One of the questions I hear a lot right now is pretty simple:

“Is this a buyer’s market now?”

I wish the answer were just as simple.

Because right now, I can show you homes where the seller still has plenty of leverage. I can also show you homes where a buyer may be able to negotiate on price, ask for closing costs, secure a rate buydown, negotiate repairs, or potentially get several of those things at once.

And sometimes those homes aren’t even very far apart.

That’s the current 2026 housing market.

The Market Has Become Much More Balanced

For the past several years, we got used to talking about the housing market in pretty broad terms.

It was a seller’s market.

Inventory was tight. Buyers competed. Homes sold quickly. Sellers could often dictate the terms.

That isn’t nearly as universal today.

Currently, the national housing market is currently sitting at roughly 4.6 months of inventory. Generally speaking, somewhere around six months is considered a balanced market.

But here’s the problem with looking only at a national number:

Nobody buys the national housing market.

You buy a house in Lynnwood, Edmonds, Everett, Shoreline, Bothell, Mountlake Terrace or wherever else you happen to be looking.

And even within those communities, the market can look dramatically different from one house to another.

Sometimes the House Determines Who Has the Upper Hand

This may be one of the biggest changes I’ve noticed in our local market.

We don’t simply have a buyer’s market or a seller’s market.

We have a market where leverage can change based on the individual property.

A well prepared home in a desirable neighborhood, with a functional floor plan and a price that makes sense compared with the competition, can still attract buyers quickly.

That seller may have plenty of leverage.

But another home may sit for several weeks.

Maybe the price is just a little ambitious. Maybe the layout isn’t what most buyers want. Maybe it needs updating. Maybe there are several similar homes competing for the same buyer.

Once that happens, the conversation changes.

Suddenly, the buyer may have the leverage.

Our Local Numbers Are Showing It

Look at just one recent week in our local market.

We had:

210 new listings

175 homes go pending

124 homes close

219 price reductions

That last number jumps out.

There were actually more price reductions than new listings during the week.

That doesn’t mean homes aren’t selling. They clearly are. Nearly 175 buyers and sellers reached an agreement during that same period.

What it does tell us is that buyers have become more selective, and sellers can’t automatically assume the market will accept whatever price they put on a home.

If buyers don’t see the value, many are perfectly willing to wait.

Buyers Haven’t Disappeared. They’ve Gotten Pickier.

I think this is one of the most important things for sellers to understand about today’s market.

There are still buyers out there.

But higher mortgage rates and increased inventory have given many of them something they haven’t had much of over the past several years:

Choices.

When buyers have choices, they compare everything.

Price.

Condition.

Location.

Floor plan.

Updates.

Monthly payment.

How long the home has been on the market.

What else they can buy for the same money.

A house doesn’t necessarily have to be the cheapest option. But buyers need to understand why it’s worth the price.

That makes pricing and preparation especially important right now.

Buyers May Have More Negotiating Power Than They Realize

On the buyer side, this market has created some opportunities we simply didn’t see very often during the crazier years.

A home that has been sitting on the market may have a seller who is much more willing to negotiate.

That doesn’t always mean getting $50,000 knocked off the price.

Sometimes the better negotiation is somewhere else.

A seller credit toward closing costs can help reduce the amount of cash a buyer needs at closing.

A seller funded mortgage rate buydown can potentially make the monthly payment considerably more comfortable.

Repairs may be negotiable.

And sometimes price is absolutely negotiable.

The important thing is understanding the seller’s position before deciding what to ask for.

A home that hit the market yesterday and already has significant activity is a very different negotiation from one that has been available for 47 days and already had a price reduction.

Sellers Still Have Leverage Too

None of this means sellers have lost control of the market.

Good homes are still selling.

And when a property checks the boxes buyers care about and is positioned correctly from day one, sellers can still create competition.

That’s why I wouldn’t tell a seller, “It’s a buyer’s market, so expect to give everything away.”

I’d tell them that today’s buyers are more discerning and the margin for error has gotten smaller.

Overpricing by even a little can cost valuable momentum.

Poor presentation can make the competing house look like the better value.

And waiting several weeks to react to what the market is telling you can sometimes make the eventual adjustment more painful.

So Who Has the Upper Hand?

Right now?

It depends.

It depends on the city.

It depends on the neighborhood.

It depends on the price range.

It depends on the property type.

It depends on the condition.

It depends on the competition.

And increasingly, it depends on how long that particular home has been sitting on the market.

That’s what makes this market so interesting.

Two buyers looking five miles apart may be dealing with completely different negotiating environments. Two sellers in the same city may have completely different experiences.

The days of making broad assumptions about what “the market” is doing aren’t especially useful right now.

The better question is:

What’s happening with the specific home, price range and neighborhood you’re dealing with?

That’s where you’ll find out who really has the upper hand.

The local real estate market was remarkably steady this past week. New listings, closed sales, and price reductions barely moved from the week before, while pending sales provided the most notable change with a solid increase.

