Inventory Climbs Across Most Washington Counties as Sales and Prices Deline
- Sales decreased 30.8% from 5,010 in December 2025
- Closed sales decreased 7% year over year
- Pending Sales saw a decrease of 2.6%
- New listings increased by 114.9%, over December 2025
- Total new listings increased 20.9% Year over Year
- Median Price down 3.25% from January 2025
The total number of properties listed for sale increased 20.9% year over year, with 12,376 active listings on the market at the end of January 2026, compared to 10,241 at the end of January 2025. Month over month, active inventory increased by 5.6%, up from 11,718 in December 2025.
Nearly all NWMLS counties experienced year-over-year inventory growth, with 16 of 27 counties posting double-digit increases. The counties with the largest increases were Jefferson (+59.5%), Walla Walla (+58.6%), Thurston (+50.8%), Okanogan (+36.4%), Adams (+36.4%), and Clallam (+35.3%).
New Listings
NWMLS brokers added 6,882 new listings to the database in January 2026, a year-over-year increase of 2.8% compared to January 2025 (6,693). When compared to the previous month (December 2025), new listings increased by 114.9%, when 3,202 listings were added to the NWMLS database.
When looking at the 27 individual counties in NWMLS’s primary service area, the number of new listings increased year-over-year in 16 counties, and decreased year-over-year in 11 counties.
Pending Sales
There were 5,419 residential units & condo units under contract in January 2026, a decrease of 2.6% when compared to January 2025 (5,564). When compared to the previous month, the number of pending listings increased by 27.8%, up from 4,239 listings under contra
ct in December 2025.
Closed Sales
Closed sales decreased 7% year over year, with 3,465 transactions in January 2026 compared to 3,727 in January 2025. Month over month, sales decreased 30.8% from 5,010 in December 2025.
Year-over-year closed sales decreased in 16 of 27 counties, while ten counties saw increases and one county (Ferry) reported no change.
Months of Inventory
A balanced market is considered to be 4 to 6 months by most industry experts. At the current rate of sales, it would take about three and a half months (3.57) to sell every home that is active in the NWMLS inventory. The six counties with the lowest months of inventory in December 2025 were Kitsap (2.4), Pierce (2.82), Snohomish (2.84), Skagit (3.17), Island (3.27), Clallam (3.27), and Thurston (3.4).
Median Price
The median sales price for residential homes and condominiums sold in January 2026 was $595,000, down 3.25% from January 2025 ($615,000). Month over month, the median price declined 2.8% from $612,250 in December 2025.
The counties with the highest median sales prices were San Juan ($969,000), King ($770,000), and Snohomish ($678,500), while the lowest median prices were recorded in Columbia ($265,000), Okanogan ($330,000), and Grant ($339,900).
Strategic timing is the key to a successful sale, but neighborhood trends are constantly shifting. Check out our best time to list report to see exactly when to list for the best results.
We have run detailed reports for: neighborhoods like Trossachs, Klahanie, The Issaquah Highlands, Sammamish as a whole, Issaquah, Bellevue and even out to Snoqualmie Ridge.
In the greater East Side real estate market, prices usually peak in spring, but many sellers miss this window because they list their homes too late. Since prices are based on closed home sales, we need to consider the number of new listings affecting supply, typical market time, and the closing timeline. Sellers aiming for peak pricing should list their homes early enough to account for these factors. Of course, we cannot predict the future, but we can look back at 2025’s market activity and pricing trends, which may provide insight into peak pricing. Activity and trends vary by neighborhood, so we analyzed several of our favorite communities and present them here.
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