Your homes are smoking hot right now Pierce County



TACOMA, Wash. --  Pierce County is the new King County when it comes to how hot the housing market is.

Michael McNiel has been selling homes in Pierce County for nearly two decades.

“It's really changed,” McNiel said.

Tacoma, for example, is bursting with opportunity.

McNiel, the Managing Broker of Windermere Professional Partners, says the standard of life in Tacoma has gone way up.

“The reason why people like the Proctor District is the walkability,” McNiel said.

He gave Q13 News a tour of some of the hottest neighborhoods in Tacoma that included Old Town, Stadium District and the Proctor District, where homes are going anywhere from $450,000 to $650,000.

McNiel says he’s noticed more millennials and those who have retired looking to buy in Pierce County.

“Obviously we are seeing a major migration from Seattle,” McNiel said.

A new Zillow report shows exactly how smoking hot the Pierce County market is becoming.

In 2019, Zillow predicts homes will appreciate by 11.8 percent compare that to just 1 percent in King County.

“It is without a doubt the hottest housing market in the region as we were discussing, perhaps the hottest market on the West Coast,” Aaron Terrazas, a senior economist at Zillow, said.

Terrazas says it's driven by affordability and growth in Pierce County.

“Tacoma is seeing more and more job growth,” Terrazas said.

And Zillow says some areas of Pierce County will see their home values grow more than 11.8 percent.  Places like Tillicum, Lakeview, Lakewood and South Tacoma could see home values grow by more than 15 percent in 2019.

“Yeah we still have multiple offers happening, you do notice that I have a tissue box right there in the back of the car,” McNiel said.

He’s always prepared for that emotional buyer who wants a piece of the best Pierce County has to offer, and many are not focusing on just Tacoma.

“I would say further out even like Spanaway, Graham. The further you go out you tend to get a little better value,” McNiel said.

A better value and more space is never bad.

In December, homes and condos were sold for nearly $729,000 on average in King County. In Pierce County, the average price was around $380,000.