Puget Sound-area sellers are facing the most competitive housing market in years this fall as hesitant buyers hang back, Jeff Tucker shared in his August 2026 Local Look.

Active listings rose to 24,675 homes on the market at month’s end, thanks to 9,546 new listings — a 9.3% year-over-year bump.

The increase in purchase activity offset a decrease in refinancings. 

This month, we’re looking at the priciest new listings in Bellevue, led by a $10.3 million condo at the Park Row community.

The Emerald City the place with the smallest apartments in the nation — smaller even, than San Francisco.

The pace of home-price growth rose nationally but with significant regional differences.

Buyers are reportedly looking for homes that reflect how they actually live, not how they could be living.

Active buyers are looking for more expensive homes, while price-constrained buyers are looking at fewer homes altogether.

Seattle ranked seventh among large cities — those with over 300,000 residents — behind Charlotte, Irvine, Raleigh, Henderson, Fort Worth and Nashville.

Of the 50 metro areas surveyed by NAR, several stood out for year-over-year gains in contract signings. 

The move was an improvement over July, but sentiment still remained in negative territory. 

This month, we’re looking exclusively at luxury condominium sales across the greater Seattle area.

Pending sales dropped 15.6% — the largest decline in the country.

Looking ahead, Cotality expects the median price of a home to increase 1.5% through June 2027. 

Three years after the opening of a large center, ZIP codes retained 66% of their pre-opening active listings, compared to 43% in similar areas without a data center.

A total of 24,888 homes were on the market across the region during the month, boosted by 11,517 new listings.