November Seattle Condo numbers are in and overall, they look great.  

  • Pending sales were up almost 40% versus the same period last year.  
  • Closed sales soared and were 60% higher than November 2008.  
  • For those buyers who are wondering if this means they have to pay a lot more, you'll be happy to know that prices are 10% lower than a year ago so there's good news for everyone in these numbers.

It's worth noting that the two neighborhoods that are leading this condo recovery are Queen Anne/Magnolia and Capitol Hill.  Queen Anne/Magnolia condo sales were more than double the previous year's November and prices were up 10%.  Capitol Hill condo sales were up almost 80% over November 2008 (though prices were down).

Belltown, while it is lagging in this recovery with "only" 18% more closed sales than the previous year had 10% fewer pending sales and median prices 24% lower than November 2008.  You might assume this is due to the large supply of condos in Belltown/Downtown, but Capitol Hill has just as many condos on the market yet had 50% more sales than Belltown/Downtown did.