This Week’s Stats

New Listings: 210 ↑ 1 (209 last week)
Pending Sales: 175 ↑ 11 (164 last week)
Sold Homes: 124 ↑ 1 (123 last week)
Price Reductions: 219 ↓ 1 (220 last week)

Weekly Trend Overview

If there was ever a week that could be described as “steady,” this was it.

New listings increased by just one home, closed sales increased by one, and price reductions decreased by one. Essentially, those three categories were unchanged from the previous week.

The more interesting number is pending sales.

Pending activity increased from 164 to 175, a gain of nearly 7%. That suggests buyers are continuing to engage with the market and write offers when they find the right combination of home, location, condition, and price.

At the same time, we still had 219 price reductions during the week, which is actually more than the number of homes that went pending. That continues to reinforce one of the biggest themes of this summer: buyers have choices, and they are being selective.

What This Means for Buyers

This continues to be a market where buyers can afford to be more deliberate than they could during the frenzy of a few years ago.

Inventory is continuing to come onto the market, and price reductions remain common. That can create opportunities not only to negotiate on price, but potentially on seller-paid closing costs, rate buydowns, repairs, or other terms depending on the property.

But the increase in pending sales is also a reminder that good homes are still selling. A home that is well prepared, properly priced, and attractive to buyers can absolutely generate competition.

The opportunity right now is having choices without assuming every seller is desperate to negotiate.

What This Means for Sellers

The 219 price reductions this week are an important number for anyone thinking about selling.

Buyers are paying attention to value, and they have enough options that an overpriced home can quickly get passed over. Once a listing spends several weeks on the market, a price adjustment may be necessary to bring buyers back through the door.

That makes getting the pricing and preparation right from the beginning especially important.

At the same time, 175 homes went pending this week. Buyers haven’t disappeared. They’re simply being more selective about which homes earn their attention and ultimately their offers.

For sellers, the goal isn’t just getting your home on the market. It’s positioning it correctly against the competition from day one.

If you’re considering buying or selling in South Snohomish County or North King County, I’d be happy to take a closer look at what these numbers mean for your specific neighborhood and price range.

 

For the last few years, there has been one piece of advice floating around the housing market almost nonstop:

Just wait for mortgage rates to come down.

It sounds reasonable. After all, a lower mortgage rate means a lower monthly payment and more buying power.

But here we are in the second half of 2026, and mortgage rates haven’t exactly cooperated.

So maybe it’s time to ask a different question.

What if waiting for dramatically lower rates isn’t actually the best strategy?

Why Haven’t Mortgage Rates Fallen More?

The short answer is that mortgage rates aren’t controlled by any one person, bank, or even directly by the Federal Reserve.

They’re influenced by what’s happening throughout the economy, including inflation, the bond market, economic growth, and expectations about what comes next.

One factor that pushed mortgage rates unusually high over the past few years has already improved considerably. According to Keeping Current Matters, the gap between mortgage rates and the benchmark they tend to follow has moved much closer to its historical norm.

That’s good news, but it also means we may not have another huge drop in rates simply from things returning to normal.

Could mortgage rates still move lower? Absolutely.

But buyers waiting for a sudden return to 5% rates, or especially the 3% rates we saw several years ago, may be waiting for something that isn’t right around the corner.

Meanwhile, Something Else Has Changed

While everyone has been watching mortgage rates, the housing market itself has quietly become much friendlier to buyers.

That’s especially true here in the Seattle area and throughout Snohomish and North King counties.

There are more homes to choose from.

We’re seeing more price reductions.

Homes that might have received multiple offers immediately a few years ago are sometimes sitting for weeks.

And sellers are increasingly willing to have conversations about price, closing costs, repairs, and other terms.

That last part can be especially important when it comes to today’s mortgage rates.

Seller Credits Can Change the Payment

One of the opportunities I’m seeing in today’s market is buyers successfully negotiating seller credits that can be used toward their financing costs.

Depending on the loan, the transaction, and the amount of credit available, those funds may be used to buy down the buyer’s mortgage rate.

That can take a couple of different forms.

A permanent rate buydown uses money upfront to reduce the interest rate for the life of the loan.

A temporary buydown, such as a 2/1 buydown, can reduce the buyer’s rate for the first couple of years of homeownership before it returns to the full note rate.

Either way, it’s another reason the advertised mortgage rate doesn’t always tell the whole affordability story.

In a market where some sellers are more motivated and homes aren’t necessarily receiving multiple offers, negotiating several thousand dollars toward a buyer’s financing costs can sometimes make more sense than simply negotiating the same amount off the purchase price.

The goal isn’t just getting a house for less.

It’s finding the combination of price, financing, and terms that makes the monthly payment work.

A Lower Rate Doesn’t Automatically Mean a Better Deal

This is the part buyers sometimes overlook.

Imagine waiting for mortgage rates to fall significantly.

If that happens, you’re probably not going to be the only buyer who notices.

Lower rates could bring a lot of sidelined buyers back into the market at exactly the same time. Suddenly, the house that’s sitting today may have three, five, or ten interested buyers.

Negotiating leverage disappears pretty quickly when that happens.

