Third quarter Skagit County home sales

(SKAGIT COUNTY)- Skagit County home sales reversed direction in the third quarter but the prices of those sales inched higher, according to a local real estate report.

The number of Skagit County homes sold in the three months ending Sept. 30 fell 14.5% to 379 in comparison to last year’s third quarter, according to Adrik Brashear, a broker with Northwest Washington’s The Muljat Group. The decline followed increases of 28.9% and 10.1% in the first two quarters of this year, he added. Among communities, Sedro-Woolley was the exception with an increase of 15.3% in homes sold, according to a news release.

The median sales price of Skagit homes that were sold in the third quarter rose 1.6% to $597,500, Brashear said. Anacortes continues to have the highest median sales price among communities, rising 8.9% to $735,000.

Brashear, who prepared a report based on data from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, said 30-year mortgage rates have been declining to around 6%, which may entice some buyers to resume their home search.

“Historically fall/winter are slower months in our industry but if rates continue to stay ideal for homebuyers, I predict these next 3-6 months will stay relatively steady,” Brashear said.