Seattle real estate has been always attractive for the investors. The major factors which are contributing to high demand of Seattle real estate properties are the opportunities, economic growth and development of the state. The investors in Seattle consider the Case-Shiller Seattle Index and OFHEO Pacific Index before investing in Seattle. These indexes give an idea about the market position of real estate sector of Seattle. It is interesting to note that OFHEO Pacific and Cash Shiller Seattle Index have good implications for the first time homebuyers.
The Case-Shiller index is the determinant of all housing prices in different geographical markets of the United States. The housing prices may include subprime, conforming, and Jumbo and the number of geographic markets is 30. All these markets are only from the United States and Seattle is one of those. On the other hand, the OFHEO index (Office of Federal Housing Oversight) covers a more expanded geographic range. Instead of covering the specific cities like Seattle, this index divides the data between East North Central U.S., Middle Atlantic, etc. Another important difference between the two indexes is that the later one considers only conforming-loans from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In other words, the methodologies of both the indexes are same however, their variables differ.
OFHEO Index data starts from February 1991 to June 2004. The Growth Trend Line from this period gives 4.50%. Likewise, Case-Shiller data also starts from February 1991. According to Case Shiller Seattle Index, the growth rate in Seattle during the bubble in the real estate between 2004 and 2007 was 11.52%. On the other hand, according to OFHEO Index, growth rate was 9.95%. Now, you must have an idea about the market situation of Seattle a few years back.
Let us now consider the current situation. If you evaluate the data of March 2008, you will find that both the indexes are above 4.5%. Case Shiller Index is 28.13% above the trend line while OFHEO Index is 7.19%. Therefore, Seattle real estate market really appears as a hottest market in the United States. Because of the availability of conforming loans up to $567,500, there are many financing alternatives available. Most of the homes are selling in Seattle for $620,000 and above. The increasing interest rates and unemployment in Seattle through 2009 have reduced the affordability of houses in Seattle. Therefore, it is the right time to invest in Seattle real estate because the prices will go up with the stability of the economy.
The first time buyers who are looking for Seattle homes for sale can also get huge profits from Seattle real estate market. Suppose FTHB is using an FHA loan with an allowance of 3% gifting from a non-profit institution and 6% closing allowance. The total 9% allowance in closing costs is greater than 7.19% OFHEO Pacific index. Provided that Senate appears to finish the 3% gifting provision, it is recommended to the first time buyers that it is a very rational time to invest in Seattle real estate. Our discussion on Seattle real estate is not based on illogical arguments but on solid statistical data. In the current, the real estate market of Seattle is expected to further improve because of the availability of more job opportunities and balancing situation of the economy. Therefore, those investors who are planning to invest in Seattle real estate can collect huge profits from this market.
