NWMLS April Market Report: Inventory Surges While Sales Slow and Prices Hold Steady
May 7, 2026
Information and statistics compiled and reported by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.
Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS), the source for the most current, accurate market listing data in Washington state, released its April 2026 Market Snapshot on May 5.
Regional Market Recap
Housing supply continued to expand across the NWMLS service area in April, with active listings rising 28.4% year over year and increasing more than 23% from March as the spring market gained momentum. While inventory expanded, market activity remained mixed: closed sales declined 3.7% year over year, even as showings and keybox accesses increased from both March and April 2025. The median sales price remained unchanged from a year ago at $650,000, reflecting a market with more choices for buyers but continued affordability constraints.
Mortgage rates remained elevated in April, with average rates slightly higher than in March, and the Federal Reserve held short-term rates steady, citing ongoing inflation pressures, including rising energy costs. Ongoing global uncertainty, including the war in Iran, continued to put upward pressure on interest rates and weigh on housing demand.
Steven Bourassa, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research at the University of Washington, said, “We are continuing to see relatively weak demand in the NWMLS market area (as elsewhere in the U.S.), with listings substantially higher than a year earlier, transactions down almost 4%, and median prices unchanged. At the moment, it is difficult to see any improvement on the horizon with the Iran war stuck in a stalemate.”
April 2026 Key Takeaways for King and Kittitas Counties
Active Listings
- Nearly all NWMLS counties experienced year-over-year inventory growth, with 21 of 27 counties posting double-digit increases. The five counties with the largest increases were Snohomish (+58%), Walla Walla (+54%), Okanogan (+52.4%), Skagit (+44.5%), and Thurston (+43.3%).
- Last month the total number of properties listed for sale in King County was 6,163 compared to 4,742 in April 2025. Month over month, active inventory increased by 23.5%, up from 4,990 in March 2026.
- Kittitas County also saw a total increase in active listings month over month and year over year. April 2026 listings totaled 394, and increase from 294 in March 2026 (34%) and from 342 in April 2025 (15.2%).
Closed Sales
- Closed sales decreased in King County by just 3.4% year over year, with 2,053 sales in April 2026 compared to 2,127 in April 2025. Month over month, sales increased 9.3%, up from 1,878 in March 2026.
- Kittitas County saw a 15.5% year-over-year decrease in closed sales from 71 in April 2025 to 60 in April 2026. The increase from March 2026 to April 2026 was 27.6%, from 47 closed sales to 60.
Median Sales Price
- While the median sales price maintained at $650,000 across the whole NWMLS service area, King County saw a decrease in the median sales price for year over year from $907,000 in April 2025 to $859,000 in April 2026 (5.3%). Month over month, the median price also decreased, but only by 0.07% from $859,619 in March 2026.
- In Kittitas County the median sales price was $479,500 in April 2026, up from $460,000 in April 2025 (4.2% YoY). Month to month, the median sales price decreased from $559,000 in March 2026 (14.2%).
Months of Inventory
A balanced market is considered to be 4 to 6 months by most industry experts. At the current rate of sales, it would take a little more than three months (3.27) to sell every home that is active in the NWMLS inventory.
- Kittitas County had 6.6 months of inventory in April 2026, showing a slight advantage to buyers. The year over year increase in months of inventory was 37.5% from 4.8 in April 2025. Month to month, the increase was much smaller at 4.8% up from 6.3.
- By contrast, King County is still a seller's market, showing 3 months of inventory in April 2026, up from 2.2 in April 2025 (36.4%) and up from 2.7 in March 2026 (11.1%).
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As the leading resource for the region’s residential real estate industry, NWMLS provides valuable products and services, superior member support, and the most trusted, current residential property and listing information for real estate professionals. NWMLS is a broker-owned, not-for-profit organization with more than 2,400 member offices and 30,000+ real estate brokers in Washington state and Oregon. NWMLS operates regional service centers throughout its coverage area, providing dedicated support to its members and fostering a robust, cooperative brokerage environment. NWMLS offers a home listing search and comprehensive broker database at nwmls.com.
Washington Center for Real Estate Research
College of Built Environments at The University of Washington WCRER provides a bridge between academic study and research on real estate topics and the professional real estate industries.