the
Home Connection
Volume 12 | Issue 4
APRIL 2021
eye on the market The busy spring market is beginning to bloom and with it, the growth of buyer demand and home purchases. Home¬buyers are still feeling the pressure as they look to purchase a home and brokers are advising that clients should expect experiencing multiple offer situations where they will be up against all-cash offers, waived pre-approved inspections, and offer price escalations. The Northwest MLS data reflects that the market remains hot, with residential inventory being very limited and median prices rising by double digits across most counties when compared with the same month a year ago. In King County prices are up by 11.11 percent, in Snohomish County up by 21.18 percent, in Pierce County up by almost 16.96 percent
experience this! and in Thurston County up by nearly 15.33 percent. With home purchasing, there has been a contin¬ued trend of millennial homebuyers moving away from urban areas into suburban and rural areas, with people working remotely on a more permanent basis. In fact, brokers report having almost no inventory in the outlying areas, in contrast to some found in the core of cities like Seattle. There has also been an emerging factor in home purchasing with mortgage rates having increased to above three percent for the first time since July 2020. While this increase has yet to effect homebuyer demand, it is something to watch in the upcoming months as we anticipate how future economic, inventory, and policy changes will impact the housing market during the busiest season.
Celebrating Earth Day
Mariner’s Regular Skagit Valley Tulip Season begins 4/1 Festival April 4/1-4/30
Seattle Cherry Blossom and Japanese Cultural Festival 4/9-4/11
The Split 5K – 10K Half-Marathon April 4/18
UW Cherry Blossom Cam
The Daffodil Festival Parade
2021 Moisture Festival April 4/1-4/4
Baby Bunnies doing the Cutest Things Ever
Seattle Restaurant Week April 4/1-4/30
Virtual Easter Egg Hunts
Earth Day is a great time to reflect on how we can better help our planet, and helping the Earth doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are a few things we can do each day to reduce our carbon footprint.
• Walk or bike instead of driving when you can. Reduce your footprint on the Earth by leaving your car at home whenever possible. With less cars on the road, there are fewer carbon emissions.
• Recycle your e-waste.
More than 50 million tons of electronic waste are generated each year in the U.S. alone, and only 20 to 25 percent of the waste is responsibly recycled. As a direct consequence, large amounts of hazardous materials such as lead, mercury and cadmium leach into
our air and water, contaminating our communities. Go to e-stewards.org to find a facility that will help you recycle your e-waste in a safe and responsible manner.
• Reduce junk mail. One
hundred million trees are cut down each year to produce junk mail, and the resulting loss of trees takes a huge toll on the Earth. Return junk mail unopened to the sender by writing “Refused. Return to sender.” Opt out of prescreened credit offers continued on next page