
We can attribute to a few things, not the least of which is the First Time Home buyer Credit. We can also attribute it to pent up buyers' demand and lower market prices.
Let's look at how our Inventory changed:

Months of Inventory tell us if all we had is what is on the market RIGHT NOW,
And buyers kept buying at the rate they are CURRENTLY BUYING,
Then it would take 10.5 months to use up all the inventory, for instance, according to January�s figure.
You can see it was coasting along 7-8 months thru the summer and then dropped into the 6 month range in December.
This means it is LESS OF A BUYER'S MARKET. So if you have been sitting on the "Oh-Should-I-list-My- House-or-Not-Fence", it might be a good time to jump off!
I've come to appreciate the many words for "rain" in the meteorologist's repertoire. I laughed the first time I actually heard the "weatherman" predict SPRINKLES. Once being a student of the weather because we never knew how the weather would change back East, I've pretty much come to realize it doesn't change much here. Except the sun might shine and the rain might stop once in awhile.
I've looked forward to Spring because that's when the clouds seem to part and the sun shines through. Mt. Rainier becomes visible, the Olympics shine in their majesty, the water of Liberty Bay and everywhere around here just becomes so blue, it's all breathtaking. It was one of those kinds of days I remember made me fall in love with this area years ago when I came here for an Ad Age Conference.
I remember that day. I did the tourist thing and walked on the ferry from Seattle to Bainbridge Island. Everything was out including the seals going by on a logging boat of some kind. And the sky was so very blue.
Last year, Father's Day was a day like that. We drove through the mountains to Leavenworth for the day. The sky was so blue I actually caught myself stopping and just looking upward. The green trees and the blue, blue sky. I actually think I caught a few rays of sunshine and it felt good. We sat on the steps in the town and I felt like a dog lazing on the sunny spot in the front porch. It felt good to be in the light and to be warm. Then Monday, the sun was shining again! I was shocked and excited.
She replied, "I just can't believe how blue the sky is!"
Well, maybe because the sky has been gray so long, we forgot!
I dont' know why the sun takes so long to get here and why it's being so shy about staying. Maybe it's the pollution in China drifting our way. Maybe it's the reverse effect of the "pineapple express" (an actual weather phenomenon) or maybe its La Nina or El Nino which I can never keep straight. Maybe it's because Mercury is in retrograde.
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