I exclude "back ups requested" in my active/pending calculations. Click on this link to see the latest Lake Forest Park home active/pending ratio report. This is why looking at the pending numbers is important in predicting real estate trends. For example, if you had a client that was trying to buy a home and there were 100 homes for sale (active) on the market and only 10 of them were pending, the ratio would be 10% which would be great for a buyer because they'd have a large selection of inventory with little competition from other buyers. 

If they were selling and there were 100 homes listed and 80 of them were pending, the would be in a very good market for selling because this would be an 80% ratio market. This would reflect that there were a lot of buyers consuming the listings on the market (something we haven't seen for several years now). 

If you're a buyer and the pending number is very high, this shows a lot of competition but the inverse is also true. If you're a buyer and the pending number s are low, you can negotiate a lower price with a higher chance of success in doing so. But if you're selling, a low pending number means you need to look at your list price and consider being more competitive.

Pending numbers are a critical part of reading any real estate market. Without them, you're simply tracking the past, not the NOW of the market. To be fully informed, you must look at all aspects of the market that showcase supply and demand. Listings show supply, pendings show demand, and closings show historical sales. Pending sales are a great way to study consumer confidence and concern. Pending numbers react immediately to the state of consumer confidence and Lake Forest Park homes are no exception. 

Another great resource for tracking Lake Forest Park home trends on a regional scale compared to other areas of the country, click here.  If you have further questions, please visit my website, email me, or call 206-264-5145.