A market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA is a block-level review of recent comparable sales, active listings, and days on market that produces one defensible number. Beacon Hill's median sale price is about $715,000, but the right price for a single home often sits well above or below it.
Most people arrive at my office with the same question asked two different ways. Buyers want to know whether a listing is worth what it is asking. Sellers want to know what their house will actually bring.
Both questions share an answer, and it does not come from a home value website. It comes from sales within a few blocks of the property, adjusted for view, lot, and condition.
I have run that work on this hill for more than 30 years from an office at 4037 24th Pl S. The comparable homes I use are usually houses I have walked through myself. Here is what goes into a market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA and how you can put the result to work.
What a Market Analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA Actually Measures
Agents call this a comparative market analysis, often shortened to CMA. In plain terms, it is a written comparison between the home in question and similar homes nearby that recently sold.
Three types of properties go into it. Closed sales tell you what buyers have already paid. Pending sales show where the market is heading right now. Active listings show what your home or your offer will be competing against this weekend.
Each comparable home then gets adjusted. A larger lot adds value, while a shared driveway or a busy arterial subtracts it. Those adjustments are the part a formula cannot do well, and they are where a market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA earns its keep.
The output is not a single figure. Instead you get a range, a recommended position within that range, and the reasoning that supports both.
Why Does a Market Analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle Need Block-Level Comps?
Beacon Hill is not one market. It behaves like three, and the price differences between them are real money.
North Beacon Hill holds the walkable commercial core along Beacon Avenue S, close to the light rail station, Musang, and Bar Del Corso. Mid-Beacon Hill runs quieter and more residential. South Beacon Hill carries the larger lots and the softer entry prices.
View corridors cut across all three. A home with a clean sightline to the downtown skyline or the Olympics from a Dr. Jose Rizal Park vantage carries a premium. A nearly identical house one street east, looking at a hedge, does not.
Slope matters just as much. Flat, usable yard is scarce on this hill, so a level lot near Jefferson Park or the Beacon Food Forest reads differently to buyers than a steep one. My block-by-block guide to lot sizes and views shows where those gaps sit, and my north versus south price comparison puts numbers to the sub-area spread.
Walk time to Beacon Hill Station belongs in the analysis too. That platform puts a rider downtown in roughly ten minutes on the 1 Line, and buyers pay for short walks. Metro routes 36, 60, 107, and 124 fill in the gaps for blocks farther from the station.
The Numbers Behind Every Market Analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA
Every analysis starts from the same neighborhood baseline. These figures describe the hill as a whole, and your property will sit above or below each one.
| Beacon Hill Input | Current Reading | How It Shapes the Analysis |
|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | About $715,000 | Sets the starting bracket, then block-level comps move the number from there |
| Year-over-year change | Up about 3.6 percent | Steady growth means sales from six months ago still hold up as comparables |
| Median price per square foot | About $450 | The sanity check when the subject home is larger or smaller than nearby sales |
| Average days on market | 27 days | A listing sitting well past this mark is usually priced above its block |
| Sale-to-list price ratio | About 100 percent | Accurate prices get met here, so the analysis has to be right the first time |
| Typical offers per home | About two | Competition is real but narrow, which rewards precise pricing over ambitious pricing |
| Walk Score and Transit Score | 78 and 68 | Walkable blocks near Beacon Avenue S support adjustments over quieter southern streets |
You can review the underlying neighborhood figures at Redfin's Beacon Hill housing market page, and the walkability ratings at Walk Score. For a seasonal read on the same data, my Beacon Hill market report breaks the trends down month by month.
Wondering where your own block sits in that picture? I am glad to run a market analysis for your address and walk you through it, with no obligation attached. Reach me at (206) 854-4468.
Step by Step: How I Build a Market Analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA
The process is deliberately repeatable. Six steps, in this order, every time.
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Walk the property. I look at condition, light, layout, yard usability, and the view from the main living space. Why it matters: these are the details that separate two homes with identical square footage by $80,000 or more.
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Pull closed sales within a short radius. I want three to six sales from the past six months, ideally on your side of the hill. Why it matters: a market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA built from Columbia City or Georgetown sales describes a different market than yours.
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Adjust each comparable. Lot size, view, parking, basement condition, and finish level all get a dollar value. Why it matters: raw sale prices without adjustments are just trivia.
