For years, King County had a pretty steady percentage when it came to the number of million dollar homes sold. Between 2005 and 2012, you could usually find that it somewhere around four percent. If you’ve been paying attention the housing market in recent years, you know that’s sure to have risen. Sure enough, 11.8 percent of all single-family houses sold in King County this year have gotten more than $1 million, per Seattle Times via Windermere.
The rise in luxury prices is visible when discussing multimillion-dollar homes. Two percent of King County home sales go for at least $2 million, doubling the usual one percent.
What goes up must eliminate the down, so to speak. As the number of homes selling for seven figures has risen, the number of King County homes selling for less than $250,000 has dropped just as suddenly. Less than five percent of homes sold go for that these days, down from an average around 15 percent for most of the last decade.
It’s not just that these trends have been happening for a while now, it’s that they’ve really accelerated in the last couple years. It’s also changed how we think when it comes to where million-dollar homes are located. While Medina, Clyde Hill, and Laurelhurst still have their share, you’ll also find plenty of seven-figure sales in Columbia City, Ballard, Greenlake, and many other Seattle neighborhoods like them.
No wonder Windermere felt like they needed to create a new label for luxury homes at $3M and above. For some Seattle-area home-shoppers, that’s the new normal.