Within two years, finding a North Olympic Peninsula home for $100,000 or less could become the impossible dream, real estate experts say.
In Port Townsend and parts of Jefferson County, it’s already a reality.
The Sequim-Dungeness Valley’s $100,000-or-less home market is drying up faster than the rainshadow in August.
And the Port Angeles area is not far behind.
Modest-income families hoping to land an affordable home and leave their rentals behind will likely face tough times ahead in any area west of Freshwater Bay.
“First-time homebuyers are looking at $140,000 homes to start,” Karen Carr, incoming president of the Jefferson County Association of Realtors, said of prices in the Port Townsend area.
“It’s scary.”
Judy Beier, outgoing president of the Sequim Association of Realtors, said 2002 saw home prices in the Sequim-Dungeness market jump 15 percent compared with 2001’s prices.
“For a while, I see prices getting up to where no one can afford them — and that disturbs me,” Beier said.
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