March 19, 2024
The Liberty Lake Splash
PO Box 363
Liberty Lake, WA 99019
Phone: 509-242-7752
News Blog Business Community Opinion Sports
Splash photo by Treva Lind

Homes are actively under construction near the intersection of Holl Road and Knox Avenue in the River Crossing North portion of Greenstone’s River District development.

More News

March Marvel-Calvary a catalyst for historic Gonzaga run

Daughters of The American Revolution
The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a volunteer women’s organization that has been dedicated to historical preservation, education, and patriotism for over a century. Across the United States, there are over 3,000 chapters supporting an estimated current membership of 200,000, with over one million total members since their founding in 1890.

HOA’s have different rules what it means for Police and streets
The city of Liberty Lake is known for its winding paths, street trees and homeowner’s associations. Recently, however, residents of some neighborhoods have been questioning the services they receive from the city, particularly police patrols and traffic enforcement.

Vietnam Veteran Pat Payne Receives his Combat Infantry Badge
Spokane Valley resident and Vietnam Veteran Pat Payne personifies bravery, resilience, and a profound commitment to supporting his fellow service members. Having served in the Vietnam War, Pat received both the Bronze Star and Purple Heart medals for his exceptional contributions and sacrifices. Unfortunately, at the time of his service discharge, a key ‘box’ was left unchecked, and he did not receive his Combat Infantry Badge or CIB until fifty-six years after leaving Vietnam.

Return Ticket Home; Fisher helped establish LL city roots
In the acclaimed 1940 novel, “You Can’t Go Home Again,” author Thomas Wolfe paints the picture of ambitious writer George Webber who leaves his rural hometown roots to seek fame and fortune in New York City.

At Home on Air – Media fixture Owsley relishes local roots
Sean Owsley’s first big break in the media world came when he was living in a modest apartment on Skipworth Road in Spokane Valley.

Spokane Valley Library employee is recognized by the Library of Congress
Spokane Valley Library was recently honored to receive a Certificate of Appreciation from the Library of Congress for its involvement in the Veterans History Project. The Library of Congress recognized the library's continuous dedication to preserving the stories and experiences of our nation's veterans. As part of this recognition, Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers presented a Certificate of Appreciation to Jeremy Mullin, a local resident actively involved in the project.

Council social media training degenerates into confrontation
Spokane Valley City Council training on policy regarding social media accounts and use of the city’s logo turned from benignly informative to heatedly combative after an exchange between two council members at the Jan. 9 meeting.

Central Valley School District Prop. 1

Eat, Shop, and Be Merry

Water Works

2023 Candidate Guide

Sporting in Liberty Lake

Closing the Chasm

Congratulations First Ridgeline High School Graduating Class of 2023

2023 Liberty Lake Kiwanis Yard Sales are Coming!
Click here to register today! Only $15 to get into the printed and online guide!

Public Safety Raised to New Level

Parks and Art Commission

Looking Ahead to 2023

Eat, Shop and Be Merry

New city administrator

Liberty Lake Kiwanis Yard Sale Interactive Map!

Liberty Lake Kiwanis Yard Sale Guide - Now Available!!

Conrats 2022 Senior Graduates

Pavillion Park

You Are Invited

Destination Liberty Lake

Liberty Lake's Lego Home

Making and Impact 2022

Search the News Archive Search the News Archive

Housing sales show signs of vitality
4/29/2015 10:34:48 AM

By Treva Lind
Splash Contributor

For one Liberty Lake couple, a decision this spring to buy a house will take them right back to their current neighborhood.

Eight years ago, Rick and Pam Martin bought two River District townhomes, one to live in and another they rented. They sold the rental last year and recently listed their townhome for sale while having a new single-family home built in the district. The appeal? Mainly, the Greenstone-constructed house will provide more privacy and a real yard that's maintenance-free, because homeowner dues pay for lawn services and snow removal.

Rick, 66, and Pam, 65, enjoy living near the Centennial Trail and city amenities. 

"We're empty-nesters," Martin said. "I work over at Home Depot, and we work, live and play in this community. We want to stay here."

Buyers like the Martins - and even first-time home buyers - are behind what proved to be a best first quarter since 2007 for home sales in greater Spokane, real estate agents say. "Busy" was another description they used for spring activity, an uncommon adjective uttered in the industry since the mid-2008 real estate market meltdown followed by the recession and gradual recovery.

Nationally, existing home sales in February increased 4.7 percent from the year prior, while constrained inventory levels pushed price growth to its fastest pace in a year, the National Association of Realtors reported. 

A recent uptick in home sales is apparent in Liberty Lake, Spokane Valley and all of Spokane, said Pam Fredrick, broker at John L. Scott in Liberty Lake.

