Skagit Co. housing market displays steady growth in 3Q
The Skagit County housing market in the third quarter was hotter than a summer heat wave, according to a local real-estate broker.
The median sales price of a Skagit County home was $436,000 in the third quarter, up 17.8% from the third quarter of 2019, according to Shelah Inman of Brown McMillen Real Estate. Also, three of Skagit’s largest communities – Anacortes, Mount Vernon and Sedro-Woolley – saw their median sales jump by more than 20%. Inman prepared the quarterly report based on data from the Northwest Washington Multiple Listing Service.
The inventory of homes and mortgage rates continue to be low and fuel the home market, but buyers also are more comfortable searching for homes and making decisions than they were immediately after the COVID-19 pandemic’s outbreak in March, Inman said.
“When COVID first hit, we could only have one client in a listing at a time,” Inman said. “Now we’re able to have four clients and an agent. This has changed the dynamic for families looking for homes.”
Another factor heating up Skagit County’s housing market is the migration of buyers northward.
“People are relocating from areas like Seattle, Portland and California,” Inman said. “We particularly see this in Anacortes, where the median sales price rose 26.2% in a year to $597,250.”
The number of Skagit County homes sold in the third quarter rose 5.5% to 617, led by double-digit percentage gains in La Conner (52.6%), Burlington (15.6%) and Mount Vernon (14.9%).
The median sales price, average sales price, number of units sold and average days on the market (DOM) before a sale for Skagit County and individual communities for the third quarter of 2020, with percentage comparisons to the third quarter of 2019, follow.
Skagit County – Median price, $436,000, up 17.8%; average price, $490,692, up 17.5%; units sold, 617, up 5.5%; DOM, 38, down 5.0%.
Anacortes – Median price, $597,250, up 26.2%; average price, $682,031, up 20.3%; units sold, 120, up 9.1%; DOM, 39, down 33.9%.
Burlington – Median price, $437,950, up 15.3%; average price, $462,233, up 13.8%; units sold, 76, down 15.5%; DOM, 35, down 22.2%.
La Conner – Median price, $400,000, up 8.1%; average price, $453,394, up 14.0%; units sold, 33, up 13.8%; DOM, 35, down 20.5%.
Mount Vernon – Median price, $435,000 up 21.2%; average price, $466,146, up 15.9%; units sold, 237, up 5.8%; DOM, 33, down 8.3%.
Sedro-Woolley – Median price, $387,250, up 21.1%; average price, $415,196, up 16.5%; units sold, 96, up 12.9%; DOM, 35, up 52.2%.
Summited by: Shelah Inman of Brown McMillen Real Estate.