Today, depending on the home, a buyer may be able to negotiate the purchase price, ask the seller to contribute toward closing costs or a rate buydown, negotiate repairs, or simply take the time to make a thoughtful decision without feeling like they have to race ten other buyers to the finish line.

That’s worth something.

The House Matters Too

There’s another problem with waiting for the “perfect” mortgage rate.

You aren’t just buying a rate.

You’re buying a house.

The right home, in the right neighborhood, at the right price may become available while rates are still higher than you’d prefer.

If the payment works within your budget and you’re able to negotiate favorable terms, passing on that home solely because you’re hoping rates will be substantially lower six months or a year from now can be a gamble.

Rates can change.

Your mortgage can potentially be refinanced later.

But you can’t refinance the purchase price of the house you didn’t buy.

Sellers Need To Pay Attention Too

This isn’t just a buyer conversation.

If you’re selling a home right now, today’s mortgage rate environment directly affects the people considering your property.

Buyers are payment conscious.

They’re comparing homes carefully.

And they have more choices than they did during the frenzy of a few years ago.

That means pricing correctly from the beginning matters.

Preparation matters.

Marketing matters.

And flexibility matters.

Sometimes that flexibility might mean accepting an offer with a seller credit that helps the buyer lower their interest rate rather than holding out for an offer with slightly better terms on paper.

I’ve seen good homes in good locations sit longer than agents and sellers expected this year. That doesn’t necessarily mean there’s something wrong with the home.

Sometimes it simply means today’s buyer has options and isn’t willing to overlook price or condition the way they might have when inventory was extremely limited.

Stop Trying To Time the Perfect Market

I don’t think buyers should rush out and purchase a home simply because mortgage rates might not fall.

And I certainly don’t think anyone should stretch their budget hoping they can refinance later.

But I also don’t think putting your life on hold waiting for a specific mortgage rate is much of a strategy.

The better question is whether today’s combination of home prices, mortgage rates, inventory, seller credits, negotiating opportunities, and your own financial situation creates an opportunity that makes sense for you.

Because the best housing market isn’t necessarily the one with the lowest mortgage rate.

Sometimes it’s the one where you actually have some leverage.

And right now, buyers have more of it than they’ve had in quite a while.

This Week’s Stats

New Listings: 209 ↑ (193 last week)
Pending Sales: 164 ↓ (195 last week)
Sold Homes: 123 ↓ (159 last week)
Price Reductions: 220 ↑ (206 last week)

Weekly Trend Overview

This week’s numbers tell a pretty clear late summer story.

New inventory ticked back up, with 209 new listings, an increase of about 8% from last week. At the same time, buyer activity cooled, with pending sales dropping from 195 to 164.

Closed sales also fell fairly sharply, down from 159 to 123. Closings tend to reflect contracts written several weeks earlier, so that number gives us another indication that the summer market has been moving at a slower pace.

The number that continues to stand out is price reductions. We had 220 reductions compared with 209 new listings this week. In other words, more sellers adjusted their price than new sellers entered the market.

What This Means for You

For Buyers:
There are opportunities right now. More homes are requiring price adjustments, competition isn’t nearly as intense across the board, and buyers may have more negotiating room than they did earlier in the year. The best homes can still move quickly, but buyers don’t necessarily have to approach every listing like it’s a multiple offer situation.

For Sellers:
The market is giving us a pretty strong reminder that pricing matters. With pending sales down and reductions up, buyers are being selective. Homes that are priced appropriately and show well can absolutely sell, but the market isn’t giving much grace to listings that start too high.

The takeaway: This isn’t a dead market. It’s a more selective one. Buyers have choices, and sellers have to compete for their attention.

This Week’s Stats

New Listings: 193 ↓ (245 last week)
Pending Sales: 195 ↑ (194 last week)
Sold Homes: 159 ↑ (131 last week)
Price Reductions: 206 ↓ (218 last week)

Weekly Trend Overview

This week brought a pretty noticeable slowdown in new inventory, with just 193 new listings, down from 245 last week. At the same time, pending sales held steady and actually ticked up slightly to 195.

That means something interesting happened this week: more homes went pending than came on the market.

Closed sales also jumped to 159, while price reductions eased a bit to 206. Sellers are still making adjustments, but we did not see quite as many reductions as last week.

Overall, this looks less like buyers disappearing and more like the late summer inventory pipeline beginning to tighten.

What This Means for You

For Buyers:
There are still plenty of choices compared with the ultra competitive markets of years past, but this week’s drop in new listings is worth watching. Well priced homes are still getting attention, and with pending sales holding strong, waiting does not necessarily mean you’ll have more options later.

For Sellers:
Nearly 200 homes still went pending this week, so buyers are absolutely active. But with 206 price reductions, the market continues to make one thing clear: pricing and presentation matter. Buyers have choices, and they’re being selective.

The number I’m watching

193 new listings versus 195 pending sales.

That’s a small difference, but after several weeks where new inventory comfortably outpaced pending sales, it is an interesting shift heading into August.