Seattle, WA Housing Market
AI-powered market intelligence for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area.
PropertyIQ Scores
Seattle, WA Market Analysis
Market Overview
Seattle, WA currently has a PropertyIQ Score of 15 out of 100, signaling weak near-term housing market conditions. The score is shaped by four top drivers: 12-month home value momentum of -0.54%, 3-month home value momentum of -2.57%, median days on market of 45 days, and a 23.1% share of listings with a price cut. Even though Seattle’s median home value of $727,359 is well above the Washington state average of $591,879, and its rent index of $2,278 is above the state average of $1,760, those higher levels are not generating positive price momentum in the current data.
The local unemployment rate is 5%, matching the state average, and median household income is $115,177, compared with the state average of $98,141. While that income premium gives Seattle households more purchasing power than the state benchmark, it has not prevented cooling conditions from taking hold. With 12,712 homes for sale and a median days on market of 45 days, the market is moving more slowly than the price levels alone would suggest.
Taken together, this is a weak market for price momentum, though it remains a relatively high-cost market compared with the rest of the state. The negative momentum and elevated price cut share show sellers are facing more pressure, while buyers are gaining time and negotiating room.
Key Trends
The first trend is negative and accelerating price movement. The 12-month home value momentum is -0.54%, but the 3-month momentum is -2.57%, indicating that the pace of decline has increased in recent months. The year-over-year home value change is -$3, a small dollar decrease, but it aligns with the negative momentum shown in the score drivers.
The second trend is a slower sales environment. Seattle has 12,712 homes for sale, a median days on market of 45 days, and 23.1% of listings with a price cut. These metrics point to a market where inventory is sitting longer and sellers are adjusting prices to attract buyers.
The third trend is an affordability gap between local home values and incomes relative to the state. Seattle’s median home value is $727,359, which is $135,480 above the state average of $591,879. Median household income is $115,177, only $17,036 above the state average of $98,141. That means the local home value premium is much larger than the local income premium, keeping affordability strained.
A fourth trend is a relatively strong rental market compared with the state. Seattle’s rent index of $2,278 is $518 above the state average of $1,760. While rental demand appears firmer than the state benchmark, it has not offset the cooling in home prices. Population growth data is N/A, so no trend can be identified for population-driven demand.
Who Is This Market For
This market is best suited to buyers who can be patient and negotiate, rather than those needing to move quickly. With 45 days median time on market and 23.1% of listings showing price cuts, move-up buyers and other owner-occupants may find more opportunities to negotiate on price or terms than in a fast-moving market.
First-time buyers face a difficult entry point because the median home value is $727,359. Although median household income is $115,177, the local home value premium over the state is much larger than the income premium. That makes this a challenging market for first-time buyers unless they have substantial savings or high income.
For investors, the picture is mixed. The rent index of $2,278 is above the state average of $1,760, which may support buy-and-hold rental income. However, the PropertyIQ Score of 15 out of 100, negative home value momentum, and rising price cuts suggest short-term flippers or investors expecting quick appreciation would face headwinds. This market is more aligned with long-term investors who can accept flat or modestly declining prices while earning rent.
Outlook
The data suggests continued softness in Seattle’s near-term housing market. The 3-month home value momentum of -2.57% is weaker than the 12-month momentum of -0.54%, meaning price declines are becoming more pronounced rather than stabilizing. With 12,712 homes for sale, 45 days median on market, and 23.1% of listings with a price cut, sellers are likely to keep facing buyer-friendly conditions. Unemployment is 5%, matching the state average, and median household income is above the state benchmark, but those factors have not reversed the negative price trend in the provided data. Population growth is N/A, which limits any assessment of future demand from migration. Based solely on the current metrics, Seattle is likely to remain a high-cost market with cooling prices and increased buyer leverage in the near term.
AI-generated analysis based on current market data. Last updated October 1, 2026.
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Seattle, WA market data
Seattle, WA Housing Market Overview
Seattle, WA's median home value is $727K, down 0.5% over the past year. Homes here sell in a median 45 days. Its PropertyIQ Score of 15 sits below the state average of 50, marking a market positioned to lag its state over the next three years.
PropertyIQ tracks the Seattle, WA housing market through two complementary lenses: price momentum from Zillow home-value trends over 3 and 12 months, and demand pressure from how quickly homes sell and how often sellers cut prices, drawn from Realtor.com. The PropertyIQ Score distills these into one number that predicts how this WA market is set to perform against its state benchmark.
Pacific Coast housing markets feature the nation's highest price points alongside strong wage growth from technology, entertainment, and trade sectors. Supply constraints from geographic barriers and regulatory environments create persistent affordability challenges but also strong long-term appreciation potential. Within the Pacific, Seattle, WA's PropertyIQ Score of 15 runs below the Pacific norm.
