasonal adjustments revealed numbers slightly (0.2 percent) lower in November than October.
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Smart home technology is rapidly advancing and ranges from a smart home assistant — such as Google Home or Amazon Alexa — to complex systems managing every aspect of a residence. While some homeowners make the assumption that adding smart home technology will increase their home’s value, Mansion Global warns that things aren’t quite so simple: “Your home’s smart technology could give you an edge over other sellers whose homes don’t have it, but it’s challenging to assign a dollar value to it, experts say.”
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We are mere days from the start of the new year and with it, comes an onslaught of expert predictions from a range of industries. Nerdwallet recently put together a list of the top nine trends for the coming year, which outline another challenging year for home buyers (though less so than in recent years), tight inventory, home price and mortgage rate rises, and more.
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The U.S. economy is producing more wealth while hiring fewer people. I recently watch an interesting documentary entitled Most Likely to Succeed, which discussed the current educational system in the U.S. This system was developed a century ago during the rise of the Industrial Age and was once the envy of the world. Since that time, the world economy has transformed profoundly, however, and the U.S. education system has not followed suit. Schools are attempting to teach and test skills that when mastered, still leave graduates woefully unprepared for the 21st Century.
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On January 11, 2019, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is set to permanently close the Alaskan Way Viaduct, the first step in a series of efforts to alleviate congestion but that will first make things worse for Seattleites. In what has been called the “period of maximum constraint,” movement in and around downtown will be difficult, as private and public construction will cause street closures and delays.
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The nearly two-decade-long effort to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct will soon hit a major milestone, as the viaduct is set to close on January 11th, 2019 as it is replaced by the Highway 99 tunnel spanning Sodo to South Lake Union. The closure has undoubtedly caused concern and confusion for commuters and Seattleites alike, especially given that there will be an approximate three-week gap between the closure of the viaduct and the tunnel’s opening. Using research obtained by Seattle Times, let’s take a look at answers to some of the biggest questions surrounding the project.
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S&P Dow Jones recently released the Case-Shiller Home Price Index for August 2018, revealing that Seattle home price growth continues to slow. Up until just two months before that, Seattle led the nation in single-family home price gains for 21 consecutive months, but that run was ended as Las Vegas took over the lead.
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