Although 30-year mortgage rates decreased from 6.95% to 6.76% during the month, the median price rose 2.4% month over month to $630,000.

If you have a would-be seller close to getting ready to put their home on the market, now’s the time to prepare. 

Falling consumer sentiment suggests potential homebuyers are wary of the short-term economic outlook and future inflation, CoreLogic Chief Economist Selma Hepp said. 

Furthermore, 13% of homeowners said they’d take their home off the market if they learned their ex was considering buying it.

At the same time, the median sales price for a new home hit its highest level since 2022, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.   

In Seattle, home prices posted a 5.61% year-over-year gain in December, while they slid 0.3% month over month. 

Waterfront views are a common theme among this month’s roundup of the 10 most expensive new listings in Seattle.

At the same time, builder sales expectations for the next six months posted their second-largest drop since the sentiment index started in 1985. 

Housing supply is the highest it’s been since 2020, and while there’s lots to choose from, demand is the lowest it’s been in four years.

These were the most expensive homes sold in the greater Seattle area last month, led by a $21.5 million waterfront home in the Lawtonwood neighborhood.

Closings rose 10.8% year over year in the NWMLS region, with 3,737 homes sold last month. Pending home sales also rose 5.3% year over year, with 5,564 homes going under contract.

On a city basis, Chicago posted the highest annual increase among the country’s 20 largest metros, followed by Miami, Las Vegas and Washington, D.C. 

For the first time in two years, home prices are on the rise in every major metro and Seattle is one of them, according to a new Redfin report. 

The median existing-home price for all housing types in December rose 6% from its year-ago level.    

The annual review from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service reveals that new listings, sales and prices all increased annually in 2024.

Just $1 million separates the most expensive new listing in Seattle from the 10th-most expensive new listing.