Before new coronavirus restrictions took hold, home prices kept rising in Whatcom
In what will be a pre-coronavirus benchmark, Whatcom County home prices continued to rise while sales were flat in the first quarter of 2020.
The median price for homes sold in Whatcom County was $420,000 in the first three months of the year, a 9.1% increase compared to a year earlier. That’s according to a report done by Troy Muljat of Muljat Group Realtors. Muljat prepared the report based on data from the Northwest Washington Multiple Listing Service.
Home sales inched up less than 1% for the quarter, according to the report.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s Stay Home, Stay Safe order regarding non-essential businesses was announced Monday, March 23, so there wasn’t enough time for it to heavily impact the first quarter real estate numbers. It’s too early to know how the order, extended by Inslee through Monday, May 4, will affect home buyers and sellers, but Muljat is optimistic.
“Title companies are closing sales and the county auditor’s office is recording sales,” Muljat said in a news release. “Agents are becoming creative with increased video tours and virtual meetings, taking advantage of all the technology that we have available. Some buyers who have lost out on previous multiple offers may now find their home without a competing offer and (interest) rates remain historically low.”
Bellingham’s real estate market slowed considerably, according to the report. While the median home sales price in Bellingham increased 4.1% to $505,000, the number of homes sold fell 6.2%. Birch Bay/Blaine and Sudden Valley posted strong numbers in both categories. Ferndale had a sales drop of 26.3%.
This story was originally published April 3, 2020 at 2:17 PM.