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Layer in pending and active listings. Pendings show current buyer behavior, and actives show your direct competition. Why it matters: closed sales are history, while pendings are the present tense.
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Set the range and the position. I give you a low, a likely, and a stretch number, then recommend where to land. Why it matters: a range without a recommendation leaves the hardest decision on your desk.
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Review it together in plain language. We go through the comps, the adjustments, and the reasoning line by line. Why it matters: a number you understand is a number you can defend in a negotiation.
Sellers usually pair the result with a preparation plan, which I cover in my Beacon Hill seller services guide. Buyers usually pair it with an offer strategy.
How Buyers Use a Market Analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle to Write an Offer
Buyers often assume this work is only for sellers. In practice a market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA is what keeps a buyer from overpaying on a listing that was priced optimistically.
The listing price is an opinion. Your analysis is the check on that opinion. Here is how the common situations tend to read.
| What the Analysis Shows | What It Usually Means | A Reasonable Response |
|---|---|---|
| Listed below block comps | The seller is inviting competition, or there is a condition issue | Move quickly, inspect carefully, and expect a second bidder |
| Listed at block comps | The listing is priced accurately for the market | Offer at or near list, and compete on terms rather than price alone |
| Listed above block comps | The seller is testing the market | Offer from the comps and show the seller the same data I showed you |
| Sitting past 27 days | The price is out of step with the block | Negotiate with more room than a fresh listing would allow |
| Priced right with strong prep | Two or more offers are likely this weekend | Write your strongest terms up front rather than planning to counter |
One more benefit is quieter. An offer supported by comparable sales tends to survive the appraisal that follows, because both are reading the same neighborhood evidence. My Beacon Hill buyer representation guide covers how that offer gets structured.
What a Market Analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA Cannot Tell You
Being straight about the limits keeps the tool useful. Data describes the market, yet people still make the decisions.
An analysis cannot read seller motivation. It cannot see the private sale that never hit the MLS. It also cannot predict the buyer who falls for your kitchen and pays more than the numbers suggest.
Families weighing schools add another variable. Beacon Hill International School, Kimball Elementary, Mercer International Middle School, and Cleveland High School STEM all serve parts of the hill, and attendance boundaries shape demand block by block. Buyers with a specific school in mind often stretch beyond what the comps predict.
Community pull works the same way. El Centro de la Raza, the Jefferson Park Jubilee, and the trails through Cheasty Greenspace are reasons people choose this neighborhood and stay for decades. Numbers cannot fully price that, though 30 years of watching the pattern gets close.
Frequently Asked Questions About Market Analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA
What is a market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA?
A market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA is a written review of recent sales, current listings, and pending sales near a specific property. Each of those homes is adjusted for differences in view, lot, square footage, and condition. The result is a price range rather than a single guess, along with the reasoning behind it. Agents often call this a comparative market analysis, or CMA.
How is a market analysis different from a Zillow or Redfin estimate?
Automated estimates read public records and past sales through a formula. They cannot see that one house looks at the downtown skyline while the house behind it looks at a retaining wall. A market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA is built after someone walks the property and the comparable homes. On a hill with this much block-to-block variation, that difference regularly runs into six figures.
How many comparable sales does a Beacon Hill market analysis use?
I generally want three to six closed sales from the past six months, all within a short walk of the subject home. Fewer than three leaves the range too wide to trust. When Beacon Hill inventory is thin, I widen the time window before I widen the map, because sub-area boundaries matter more here than the calendar does.
Does a market analysis in Beacon Hill, Seattle, WA cost anything?
No. I provide the analysis at no cost and with no obligation to list or to buy. Plenty of the ones I run are for owners who are two or three years away from selling and simply want an accurate picture. That early conversation usually leads to better decisions than a rushed one does.
How often should a Beacon Hill market analysis be updated?
Refresh it every 60 to 90 days while you are actively planning, and again in the week before you list or make an offer. Beacon Hill values moved about 3.6 percent over the past year, so a stale analysis drifts quietly rather than dramatically. A handful of new closings on your block can still change the range.
Can a market analysis help a buyer decide how much to offer in Beacon Hill?
Yes, and that is one of its most useful jobs. Beacon Hill homes sell at roughly 100 percent of list price with about two offers each, so the goal is a number that competes without overreaching. The analysis shows whether a listing is priced under, at, or above its block, which tells you where your offer needs to land.