By MBAKS Senior Policy Analyst Allison Butcher

The Washington unemployment rate for August showed some improvement on a monthly basis, moving to 8.5%, compared to 10.2% the previous month. The Seattle/Bellevue/Everett unemployment rate fell from 8.2% in July to 7.4% in August. Twelve months ago the unemployment rate in Snohomish County was 3.0%, and 2.7% in King County. The August 2020 Monthly Employment Report marks the sixth month since the impacts of COVID-19 started showing up in the local labor market.

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.

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By MBAKS Senior Policy Analyst Allison Butcher

The supply of housing inventory for sale stood at 1.74 months in King County and 1.47 months in Snohomish County in August, which is down slightly from a year ago.  Meanwhile, single-family building permits were down 8% YTD and multifamily permits down 5% in the three-county Seattle Metro Area (King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties) as of July, 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 The Herald Editorial Board

The Legislature's $43.7 billion two-year budget—which took negotiations within hours of a partial state government shutdown—is signed, but some lawmakers haven't had quite enough brinkmanship for the year.

Now the state's $4 billion capital budget, which provides the funding for construction of public schools, colleges, universities, community and youth facilities, parks, environmental projects, and more, is being held up by the Republican-controlled Senate until lawmakers can resolve a disagreement over water rights for private development.