Impact of COVID-19 on the Bainbridge Island Real Estate Market

Friday, April 24, 2020

First and foremost, we at Windermere are here for you remotely, with a commitment to get through this together. Governor Inslee's STAY HOME, STAY HEALTHY proclamation means real estate activities LIMITED; see below. 

7-DAY UPDATE

The good news this week is how serious everyone is taking the Stay Home Stay Healthy order, and how the curve appears to be flattening in WA. With just six new cases of COVID-19 reported in Kitsap County this week, we're still flattening the curve, but not out of the woods just yet. Learn more about our community health re: coronavirus at the county's website.

STATISTICS

• In the last 7 days:
  • Eleven new listings (up from seven last week)
  • Nine listings reach agreement with buyer and go pending (up from six last week)
  • Nine homes SOLD, most were close to their asking prices (up from eight last week)

PULSE

• Sellers are still preparing for a market sale, despite the restrictions of not having non-essential contractors on site, such as roof cleaners, window washers, painters, etc. Stagers and photographers are now considered essential enough to be back at work, so preparation for listing a home has those services back in play.
• Over the last week, five of the nine homes that went into contract were priced between $1-2M, showing that even the high end homes have buyers confident enough in this market to make purchases.

We will get through this, together.

Life goes on; babies will be born, relocations will happen, and life’s circumstances will still require some folks to move over the next few months. The real estate market on Bainbridge is going to move forward.

If life's circumstances are such that you need to buy or sell property, know that I’m here with my silver-lining mindset, empathic approach and fact-based drive to help you ease the pain points you may be facing.  I’m quick to respond and am just a phone call or a video chat away to help you achieve your goals.

restrictions on real estate activities

The protocols that must be followed for the permitted in-person activities include:

• In-person activities must be by appointment only;
• No more than two people, including the broker, may be at the property at any one time; and
• Those two persons must strictly follow social distancing guidelines established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) by remaining at least six feet apart at all times.

The revisions to the Order are limited to allow the following in-person activities, provided the above protocols are followed:

• Previews and showings of listings by appointment only;
• Listing presentations, photography, and creating virtual tours for new listings [Note: professional photographers are not considered “essential,” thus all photos must be taken by the broker or seller];
• Inspections for pending transactions;
• Appraisals for pending transactions;
• Buyer “walk-throughs” for pending transactions prior to closing; and
• Providing keys to buyers at closing.

COVID-19 Archives

• April 17th
• April 10th 
• April 3rd
• March 27th