By MBAKS Senior Policy Analyst Allison Butcher

Housing inventory for sale fell between September and October to 1.74 months’ supply in King County and 1.51 months’ supply in Snohomish County. In both counties, this is down from a year ago. Meanwhile single-family and multifamily building permits were down 6% in the Seattle Metro Area (including King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties) in September compared to the same period last year.

The Builder's Bulletin is intended to provide a convenient way to track housing in our market and includes information from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, State of the Cities Data Systems, Office of Financial Management and the Washington State Employment Security Department.

Download this month's report:

By Mike Pattison, Snohomish County Manager

In December 2016, the Washington state Supreme Court struck a blow to vesting rights when it ruled that newly adopted stormwater regulations do not vest. The Court let stand a window for certain projects to remain vested. The new stormwater regulations will apply to all applications submitted after July 1, 2015 and projects approved prior to July 1, 2015 which have not started construction by June 30, 2020.

The case, Snohomish County, et al. v. Pollution Control Hearings Board, will severely impact applications that have been submitted to a jurisdiction but are not yet approved. The opinion eliminates vesting for environmental regulations mandated by the state, including stormwater.

An editorial by MBA President Mike Walsh was recently published in The Herald discussing the case and explaining why vesting is so important to the homebuilding industry.

While there is no ability for local government to overcome the decision with local legislation, King and Snohomish counties are currently petitioning the Court to reconsider and clarify some of the opinion.

Further, there is a proposal before the Washington State Legislature, Senate Bill 5212, that would restore vesting rights.

For more information, contact Snohomish County Manager Mike Pattison, 425.460.8203.

Larry Thibeault of Lake Stevens Design Build shares how MBAKS helped him go from a cabinet salesman to a big builder in Snohomish County.

Learn more about membership

Ready to sign up? Join online or call our Membership Department at 425.451.7920.