Second Quarter Equestrian Home
Market Update
With mortgage interest rates hovering around 6%, potential home buyers aren’t as eager to purchase as they were just a few months ago. Multiple offer situations are less common, and year over year price gains are tapering off in Pierce (5% gain from 2021 to 2022), Kitsap (10% gain) and Thurston (15% gain) counties.
Not surprisingly, King County seems to be more immune to higher interest rates. The median price for an equestrian home in King County clocked in at $1.5M during the second quarter of this year.
103 equestrian properties were sold in the second quarter of 2022 in Pierce, King, Kitsap and Thurston counties – a 9% decrease in sales activity compared to the second quarter of 2021. The bulk of that decline was in King County, where housing prices are historically highest. It’s possible that increasing mortgage rates are pushing some potential buyers into more affordable Pierce County.
Though equestrian home sales activity has dropped off in the Puget Sound region, the horse properties that have been selling have been selling quickly – in a month or less on average, depending on location.
Though buyer demand has weakened, inventory levels are still relatively low. Depending on location, we’ve only got 1-3 months worth of equestrian home stock available. It will be interesting to see if inventory levels rise higher as we move into the second half of the year.
Current Market Conditions
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- According to a recent Redfin analysis ranking the 100 most populous U.S. metro areas based on how quickly their housing markets are cooling, Seattle was ranked #1 and Tacoma was ranked #10. This news doesn’t come as a complete surprise, given how hot our markets were before interest rates started to rise.
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- Mortgage interest rates are hovering around 7%, up one percentage point in September alone. Uncertainty and volatility in global financial markets are contributing to day to day rate fluctuations.
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- Though single family housing starts jumped 3.4% in August, builder sentiment is at its lower level since 2014, according to data from the National Association of Home Builders. Rising interest rates and supply chain disruptions are among their top concerns.
Because of the unique considerations involved in buying or selling a horse property, relying on a Realtor with real world equestrian experience makes good sense. If you’re thinking about buying or selling a horse property in the Puget Sound area, please give me a call to discuss how I can put my knowledge and experience to work for you.
Jeff Williams has been riding and showing American Quarter Horses since childhood and is a top-producing Realtor with Windermere Chambers Bay, specializing in equestrian property sales in King, Pierce, Kitsap and Thurston counties.
Jeff Williams: (253) 303-1135
JeffWilliams@windermere.com
Contact Jeff Williams
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