Washington state's housing market is heavily influenced by Seattle's tech economy, with Amazon, Microsoft, and Boeing employment driving both price appreciation and demand volatility as hiring cycles fluctuate.
For the Seattle, WA market, PropertyIQ calculates a single score each month from four inputs: twelve-month Zillow home-value momentum, three-month Zillow home-value momentum, median days on market from Realtor.com, and the Realtor.com price-reduced share. The score is computed nationally across all metros and calibrated so 50 equals the state average. Across the validation history, metro markets in the top score band have outperformed their state by roughly 1.7 percentage points more per year than bottom-band markets. Momentum here has been negative, with home values down 0.5% over the past year.
Use PropertyIQ's interactive analytics to compare Seattle, WA against any other US metro on its PropertyIQ Score and underlying metrics. Generate a free AI market report, explore historical trends on the graphs page, or see how this market ranks on the scores dashboard.
Counties in the Seattle, WA metro area
ZIP codes in the Seattle, WA metro area
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Market data through August 2026. Sourced from Zillow, Realtor.com, Redfin, U.S. Census Bureau, FRED, BLS, and BEA. Per-statistic source and date shown above.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Seattle, WA a good place to buy real estate in 2026?
PropertyIQ doesn't label markets simply good or bad. Instead, the PropertyIQ Score measures a market's demand momentum against its own state, where 50 marks the state average. Seattle, WA currently scores 15, a very weak-momentum reading that leaves it positioned to lag its state over the next three years. For buyers, cooling demand usually brings more inventory, longer sale times, and real leverage to negotiate on price. Backing that up, the median home value here is $727K, down 0.5% over the past year. So whether Seattle, WA is right for you comes down to your goals: a rising-momentum market can favor long-term appreciation but offers less room to negotiate, while a cooling one hands buyers more leverage. Treat the score as a timing signal to weigh alongside your budget, holding period, and plans for the property, not a verdict on the market's quality.
What is the PropertyIQ Score for Seattle, WA?
Seattle, WA's PropertyIQ Score is 15, indicating very weak momentum on a 1-to-99 scale. The score distills four transparent inputs into a single number: Zillow home-value momentum over the past 12 months, Zillow home-value momentum over the past 3 months, the median days homes spend on the market from Realtor.com, and the share of listings with a price cut, also from Realtor.com. Rising values and faster sales push the score up, while slow sales and frequent price cuts pull it down. The scale is calibrated so 50 equals the state average, meaning a score above 50 predicts the market will outperform its state over the next three years and a score below 50 predicts underperformance. PropertyIQ computes the score across every US market nationally, then recenters it against each state, so 15 places Seattle, WA below its state benchmark.
Are home prices in Seattle, WA rising or falling?
Home prices in Seattle, WA are falling. Over the past year, the median home value declined 0.5%, reaching $727K. Over the latest three months, values slipped 2.6%, a sign near-term demand is softening. PropertyIQ derives these figures from Zillow's home-value index, which tracks the typical value across the market rather than only the homes that happened to sell, giving a steadier read than a raw median sale price. Both the 12-month and 3-month momentum readings feed directly into the PropertyIQ Score, so this price trend is one of the core signals behind Seattle, WA's current score. Keep in mind that appreciation can vary widely by neighborhood and price tier across the metro area, so treat these figures as the market-wide baseline rather than a guarantee for any single property.
How quickly do homes sell in Seattle, WA?
In Seattle, WA, homes sell in a median of 45 days from listing to pending sale, based on Realtor.com market data. Median days on market is one of the clearest real-time reads on local demand: when homes move quickly, buyers are competing and sellers hold the advantage, while lengthening timelines signal cooling interest and more room to negotiate. Alongside sale speed, about 23% of active listings here have taken at least one price cut — a complementary demand gauge, since a rising share of reductions often precedes slower sales and softer prices. Both median days on market and the price-cut share feed directly into the PropertyIQ Score, where faster sales and fewer cuts push the score higher. As a general guide, medians under about 30 days indicate a brisk, competitive market, while medians well beyond 60 days point to buyers regaining leverage. Actual time on market still varies by price band, property type, and season, so treat the median as a market-wide baseline.
How current is this metro area data?
This Seattle, WA market data is refreshed on a monthly cycle, with the latest figures current through August 2026. PropertyIQ ingests fresh data every month from a range of authoritative sources: home values and rents from Zillow, days on market and price-cut activity from Realtor.com, additional housing signals from Redfin, demographic and housing-stock data from the U.S. Census Bureau, mortgage and macroeconomic series from FRED, and employment figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The PropertyIQ Score itself is recomputed every month once the new source data lands, so the score and its four underlying inputs always reflect the most recent complete reporting period rather than a static snapshot. Because official housing data is typically released with a short lag, the current-through date usually trails the present by a few weeks, which is normal across the industry and not a sign the data is out of date.