Tri-Cities Real Estate Market Update: April 2020

If you clicked through expecting to see a bunch of red numbers because you were sure that the coronavirus pandemic was wreaking havoc on the Tri-Cities housing market … that’s not the case. At least not yet.

Despite the state going into “stay home” mode for the final 1/3rd of March, our local housing market still had a very strong month. Active listings, sold homes, and median sales prices were up almost across the board. And the amount of time homes spent on market was generally down.

I think we’ll all be shocked if next month’s numbers don’t take a turn for the worse, but as I’ve said before, homes are still being bought and sold every day in the Tri-Cities. We’re working with buyers and sellers — albeit in very different ways than normal, following the state and CDC safety protocols for real estate. But everyone needs a place to call home, and while some buyers and sellers are stepping away from the market until life returns to normal, others have no choice but to buy or sell now. Fortunately, almost all of a real estate transaction can be conducted remotely these days, and that’s what many local agents and their clients are doing.

Here’s what you need to know about this month’s market stats:

• After five straight months of falling inventory, the entire area rebounded with a 5% gain in active listings. The 539 actives are also about 8% higher than what we had in April 2019.
• The number of homes sold rose for the second straight month, and that 376 total is about 33% more than the number of homes sold a year ago.
• The Tri-Cities also set a new high for median sales price at $317,548.
• Sales activity was strong especially in Kennewick and Pasco. Each city had its highest number of homes sold since November.
• Kennewick, Pasco, and Richland all saw their highest median sales prices ever.

Get in touch if you ever have questions about the housing market here in the Tri-Cities, or even in your specific neighborhood. We’ll be keeping a close eye on the market to help our clients make the best decisions for their buying or selling situations!

(*Remember that days on market can sometimes be skewed by how new construction homes are processed in the MLS.)