By MBAKS Senior Policy Analyst Allison Butcher

The unemployment rate for Seattle, Bellevue, and Everett jumped to 14.5% in April, reflecting major job losses due to COVID-19. Statewide, the construction industry lost 81,000 jobs between March and April, a 32.5% drop. Meanwhile, home prices have been holding steady, with year-over-year median home prices up in King and Snohomish counties amid continued low housing inventory.

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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Homing in on Our Region's Housing Statistics

By MBAKS Senior Policy Analyst Allison Butcher

Snohomish County’s median home price for single family homes and condos combined reached a new high of $800,000 in April. Meanwhile, the median price of a single family home in Seattle surpassed $1 million, with King County not far behind. According to data from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, King County’s median single family home price rose to $995,000 in April, a 20% increase from a year ago.

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Months' Supply of Housing Inventory

As of April 2022

	King County had 0.69 months' supply of inventory (up from 0.65 months' of inventory a year ago).
	Snohomish County had 0.64 months' supply of inventory (up from 0.49 a year ago).

Many industry analysts consider a four-to-six-month level as an indicator of a healthy market.

Source: Northwest Multiple Listing Service

Median Home Price

April 2022

	The median price of single-family homes and condos was $880,000 in King County and $800,000 in Snohomish County.
	For single-family homes only, the median price in King County rose 19.88%, from $830,000 a year ago to $995,000. The median price in Snohomish County rose 24.34%, from $675,000 to $839,298.
	In Seattle, the median price of single-family homes and condos was $888,000. The median price for single-family homes only was $1,019,950, a 16.57% increase from $875,000 in April 2021.

Source: Northwest Multiple Listing Service

Building Permit Activity

Jobs

	The seasonally adjusted Washington unemployment rate for April 2022 is 4.1%; for Seattle/Bellevue/Everett, it is 2.9%.
	Construction employment in Washington increased by 200 between March 2022 and April 2022. Total construction employment is 231,000 statewide and 108,100 for Seattle/Bellevue/Everett specifically.

Source: Employment Security Department: WA Employment Estimates (Seasonally Adjusted), April 2022 and Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Population

The Puget Sound region's population as of April 1, 2021 was 4,330,400. Over the past year, the region added 66,200 people, as follows:

Source: Office of Financial Management

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Contact: data@mbaks.com

Washington’s unemployment rate fell to 3.6% in September 2023, lower than the national average of 4.2%. The Seattle/Bellevue/Everett area with an unemployment rate of 3.2%. The construction industry added 3,400 jobs in a year, reaching a total of 240,300 statewide.

Read the full November Builders Bulletin: