Where Were Buyers Competing in King County? A Closer Look at June 2026

By Brandice Raybourn | Coldwell Banker Danforth

More than a quarter of the King County homes in this June analysis sold above asking. But that doesn't mean buyers were competing equally everywhere.

In some parts of Seattle, homes were selling substantially above asking within days. Shoreline and Lake Forest Park also had notable concentrations of above asking sales. Meanwhile, several Eastside markets had far fewer homes selling above asking even though their prices were considerably higher.

That is why I wanted to look beyond the King County average.

I analyzed 1,742 residential sales that closed throughout King County in June 2026 to see where buyers were actually competing, where they had more room to negotiate, how quickly homes moved and how those patterns changed by location, price range and housing type.

Because a King County market statistic covering everything from Federal Way to Seattle to Bellevue isn't necessarily describing the market a particular buyer or seller is experiencing.

First, What Happened Across King County?

Of the 1,742 June sales in this analysis:

454 sold above asking, 430 sold at asking and 858 sold below asking.

That's about 26.1% above asking, 24.7% at asking and 49.3% below asking.

Market time tells another part of the story.

Homes that eventually sold above asking had a median of just 5 cumulative days on market. Homes that sold at asking also had a median of 5 days.

Homes that eventually sold below asking took a median of 27 days.

So while almost half of the June sales ultimately closed below asking, the homes attracting stronger competition tended to find their buyer much faster.

Once we get into the individual areas, though, the differences become much more interesting.

Under $700,000, Competition Wasn't Limited to Seattle

There were 378 sales under $700,000 in the June analysis.

Of those, 107 sold above asking, or 28.3%.

Some of the strongest concentrations in this price range showed up in South King County.

In the Federal Way area, there were 14 sales under $700,000 in this particular group and 9 sold above asking.

The Kent area had 14 sales in the same price range, with 6 selling above asking.

The Maple Valley area had 12, with 5 above asking.

Those aren't tiny one or two sale examples. There were enough transactions in each group to see that competition under $700,000 was showing up well outside Seattle.

But even within those competitive groups, “above asking” could mean very different things.

Some homes finished only modestly above their asking price, while others were tens of thousands over. In the Kent group, one sale finished $61,500 above asking.

That's why I don't think an above asking percentage by itself tells the whole story.

Between $700,000 and $1.05 Million Was the Most Competitive Price Range

This was the largest June price range in the analysis, with 533 sales.

Of those, 166 sold above asking, or 31.1%.

That was the highest above asking share of the four price ranges I analyzed.

And this is where Seattle's neighborhood differences really start showing up.

Beacon Hill and Greenwood Both Had Active Competition

The Beacon Hill area of Seattle had 11 sales in this price range. Five sold above asking.

Two of those finished at least 5% above asking, and the largest difference was $105,100 over asking.

The Greenwood area of Seattle had 16 sales between $700,000 and $1.05 million. Five sold above asking there as well, including two that finished at least 5% over.

Then there was Ballard.

There were 22 Ballard sales in this price range. Five sold above asking.

One of those sales finished $190,000 above asking.

That doesn't mean a Ballard buyer should assume they need to offer $190,000 over. It shows why I want the individual sales visible on the map. A neighborhood can contain homes that generate very different levels of competition even within the same general price range.

Genesee Looked Completely Different in This Small Group

The Genesee area of Seattle had four sales between $700,000 and $1.05 million in this analysis.

All four sold above asking.

The group was small, but that's still worth noticing. The median cumulative market time was just four days.

Nearby markets weren't necessarily behaving the same way.

That is one of the things that becomes obvious when you stop treating “Seattle” as a single housing market.

North King County Had Some of June's Most Concentrated Competition

North King County really stood out when I looked at the June numbers.

Across all price ranges, Shoreline had 39 analyzed sales and 19 sold above asking.

That's 48.7%.

Lake Forest Park had 15 sales and 8 sold above asking, or 53.3%.

Kenmore had 28 sales and 9 sold above asking, or 32.1%.

And these weren't all sales that barely crossed the asking price.

