When one hears this question they may think of royalty. Their imagination may take them to images of crowns, palaces and maybe even certain pleasures afforded in the lifestyle of a King. The word ‘king’ for this article is not unfortunately about royalty, but as in the housing market in King County (Seattle MSA) in the State of Washington. Published home prices back in 2017 were the 2nd highest in the U.S. In 2014, Seattle was ranked 10th. Today the availability of housing has increasingly become even more dire with home prices and rents continuing to increase.

Mike Rosenberg, a Seattle Times reporter, has taken on the cause of the learning about the housing market in King County. When he reportedly compared the housing inventory in March 2019 at 2,000 homes available for sale to over the past 20 years at the same time each year, the average housing inventory was at a 7,800 supply level.

If you are a developer and thinking of Seattle to build housing, look westward towards Kitsap County. And, more specifically in the town of Bremerton. It is a short 28-minute ferry ride between Seattle and Bremerton where land is cheaper with far better yields; high demand; and existing occupancies at or near 100% with increasing rental rates.

The moral of the story for the opportunistic developer is, go westward to Bremerton, WA. to make your royalties (yields) and live like a “king”.

The author of this article is Deborah Luedy, a licensed broker and a broker-associate with NAI Capital, Inc. in CA, and the founder of Exclusive C.A.R.E. and provides development opportunities in the City of Bremerton, WA.