Nailing It Down

By Dave Murnen and Pat Beaty

Have you noticed lots of “For Sale” signs in front of houses around here? If so, our guess is that you have also seen many “Sold” signs.

Houses are selling more quickly, and for more money, in much of Grays Harbor this summer.

In last week’s column we gave you the lowdown on some encouraging countywide stats about our area’s housing market using information from Tom Quigg, founder of the Aberdeen and Ocean Shores Windermere Real Estate offices. Quigg creates monthly reports about Grays Harbor County based on data provided by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

For instance, in June — the latest figures available — 152 housing units were sold, up 2.7 percent compared with June 2017. In addition, the average price houses sold for in Grays Harbor County was $202,000, up 9.2 percent from a year earlier. The median price was $194,000, up nearly 11 percent.

(You may recall that average price is determined by adding up the total of all houses sold and dividing by the number sold. On the other hand, the median price is found by lining up all the prices and finding the middle one.)

While overall, Grays Harbor County has been a seller’s market for nine of the past 14 months, each area is a little different. Let’s take a look:

ABERDEEN/HOQUIAM/COSI

In the housing market for the Aberdeen, Hoquiam and Cosmopolis area, the average purchase price for a house sold in June was $147,000 and the median price was $133,000.

The number of homes listed for sale in the Aberdeen (including Central Park), Hoquiam and Cosmopolis area in June was 111, up 2.8 percent from a year earlier. The number of homes sold in June was 50, up 13.6 percent.

In this area of the county, houses were purchased after an average of 42 days on the market — 40.8 percent less time than a year ago.

EAST COUNTY

In the Montesano, Elma and McCleary area, the average purchase price for houses sold in June was $259,000 and the median was $260,000.

The number of homes listed for sale in the East County area in June was 42, down 8.7 percent compared with last year. The number of homes sold in June was 29, down 3.3 percent.

In this area of the county, houses were purchased after an average of 57 days on the market.

NORTH BEACH

In the North Beach housing market, including Ocean Shores, Copalis Beach, Pacific Beach and Moclips, the average purchase price for a house in June was $221,000, with a median of $224,000.

The number of homes listed for sale in this area in June was 178, down 7.8 percent from last year. The number of homes sold in June was 52, down 5.5 percent.

In this area of the county, houses were purchased after an average of 78 days on the market, which is 23.5 percent less than at the same time last year.

SOUTH BEACH

In the housing market for the Wesport/Grayland area, the average purchase price for a house was $216,000, with a median of $190,000.

The number of homes listed for sale in the South Beach area in June was 49, down 24.6 percent from last year. The number of homes sold in June was 18, up 63.6 percent.

In this area of the county, houses were purchased after an average of 111 days.

HARBOR’S ALLURE GROWS

As we mentioned last week — and in an earlier column, after a great first quarter — we are once again encouraged by what is happening in the housing market this year and seeing the trend of new construction and people buying homes in Grays Harbor County.

While it’s currently technically a “seller’s market” here, with prices on the rise, buyers are discovering just how much house they can buy for their dollar here compared with other areas.

Perhaps, especially with all this nice summer weather, people are figuring out what most of us have known for a while: With beauty all around, virtually no traffic issues and easy commutes to work, Grays Harbor is a great place to live.

Dave Murnen and Pat Beaty are construction specialists at NeighborWorks of Grays Harbor County, where Murnen is executive director. This is a nonprofit organization committed to creating safe and affordable housing for all residents of Grays Harbor County. For questions about home repair, renting, remodeling or buying, call 360-533-7828 or visit 710 E. Market St. in Aberdeen. Our office is fully ADA-compliant.