"We just closed the highest total of closed sales for the month of March we've seen since 2007, and the sales were up significantly for March versus February," Fredrick said of the Spokane market. "We closed more homes in March of 2015 for any time since March of 2007, so that's an exciting statement.

"For one-family residential for March 2015, year-to-date compared to last year at this time, the closed sales are up 21.3 percent."

As of mid-April, 67 houses were listed in Liberty Lake, Fredrick said, an inventory down somewhat from the 72 of a year ago. Of the 67, 11 of the properties were listed at or under $250,000. The remainder were over, with 25 of those above $500,000. Meanwhile, 207 single-family residences sold during the past year as of mid-April. That compares with 203 homes sold during the same period 2013-2014.

"Liberty Lake had a strong 2014, and we've started the best season for this year," said Fredrick, adding that the inventory of listed homes is down somewhat, especially at $250,000 and below. However, home construction is noticeably active. "Sales of new constructed homes are up 11.2 percent compared to this time last year. For so many years, people weren't building." 

Dan Lysek, broker at Live Real Estate, said the market began to improve within the past three years, but a ratio change occurred this spring. A year ago, his office's ratio of listings to pending sales was about 3 to 1, and now that ratio is about 1 to 1. "The issue we're seeing is our listing inventory is decreasing," he said. "I expect to see some reasonable price appreciation going forward over the next couple of years."

The average price of a Spokane-area home did rise in March. The Spokane Association of Realtors said the March average price was $182,256, compared with March 2014 at $174,932. However, the average price of a Spokane Valley home (including Liberty Lake) is about $230,800, said Rob Higgins, SAR executive vice president. 

The Valley tends to have newer homes and more construction, he said.  

"The positive story is sales are up overall in Spokane County, and inventory is tight," Higgins said. 

Jim Frank, founder of Greenstone Homes, said local housing trends have responded to gradual economic recovery over the last two to three years that's firmed up the homebuilding business. The multifamily market held a bit more strength than single-family, a trend influenced by people in their 20s and 30s, Frank added. Generally, they're delaying marriage and having children later, and more in that demographic are renting for longer. 

However, Frank said the single-family housing market is now seeing momentum. 

"Pricing is increasing. Sales are strengthening. Inventories are shrinking," he said. 

"The single-family market is getting strong now; the underwriting requirements for mortgages have become more stringent, and so that's had a bit of a negative effect, but all of that has been overcome by a good population growth, job formation and strength in the economy. Now, we're at the point that across the board, we're seeing a pretty strong economy and new construction factor."

More Baby Boomers also are seeking housing transitions, Frank said: "We think there is a strengthening market for housing for the Baby Boomer-moving-down market. They're looking for something smaller and lower maintenance."

Meanwhile, some boomers and even young buyers are looking at urban-style neighborhoods near recreation, jobs and amenities. Frank said that's a strength of Kendall Yards near downtown Spokane and of Liberty Lake neighborhoods. Greenstone is constructing an additional River District phase in this style.

On Liberty Lake's horizon is the new Trutina subdivision planning about 360 residential lots, plus some multifamily units, south of Spokane River, north of I-90 and east of Harvard Road. A May 13 hearing is scheduled on the preliminary plat, then City Council review. With final plat approval, work could begin this summer. Additional development pockets include River Crossing North and Legacy Ridge. 

The city has issued fairly steady year-over-year residential single-family building permits since 2012. For full-year 2014, the city recorded 109 permits; 105 in 2013; and 110 in 2012. That compares with 72 in 2011. The recent quarter saw 23 single-family home permits, down some from 31 in first quarter 2014. 

Figures for annual real estate excise taxes, collected on the sale of all types of real estate, also indicate improvement. It's a percentage of the value of the sales transaction, so essentially, the more money collected in a year helps show the overall value of the real estate transactions within a community. 

Liberty Lake's REET collected in 2007 hit $773,810 when the city annexed the River District. It dipped afterward: $396,364 in 2008; $331,535, 2009; and $314,734, 2010. Between 2011 and 2013, collections edged near or above $400,000, and then reached $701,979 last year, with $150,000 of that from the sale of Big Trout Apartments and a Legacy Ridge land sale.

Overall, Fredrick said market shifts could bode well for sellers.

"Many of us in the industry feel there's going to be a switch from the buyers' market to a sellers' market. It's been a buyers' market for about seven years," she said. "Sometime in 2015, we may see it because of the lower inventory in the lower price points, but I don't see that happening in the $500,000 and above. It's going to take some time.

"We're all very optimistic about the Spokane real estate market. We all feel we're past those difficult times, and we're seeing that consistent growth in all market areas."



Advertisement

Copyright © 2024 The Liberty Lake Splash | Print Page