The real estate market dominated the news this year, with both national and local coverage. In many parts of the country, 2008 was a disastrous year for sellers. In the West Sound region, the year was hard on sellers, but not as bad as it would sound from the media.

On the other hand, 2008 was a good year for buyers. Inventories increased, price concessions become more common, and mortgage rates remained low. As this is written, the market continues to be good for the savvy buyer. Sellers are worried, most buyers are hesitant, and interest rates are low. All three of these prime factors are in favor of buyers, making an outstanding buying opportunity.

For those that find numbers helpful in describing the real estate market, I've compiled a few statistics shown below:

2008 Sales Levels

NK: 522 homes, down 19% from 2007  

Bainbridge: 187 homes, down 44% from 2007 

SE Jefferson County: 281 homes, down 15% from 2007 

Inventory on December 31

NK: 473 homes, down from a record peak of 616 in July

Bainbridge: 206 homes, down from a record peak of 323 in June

SE Jefferson County: 420 homes, down from a record peak of 535 in August

Months of Inventory as of December 2008

NK: 21 months, up 12% from December 2007

Bainbridge: 16 months, up 19% from December 2007

SE Jefferson County: 45 Months, down 69% from December 2007, though up 119% over September of 2007

Sold homes that were vacant in 2008 (High levels are viewed by some as an indication of seller motivation.)

NK: 246 homes, 47%

Bainbridge: 89 homes, 48%

SE Jefferson County: 118 homes, 42%