Quality of Life

Realtors® from all over the state, myself included, made their way to Olympia this week to advocate for Washington’s quality of life - jobs, homes and communities. We spent some time Thursday and Friday meeting with state Senators and Representatives, and talking to them about the housing market in Washington and sharing the finer points of a few bills that they will be considering soon. I’m going to share with you what we shared with our legislators so that you can call, write or email your legislator and advocate for your quality of life here in the state.

Why haven’t home prices fallen?
A special report developed for legislators states that while national business reporters forecast a year of doom and gloom, in 2007 median home prices in Washington continued their rise unabated. The reason for sustained price increases? Demand for homes - along with population and job growth - has remained strong.

Washington is still creating jobs faster than homes for the workforce to live in. Between 2004 and 2006, 91,000 jobs were created in the Puget Sound area. At the same time, the region issued only 49,831 building permits in all of King, Pierce and Snohomish counties. The population in many areas of Washington is increasing much faster than the supply of middle-priced homes. Since 2000, the population of the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area has increased by 74.8 percent.

Local land-use and building rules also affect local markets, fluctuations in price and supply that national real estate reports don’t reflect. Paperwork also prevents the supply side of the real estate market from running precisely parallel with the buyer side. It takes about four years to permit, build, and bring a home to market. The homes begun in response to intense demand four years ago are just now coming on the market. When consumer confidence returns, pent-up demand will consume the supply waiting for them.

Legislative Priorities

Below are the executive summaries of the bills that we shared with our legislators. As Washington Realtors®, these are our priorities this year to improve the quality of life in our state and local communities. For a more detailed summary of the bills, click on the bill numbers.

Providing Housing Opportunities
GMA / Housing for Growth - HB 1727 (Passed) & SB 6727

  • We need enough home choices for growth.
  • Accommodate growth by planning for a variety of residential densities and housing types.
  • Ensure sufficient buildable land capacity for housing and employment growth.

Building Better Communities
Infrastructure Funding - HB 2875 & SB 6613

  • Without funds for roads, water and sewer, homes cannot be built.
  • We need to continue the Legislative Study Committee’s work to review infrastructure needs.
  • The Study Committee should develop a Statewide Infrastructure Investment Strategy to guide funding decisions.
  • The strategy must include infrastructure projects for growth in our communities.

Protecting Property Owners, Buyers and Sellers
License Law Update - HB 2778 & SB 6498

  • Require more supervision and oversight for new real estate licensees.
  • Require real estate teams to have a managing real estate broker responsible for the team.
  • Increase real estate education requirements necessary to both obtain and maintain a real estate license.
  • Increase new managing real estate broker license requirements.

GMA and Infrastructure Funding are particularly important as we live daily with outcomes of current legislation. Even in a slower market, home prices in most Washington counties continue to out-pace incomes. We measure this by figuring the median income and how much home that income can buy. What we’re finding is that on an increasing level, the median price of homes is moving further away from the median income. This means less availability for workers to purchase an affordable home.

Washington’s economy has strong fundamentals: job, population and income growth. That’s why housing prices are still rising here while declining nationally. That’s both good and bad - it means we have a good strong economy in our state. But as mentioned, housing for workers is in short supply and building a taller barrier to entry for first-time home buyers and those relocating to our state.

We need policy change that increases the supply of housing for all, and that is why these are our legislative priorities this year. I would urge you first to read more about these bills, and then contact your state Senator and Representative and let them know what you think. They need to hear from you too.