As temperatures drop and we approach the end of the year, the local housing market has remained somewhat sluggish — an indication of a return to normal seasonality.

As the final quarter of 2022 rolls on, it’s clear that these last months will be anything but typical for home buyers and sellers in King and Snohomish counties.

Increasing listings inventory, lengthening time on market and a slowdown in home price increases across the Puget Sound region herald a return to normalcy and better opportunities for buyers.

After its breakneck pace over the last two years, it appears the housing market has finally reached a soft bottom to the price corrections that began in April of this year.

The summer continues to heat up, and patient buyers are being rewarded as market shifts create a new dynamic between buyers and sellers.

Cooler temperatures and a cooler regional real estate market have been this summer’s hallmark thus far. After months of blazing hot sales and a breakneck pace, buyers are finally seeing inventory levels accelerate and price gains slow. With inspection and financing contingencies once again becoming the norm, the region may at last be shifting toward a more balanced market.

The tides of our local real estate market may at last be shifting, as buyers find relief in increasing inventory and the frenetic pace of sales slows noticeably. At the end of May, inventory across the 26 counties served by the Northwest MLS had increased by 59%, with 8,798 active listings in the database, compared to 5,533 active listings just a year ago. While this shift may cause concern from some who anticipate a drop in the market due to rising mortgage rates, Windermere’s Chief Economist Matthew Gardner had this to say: “What’s more likely to occur is that the additional supply will lead us toward a more balanced market, which after years of such lopsided conditions, is much needed.”

After a long stint of suppressed housing inventory across our region, buyers may at last have more options as the supply of available homes ticks up ahead of the summer market. The month-over-month increase in inventory has been as much as 50% in some areas, offering renewed opportunities for those buyers who are not dissuaded by high home prices and rising mortgage rates.