Home sales in Bellingham may no longer be dropping. There is some indication that we have "hit the bottom"; that we may be leveled off. The graph below (blue line in graph) shows total home sales in Bellingham from the beginning of 2007 to the present.

 

There are seasonal variations--the greatest number of sales most years are in the second and third quarters of the year, and then they drop off in the winter. But overall sales in the first quarter of 2010 are almost the same as they were in the first quarter of 2009. And sales in April, although not completely available yet, suggest that sales are up compared to the same time in 2009.

 

However, this leveling off of home sales does not apply to homes $500,000 and above. The number of sales of those homes (green line in graph) continue to drop.

 

April and May sales should give a good indication of the health of the housing market, and the economy overall. April data will be available soon and will be reported in this blog.