Thank you for commenting on our YouTube video about the zip codes that we are investing in. If you've been watching any of our videos, you probably know that my absolute favorite play right now is the ADU and the DADU play. For this, we love finding properties that have big side yards or alley access. Those seem to work the easiest. We have been buying homes below the median price in those areas and then building these.
We are also in love with middle housing AKA duplexes, four-plexes, and six-plexes.
One of our big personal goals for 2026 is to sell some of our underperforming or good performing properties with high equity and roll them into these styles of projects for higher cash flow, more appreciation, and more return on equity.
Here is the current list of zip codes that we are specifically looking in, where we have active projects or we are making offers right now:
I live in Snohomish County, so let's be blunt, it's absolutely the easiest for me to simply invest here. This is where my network is the biggest and the strongest.
Real Estate Market Analysis: A Tale of Two Markets
We are looking at a "tale of two markets" across the Seattle Metro. While the high level numbers might suggest stability, the ground truth revealed in the data shows a cooling Eastside contrasted with a resilient, accelerating urban core and southern fringe.
Regional Performance Breakdown
When we group these zip codes by region, a clear hierarchy of price and performance emerges for 2025:
The Eastside: Median sales price of $1,640,000. This region saw a YTD decline of 1.02% and a December drop of 5.67%, signaling a cooling trend.
Seattle Proper: Median sales price of $925,000. Performance was up 2.86% YTD with a heating momentum of 4.63% in December.
Snohomish County: Median sales price of $775,000. This area remained stable with a 1.35% YTD increase.
South King County: Median sales price of $700,000. This market is heating up with a 1.73% YTD increase and a strong 4.82% jump in December.
Thurston County: Median sales price of $572,000. This is the region's current growth engine, surging with 3.84% YTD growth and a massive 7.19% December spike.
Pierce County: Median sales price of $560,000. This remains a stable market with 2.01% YTD growth.
Understanding Market Momentum
Momentum tells us how the market finished the year compared to its overall annual performance.
Heating Markets (Finishing Strong) Bothell (98011) is a prime example. Despite being down 6% for the year, it saw a 54.9% price spike in December. This typically suggests a sudden clearing of high end inventory. Similarly, Seattle (98148) in the Burien area jumped 55.8% in December, and Tacoma (98443) saw a late year rally of 45.9%.
Cooling Markets (Correcting Sharply) On the flip side, Steilacoom (98388) saw a 74.4% drop in December compared to the previous year. In Seattle's Queen Anne and South Lake Union (98109), prices were down 39.7% in December despite being flat for the year, likely due to an oversupply of luxury units or condos.
The Luxury Skew: Don't Get Fooled by Averages
When you see the average sales price significantly higher than the median, it means a few super sales are inflating the numbers. In Vaughn (98394), the average price is 66% higher than the median ($1M vs $600k). If you are looking in Vaughn or Gig Harbor (98335), do not trust average price trends. The market is being skewed by waterfront estates, while the typical home is much more affordable. For predictability, Pierce and Thurston counties have the lowest skew at roughly 10%, making them more consistent for investors.
The Big Three Luxury Hubs
Our primary luxury markets showed varied results in 2025:
Medina (98039): $4.55M Median. Virtually flat at 0.9% YTD growth, showing high end stability.
Bellevue (98004): $3.57M Median. Solid 4.2% YTD growth despite the general Eastside dip.
Mercer Island (98040): $2.50M Median. Modest 1.9% YTD growth.
Strategies for 2026
The Thurston Wave Buyers are being pushed south for affordability. Olympia (98506) saw 14% YTD growth and is likely the next hot zone for 2026.
Eastside Value Opportunities With contractions in Bellevue (98005) and Sammamish (98075), 2026 may be the first time in years that buyers have real leverage on the Eastside.
Urban Resilience Contrary to "doom loop" narratives, Seattle Proper outperformed the wealthy Eastside suburbs in 2025.