Published November 1, 2026 in Market Update

More choice is showing up across this buy box

By James Hemphill Jr.

Real estate, Full Snohomish & King County buy box (part 2)

The biggest change in this market right now is simple: there are more homes to choose from. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 1,837 homes for sale across this buy box in the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is up 24% from the same three months in 2025. For buyers, more options mean more room to compare. For sellers, it means the home that is priced right and shows well is the one that moves.

At the same time, the Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 1,636 homes sold across these ZIPs, down 14.7% from a year before. Pending sales fell 15% too. Buyers are out there, but they are taking longer to decide. The National Association of Realtors reported that existing-home sales nationally reached 3.99 million units in September 2026, up 1.5% from the month before. So some momentum is returning nationally, even as this buy box works through more supply.

One thing making buyers cautious: mortgage rates. Realtor.com reported that rates climbed above 7% for the first time since January 2025, surging nearly 40 basis points in September 2026. That adds real dollars to a monthly payment on homes in this price range. It is worth knowing before you set a list price or make an offer.

Where supply jumped the most

Not every ZIP moved the same way. Some saw modest inventory gains. Others saw inventory nearly double. Here is how homes for sale changed year over year across the buy box, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator.

98008 Bellevue stands out. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted homes for sale there up 83.7% from a year before. 98107 Seattle was up 66.7%. Those are big jumps. Sellers in those ZIPs are competing with a lot more options than they were twelve months ago.

How fast homes are moving, ZIP by ZIP

Speed varied a lot. Mercer Island was the fastest in the buy box. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the median days on market in 98040 at just 7 days, six days shorter than a year before. At the other end, 98109 Seattle sat at 27 days. That gap matters when you are deciding how to price or when to offer.

Prices: mostly steady, a few soft spots

Most prices held close to where they were a year ago. A few ZIPs dipped a little, a few ticked up. The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that U.S. house prices rose 0.3% from the prior month in August 2026, seasonally adjusted. That national steadiness shows up here too, though individual ZIPs tell their own story.

Medina's 18% drop in median price is the sharpest in the buy box. But Medina only had 11 homes sold in the period, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator. A small number of sales can move the median a lot. That does not mean every Medina home lost 18% of its value.

Are homes still selling over list?

Some are, but fewer than before. In 98117 Seattle, the Real Estate Data Aggregator put the average sale-to-list ratio at 100.7%. In 98107 Seattle it was 100.5%. In 98115 Seattle it was 100.4%. Those ZIPs still see homes close at or just above asking. But in 98004 Bellevue, the ratio was 96.2%, and in 98039 Medina it was 95%. In those markets, sellers are accepting less than list more often.

A few bright spots worth noting

98102 Seattle bucked the trend. The Real Estate Data Aggregator showed homes sold there up 6.5% year over year, and the median sale price up 7.5%. Pending sales were up 1.3% too. 98109 Seattle also saw sales jump, up 42.1% from a year before, though the median price dipped 5.1%. 98005 Bellevue had sales up 18.9% and pending sales up 37.5%. These pockets show that demand is still real when the price and product are right.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the U.S. unemployment rate at 4.2% in September 2026, with 7.1 million people unemployed. Payrolls added just 29,000 jobs that month. A softer job picture can weigh on buyer confidence, even in a market like this one.