Because the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic 5 years in the past, Clark County’s housing market has tightened and turn out to be extra aggressive — however that’s not all as a result of pandemic.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a sequence of shifts in purchaser conduct, stock ranges and residential pricing. Because the begin of the pandemic, information reveals a market that has skilled each speedy development and gradual correction, in response to The Columbian’s evaluation of 5 years of reviews from the Regional A number of Itemizing Service.
Mike Lamb, a dealer with Windermere Vancouver, mentioned the housing market prior to now 5 years has been closely influenced by uncertainty — as a result of pandemic, elections, rate of interest adjustments and broader financial shifts — which have triggered fluctuating purchaser conduct. The largest factor that has impacted the market since 2020 is the traditionally low stock ranges, a number of housing specialists mentioned.
Though the pandemic modified the market, its impact has dwindled, Lamb mentioned.
“It’s one piece of a lot of other changes that have been far more significant,” he mentioned.
5-year curler coaster
The native housing market began 2020 sturdy, with rising gross sales and new listings. By March, the median sale worth was $391,700. In April, as COVID-19 restrictions took maintain, listings dropped 34 % year-over-year. Gross sales slowed, however costs held regular at $385,000 due to sturdy demand and restricted provide, specialists mentioned.
The market rebounded shortly. By December 2020, extra properties hit the market than another month that 12 months, and the median worth climbed to $420,000.
“2020 was a surprisingly good year. … People were asking, ‘What’s important?,’ and we saw an increased demand,” Lamb mentioned. “2021 was when the market really went wackadoodle.”
In 2021, demand surged whereas the variety of listings fell. Bidding wars have been frequent, pushing median costs to $425,000 by January and $435,000 by March.
Lamb mentioned he was seeing as many as 20 gives for each itemizing throughout that point.
“It was really abnormal,” he mentioned. “During my career in real estate, I’ve never seen anything like that.”
Low rates of interest of round 3 % to 4 % fueled the frenzy.
“First-time homebuyers were getting just their butts handed to them because they couldn’t compete with people who had cash contingent offers,” mentioned Tracie Demars, a ReMax actual property agent.
By 2022, rising mortgage charges and inflation cooled the market. The Federal Reserve started mountaineering rates of interest in spring.
“As rates went up, we saw transactions go down,” Lamb mentioned. “When you’re coming off of rates in the high twos and low threes, or even in the fours, it’s a substantial shock to the market.”
Development slowed amid labor and materials shortages. Stock ticked up barely by 12 months’s finish, in response to RMLS reviews.
In 2023, the market started to stabilize. March’s median worth hit $527,600. Purchaser exercise leveled out, however costs remained traditionally excessive.
“2023 was probably my worst year in real estate, next to 2011. I only sold like 30 homes that year,” Demars mentioned.
That development continued into 2024, with the identical $527,600 median worth in March. By March 2025, costs had risen to $533,000 — a 36 % enhance since March 2020.
Lively listings reached 1,659, essentially the most for any March since 2020. However that’s nonetheless beneath the two,400 listings typical earlier than 2017.
“If you want to know what the 500-pound gorilla is in this market, it’s inventory,” Lamb mentioned.
He mentioned many owners aren’t promoting as a result of they will’t discover a appropriate alternative — particularly older patrons looking for single-level properties, that are briefly provide because of restricted lot sizes and zoning guidelines.
Terry Wollam, a dealer with Wollam & Associates, mentioned some owners are staying put as a result of they locked in low rates of interest in the course of the pandemic.
“Now, we have the dynamic of people not selling their homes and being captive to the interest rate that they have and not being able to sell that home, take that equity and then use that with another home purchase,” Wollam mentioned.
Subsequent 5 years
Wanting forward, Wollam mentioned a brand new wave of patrons is rising.
“But there’s this barrier of entry related to down payments and the cost of the payment related to the house due to higher interest rates,” he mentioned. “We have this really big pent-up buyer pool that’s waiting for attainable housing that they can purchase, and there’s limited options at those price points.”
Wollam mentioned that March 2025’s stock matched ranges seen in February 2020. Primarily based on previous patterns, he expects a surge in shopping for and worth will increase as soon as rates of interest drop — probably by late 2026 and going into 2027.
Proper now, demand is excessive amongst homebuyers buying within the $300,000 to $800,000 vary. However Wollam mentioned the looming drawback is that new building isn’t holding tempo.
“With the construction that is available today, we have this interesting dynamic where there is an excess of inventory relative to the demand currently,” Wollam mentioned. “But as we eat through that inventory, there’s nothing coming behind it, and there is going to be a gap.”
Lamb added the pandemic largely has nothing to do with the housing scarcity we expertise right this moment because it’s primarily based on authorities coverage.
“The housing shortage is kind of baked into Washington state, and I don’t see that changing, unfortunately,” Lamb mentioned. “There will be a point at which buyers will say, ‘Hey, the rates are good enough. We’ll come back and get into the market more seriously.’ But that’s when you run into the inventory problem.”
