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We’ve published many Seattle real estate market reports over the years, and most were geared toward home buyers. Today, we’ll offer some helpful insights for tech workers relocating to Seattle in 2024.
Read on to find out helpful tips for buying a home in Seattle.
Along with Austin, Raleigh, and Silicon Valley, the Seattle metro area is one of the nation’s major tech hubs. Many tech companies are headquartered in Seattle or have a major office presence here. This includes well-known names like Amazon, Microsoft, T-Mobile, Zillow, and many up-and-comers.
For several years, Seattle has been the fastest-growing job market in the U.S. for young tech talent in particular. It tends to attract recent tech grads with less than three years of experience, according to a report from CBRE Americas Consulting.
The Seattle area has more than 280,000 tech workers, according to The Seattle Times. That puts it among the nation’s top 10 metropolitan areas for this type of employment. Even during the nationwide tech-industry layoffs of 2022, Seattle remained one of the top three cities for job growth in that sector.
Tech workers relocating to Seattle need all the information they can get. We’ll provide some real estate market information for those planning on relocating to Seattle and buying a home. But first, some key facts about the metro area in general.
Here are some real estate market trends you should know if you plan to buy a home after relocating to Seattle.
Inventory is often the biggest challenge for people buying a home in Seattle. Seattle had one of the lowest supply levels among the nation’s largest metro areas in early 2024.
But we’ve been seeing some improvements on this front lately. According to a February 2024 housing market report from Realtor.com:
“In January, more than half of the 50 metros included in the analysis saw new listings increase over the previous year, with some of the largest growth happening in Denver (+21.3%), Seattle (+20.6%) and Miami (+20.2%).”
As for home prices, these can vary widely depending on the neighborhood where you plan to buy. Read our market comparison of popular Seattle neighborhoods for more on this.
As mentioned, the median price point in Seattle is currently north of $800,000. Some of the surrounding cities can be more expensive. For example, the median home price in places like Bellevue, Redmond, and Sammamish is well over $1 million.
At the other end of the spectrum, the median price in nearby Tacoma, Washington, is less than $500,000. So, there’s a broad spectrum regarding housing costs in the area.
Relocating tech workers should also know that home sellers in Seattle rarely lower their asking prices. It does happen, just not that often. The Realtor.com report mentioned earlier showed that only 7.9% of real estate listings in the metro area had a price reduction.
With low supply and steady buyer demand, the Seattle-area housing market tends to favor sellers. Even so, buyers can find a way to succeed with the right approach.
Do you plan to buy a home after relocating to Seattle? Here are some tips for navigating the real estate market and finding a home:
Buying a home in Seattle can be challenging given the relatively high home prices, competitive real estate market, and tight inventory. That said, Seattle is a fabulous place to live and continues to attract an increasing number of relocating tech workers. Be sure to work with the right agent and mortgage specialist to streamline the home-buying process!
Whether you’re buying a home or ready to refinance, our professionals can help.
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No Obligation and transparency 24/7. Instantly compare live rates and costs from our network of lenders across the country. Real-time accurate rates and closing costs for a variety of loan programs custom to your specific situation.