Half of Seattle homes failed to sell for initial asking price in July

Nearly 50% of houses in Seattle were sold below their initial asking price, nearly double the amount from July 2021, across an overall cooling housing market nationwide, according to Redfin data.

A high share of home sellers dropped their asking price in July, particularly in pandemic boomtowns like Seattle and Portland, as they struggled to match their expectations with the market.

Western Washington had approximately 9,000 active listings in June, up close to 60% year-over-year. Pending and closed sales are down year-over-year (a decrease of 11.7%), but up from the previous month (an increase of 8.2%).

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Still, the median home price in Seattle rose 7.5% year over year, hitting $860,000 in July.

More than 15% of home sellers dropped their asking price in every major U.S. metro.

Boise, Idaho leads the country with 69.7% of homes requiring a price drop from its original price. Denver, Salt Lake City, Tacoma, Tampa, Sacramento, Indianapolis, and Phoenix are north of 50%.

“Individual home sellers and builders were both quick to drop their prices early this summer, mostly because they had unrealistic expectations of both price and timelines,” said Boise Redfin agent Shauna Pendleton in a prepared statement. “They priced too high because their neighbor’s home sold for an exorbitant price a few months ago, and expected to receive multiple offers the first weekend because they heard stories about that happening.”

In McAllen, TX, 15.7% of sellers dropped their asking price, a smaller share than any other metro. It’s followed by Newark, NJ (15.8%), Miami (18.5%), Honolulu (18.5%), and Bridgeport, CT (18.8%).

The share of homes with a price drop increased from a year earlier in all but three metros, all of which are in Illinois. The share dipped from 28.2% to 22.3% in Lake County, 27.3% to 22% in Elgin, and 26.4% to 21.3% in Chicago.

“My advice to sellers is to price their home correctly from the start, accept that the market has slowed, and understand that it may take longer than 30 days to sell,” said Pendleton. “If someone is selling a nice home in a desirable neighborhood, they shouldn’t need to drop their price.”

In July 2021, Fresno, Calif. led the nation with 37.9% of houses requiring a price drop in order to sell. This percentage would rank 32nd among cities this year.

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