BY THE NUMBERS

>> Seven in 10 home buyers from 2021 and 2022 have regrets about their purchase, with 30% saying they spent too much on the property. That’s according to a survey of a thousand buyers by Clever Real Estate, which noted four in 10 respondents paid 21% or more above the asking price. In addition to price, 26% of buyers regretted speeding into the home-buying process without considering the financial implications or ensuring the home was a good fit.

>> In the same survey, of those buyers who financed the home, 40% put a down payment of 20% or less. Another 10% paid all cash for the home, primarily using their savings and investment funds to cover the cost.

>> The median value of a mobile home in the U.S. is $61,400, or $220K less than the median value of a single-family property. The value of a mobile home has increased 35% from 2016 to 2021, virtually the same percentage as values of a single-family home, according to U.S. Census data published by LendingTree. The median value of a mobile home in Washington is $146,500, a 67% increase in the 5 years ending in 2021 and easily the highest value in any state, with Nevada second at $113,500.

>> Lower Q3 home prices have spurred a drop in profit margins for all home sellers. The typical profit made on a home across the U.S. was 55%, down from 58% in Q2 and the largest quarterly downturn since 2011, according to ATTOM Data Solutions. Notably, Seattle metro experienced a 13-percentage-point quarterly drop in profit margin – the percent change between median purchase and resale prices – in Q3 to 74%. That’s the second-sharpest decline of any large market behind San Francisco, which saw a drop of 20 percentage points to a 65% profit margin. ATTOM also said Seattle-area median prices dropped 7.2% from Q2.

>> Just shy of half of all mortgage-bearing residential properties in the U.S. are at or above 50% equity rich, according to Q3 data from ATTOM. The 49% of households with at least half equity in their homes is up from 48% in Q2 and 40% in Q3 of 2021. Washington saw one of the biggest drops in equity-rich households, now at 63% from 61% in Q2. The report also shows that just 3% of mortgaged homes were considered “seriously underwater” in Q3, unchanged from the previous quarter.

>> Seattle/Tacoma ranks 9^th in the nation for “most educated,” according to a report from WalletHub. The personal-finance website reviewed 11 metrics, including the share of adults 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher. Ann Arbor, Mich., topped the list, followed by San Jose/Santa Clara, Calif., and Washington D.C./Alexandria, Va. Portland, Ore./Vancouver, Wash., came in at No. 17.

>> The share of newly built homes that include a patio hit a record in 2021. Of the 1.1M single-family homes started last year, 63% came with patios, according to a survey by the National Association of Home Builders and compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau. The ratio of new homes with a patio was around 45% in 2009 but the figure has risen each year since. The average size of a new patio is a little less than 300 sq. ft.