How Do Single-Family Home Prices Compare to Townhouse Prices in the Greater Seattle Area?

Are you currently shopping for a new home in the Seattle area? If so… are you hoping to find a home with:

– 4+ bedrooms

– 2.5+ bathrooms

– 2,500+ square feet

– Whatever GreatSchools.org has decided a 7+ school is (Click here to read what we really think about GreatSchools.org)

?

Well, if you answered “yes,” then your criteria is pretty much exactly like thousands of other maturing Seattle Millennials who are looking to or having already starting a family.

That means that there is a lot of competition out there for a very limited amount of inventory. So, where can you buy a home and get what you want?

I put together this blog post to help you figure it out! Now keep in mind I’m using median home price in the numbers that follow. That means the “middle of the data.” So you can only use this as a bellwether. For example, if you are strictly looking for homes that have been completely remodeled, then these numbers are not going to reflect those prices. “Middle” is usually a home that is all original and represents whatever the area has most of to offer. Bellevue, as an example, is filled with mid-century homes, which likely means the median price of homes there is more reflecting a 1967 split-entry than a 1998 Buchan home. Still, the numbers are interesting.

We sold this Buchan Home in Bellevue for in 2020.

Here are the median home prices in the Seattle area for homes with 4+ bedrooms, 2.5+ baths, and 2,500+ square feet: 

Bellevue: $2,000,000 | up 32.5% from last year
Bothell: $1,250,000 | up 38.9% from last year
Carnation: $965,000 | up 24.6% over last year
Duvall: $995,300 | up 24.4% over last year
Issaquah: $1,717,500 | up 38.3% over last year
Kirkland: $1,910,000 | up 33.6% over last year
Renton Highlands: $1,115,000 | up 35.2% over last year
Kenmore: $1,210,000 | 34.5% over last year

We sold this classic Tudor home in Seattle’s Madrona neighborhood in 2021.

How does Seattle compare with the same criteria?

Queen Anne: $2,190,000 | Up 39% over last year
Ballard: $1,529,550 | Up 58.7% over last year
Magnolia: $1,750,000 | Up 29.6% over last year
Wallingford: $1,600,000 | Up 22.1% over last year
Ravenna: $1,725,000 | Up 45.9% over last year
Capitol Hill: $2,330,000 | Up 12.8% over last year
Madrona: $1,815,000 | Up 36.6% over last year
West Seattle: $1,362,000 | Up 15.4% over last year

As you can see, it really cannot be overstated how in demand larger single-family homes are. And because there is a such a demand for single-family homes and inventory cannot keep up, townhouses are the next type of home to experience explosive appreciation. Townhouses in the Seattle area have just started to climb this year after 2 years of stagnation.

Below, I’ve included current median prices for townhouses with 3+ bedrooms and at least 1,500-square-foot layouts.

(These townhouses are single-family townhouses, not condos, and the size reflects townhouses that are the most desirable for buyers.)

Bellevue: $940,000 | up 38% over last year
Bothell: $717,836 | Up 26.5% over last year
Issaquah: $870,000 | Up 32.0% over last year
Kirkland: $916,000 | Up 32% over last year
Renton: $630,000 | Up to 24.8% over last year
Kenmore: $773,000 | Up 5.3% over last year

The center of the universe for King County in the past has been Seattle. However, the epicenter has shifted to Bellevue. Now we see that appreciation starts in Bellevue and radiates out. You will notice the fastest appreciation is closest to the core of Bellevue, then Seattle, Kirkland, etc.

We sold this Ballard townhouse in 2020.

Here are how townhouses in different neighborhoods in Seattle with the same criteria have performed:

Queen Anne: $999,000 | up 6.3% over last year
Ballard: $898,950 | up 5.3% over last year
Magnolia: $871,500 | Up 5.6% over last year
Wallingford: $1,035,000 | Up 13.7% over last year
Ravenna: $916,000 | Up 9.1% over last year
Capitol Hill: $1,050,000 | Up 14% over last year
West Seattle: $745,000 | Up 12.2% over last year

What does all of this mean?

Our local market in the Greater Seattle Area is very divergent at the moment. Everybody is looking at the same things (single-family homes with 4+ bedrooms, 2.5+ baths, 2,500+ square feet, and whatever schools GreatSchools.org has decided is a 7+ rated school). This means there’s probably good oppotunity in the things that people aren’t looking at as much right now. Because as Grandma always said… the market will eventually stabilize!  (What, your grandma never said that?!) 😉

Our latest Happy Home listing is a townhouse in Seattle’s Madison Valley neighborhood. This 4-bedroom, 2.5-bath home lives like a house… for a townhouse price! Click here to learn more.