the
Home Connection
Volume 13 | Issue 6
JUNE 2022
eye on the market Summer is approaching and along with nicer weather, normalcy may be on the horizon for the housing market. Brokers believe this may be the case with rising interest rates, inflation, and inventory improvements that have curbed the frenzied home purchasing pace of previous months. The Puget Sound housing market has reportedly shifted down several degrees of hotness in most areas and is closer to the market we saw pre-pandemic. There have been slight increases in unsold properties, homes are remaining in inventory longer, and multiple offers on homes are not quite as frequent, creating an elevated buyer focus on each new listing. Brokers have also noted that listing price escalations have softened and fewer offers have been coming in above asking price. MLS data from last month’s sales of single-family homes showed listing price escalations were down by a little over one percent from March. However, closed sale prices have continued to rise.
experience this! A closer look at MLS data shows the closed sale price escalations for specific counties, compared with the same month a year ago. In King County prices are up by 19.88 percent, in Snohomish County up by 24.34 percent, in Pierce County up by almost 16 percent, up in Thurston County by almost 18.82 percent, and in Spokane County, up by almost 19.2 percent. In addition to closed sale price escalations, mortgage rates have also been on the rise. However, this presents an opportunity for homebuyers that have felt limited in the previous market. Active listings and months of inventory are at the highest level since September of 2021, with local brokers having reported adding 11,681 new listings of single-family homes and condos during the past month. This in turn gives homebuyers a variety of homes to choose from and less competition surrounding each purchase. In the upcoming months, it will be interesting to see if mortgage rates influence buyers to take quick action in purchasing a home and how the aforementioned factors will affect affordability.
Lilac City Comicon 6/4-6/5
Meeker Days 6/17-6/19
Tacoma Spring Fest 6/4-6/5
Fremont Fair 6/18-6/19
Kirklandia 6/10-6/12
Fenders on Front Street 6/19
Marysville Strawberry Festival 6/11-6/19
Tour of Gardens 6/25
Rum Runners Cruise 6/17
Hoopfest 6/25-6/26
Father’s Day gift ideas Father’s Day is just around the corner, and it is the perfect occasion to show your dad or the dads in your life that you appreciate them and all that they do. Here are a few ideas to show you care.
• Create a personalized children’s book
from hoorayheros.com or ieeme.com
• Help him stay healthy
with phone soap smartphone sanitizer from uncommongoods.com
• Keep him in fashion with personalized cufflinks from etsy.com
• For the handy dad, a personalized multi-tool is the perfect gift and available at amazon.com
• Keep him laughing with the book “101 So Bad, They’re Good Dad Jokes” from amazon.com
• He’ll sleep like a rock with a weighted blanket from laylasleep.com
• Help Dad get into his happy zone with wireless headphones from Bose or Apple
• He’ll rise right on time every time
with an Eco Spark smart alarm clock from amazon.com continued on next page
June important dates Friday, June 3 National Doughnut Day Wednesday, June 8 World Oceans Day Sunday, June 19 Father’s Day
Monday, June 27 National Sunglasses Day
Sunday ,June 19 Juneteenth Observed June 20
Thursday, June 30 Social Media Day
Tuesday, June 21 First Day of Summer
Friday, June 24 Take Your Dog to Work Day
June Home Checklist Power wash windows & siding Inspect plumbing for leaks Clean garage
Tips for Planning a great summer for you and your family Summer is a great time to enjoy the outdoors, relax, and make happy memories with your family. However, it can be tough to accomplish all the things you want to before the summer ends. Here are a few ways to get organized and get the most out of your summer. Downtime can be great for kids and allows for free play • Plan on a week-to-week basis. Print a blank calendar without the bustle and time constraints of organized activities. and begin summer planning with the events that Incorporating some time for unstructured play alongside have specific dates. Then fill in the calendar with any structured activities will help give kids a balance of busy fun upcoming summer camps, day trips, or holidays. It and downtime and allow for you to set your schedule in a way is also a good idea to add important work-related that can better accommodate your needs. dates and deadlines. This will give you a framework of what your summer looks like and then you can fill • Plan to organize tangible and intangible spaces. Summer is in other dates or activities around your foundation. a great time to get record keeping done, sort through files, and clean areas around your home. Your computer can also • Set goals for the summer. Summer goals are a great be a cluttered space that creates stress and makes working way to get the most out of your summer and can difficult. It is a good idea to take time to set up folders on be anything from professional, to family, to projects your computer for sorting files, delete old documents you no etc. Goal setting can help you plan for and keep track longer use, and make sure your programs are up to date. of things like completing a complicated project or setting aside a certain number of hours per week for • Make self-care a priority. Small changes like getting more work. It can also be helpful to include specific sleep, planning downtime, or enjoying your family-related goals like taking day trips or favorite hobbies, can make a big difference in your enjoying time with family with less stress. ability to enjoy the summertime and get into a good routine that can be incorporated year-round. • Don’t over schedule activities. Another way to avoid a stressful summer is to not overschedule your kids with activities every day.
Elevate Your Outdoor Spaces in time for summer Summer is almost here and with the weather warming up, it is a favorite pastime to be outside enjoying the sun. Here are a few tips to help you make the most of your outdoor spaces.
• If you plan to work from home on your patio, include a dining table, outdoor coffee table or side table that you can use as a workspace. • If your outdoor space is far away from your Wi-Fi router, be sure to invest in a Wi-Fi extender that will ensure you get maximum speed from your home network. • With kids out of school soon, create a designated spot for them in your outdoor space by including room for their toys and games. It is also a good idea to have stackable items that also double as storage to make cleanup time a breeze.
• When the sun goes down, temperatures fall and if you don’t have an outdoor fireplace, a fire pit or propane patio heater can extend those long summer days far into the evening. They come in varying sizes to fit any space. • For those few extra sunny days we get, if you plan to spend time outside, include some shady areas or shade-making objects such as patio umbrellas or movable room dividers which can block the sun when shade is preferred. • To elevate your patio, works of art can be added to protected spaces (under the eaves to avoid direct sun and shelter from the rain) and serve as a focal point. Alternatively, a fence or wall can make the perfect canvas for a mural or abstract work.
Volume 13 | Issue 6