Seven Shoreline sales finished at least 5% above asking. Four Lake Forest Park sales did the same, as did six in Kenmore.

The individual areas add even more context.

Within the Shoreline area, 7 of 12 sales sold above asking.

In the $700,000 to $1.05 million range specifically, four of seven Shoreline area sales finished above asking.

The Lake Forest Park area had four sales in that same price range, and three sold above asking.

So if a buyer was shopping north of Seattle in June, the countywide statistic that roughly one quarter of King County sales went above asking may not have reflected what they were encountering at all.

From $1.05 Million to $1.35 Million, Seattle Competition Became Very Neighborhood Specific

There were 267 sales between $1.05 million and $1.35 million.

Of those, 59 sold above asking, or 22.1%.

That was lower than the two less expensive price ranges, but there were still neighborhoods where competition was substantial.

The Greenwood area of Seattle had four sales in this range and two sold above asking. Both of those above asking sales finished at least 5% over, including one that sold $235,000 above asking.

The Seaview area of Seattle also had four sales, with two above asking. Both were at least 5% over, with one reaching $130,000 above asking.

In the Sunset Hill area of Seattle, two of four sold above asking. One of those finished $275,000 over asking.

The Loyal Heights area of Seattle had the same two out of four split, and both of its above asking sales were at least 5% over.

The Ravenna area of Seattle had five sales in this price range. Two sold above asking, and both were at least 5% over.

So while the countywide above asking share dropped in this price range, competition certainly hadn't disappeared.

It was becoming much more dependent on the individual neighborhood and home.

At $1.35 Million and Above, Some of June's Biggest Competitive Sales Appeared

There were 564 sales at $1.35 million and above in the June analysis.

Of those, 122 sold above asking, or 21.6%.

More than half of the sales in this price range actually finished below asking.

But this is also where some of the most dramatic competitive sales appeared.

Madrona, Laurelhurst and Wallingford Stand Out

The Madrona area of Seattle had eight sales at $1.35 million and above.

Five sold above asking.

One finished $240,000 above asking.

The Laurelhurst area of Seattle had eight sales in this price range. Four sold above asking, and three of those finished at least 5% over.

One Laurelhurst sale closed $525,000 above asking.

In the Wallingford area of Seattle, three of six sales sold above asking. All three were at least 5% over, including one that finished $201,000 above asking.

The North Beach area of Seattle had five sales, with three above asking.

And Queen Anne had 16 sales at $1.35 million and above, with five selling above asking. Three of those finished at least 5% over.

So the luxury and upper price ranges weren't universally competitive. Far from it.

But certain Seattle neighborhoods were still producing some very aggressive buyer behavior.

The Eastside Wasn't One Market Either

This is another part of the data I found really interesting.

You might expect higher priced Eastside markets to automatically have some of the county's highest above asking percentages.

That wasn't necessarily the case in June.

Across all price ranges, Bellevue had 120 sales in this analysis and 16 sold above asking, or 13.3%.

Kirkland had 90 sales and 9 sold above asking, or 10%.

Redmond had 57 sales and 6 above asking, or 10.5%.

Compare that with 30.1% of analyzed Seattle sales, 48.7% in Shoreline and 53.3% in Lake Forest Park.

But again, the citywide numbers can hide what was happening inside individual areas.

Bellevue Had Its Own Competitive Pockets

The Woodridge area of Bellevue had five sales at $1.35 million and above, and three sold above asking.

One finished $125,000 over asking.

The Lake Hills area of Bellevue had eight sales in that price range. Three sold above asking, including one that closed $225,000 over asking.

And one West Bellevue sale in the June data finished $250,050 above asking.

So saying “Bellevue had fewer above asking sales” isn't the same thing as saying buyers weren't competing in Bellevue.

Competition was simply more concentrated.

Kirkland Had an Extreme Example Too

Kirkland's overall above asking share was only 10%, but the individual sales still included some very competitive outcomes.

One sale in the Juanita area of Kirkland closed $550,000 above asking after five cumulative days on market.

Again, that is one transaction, not a description of Juanita as a whole.

But it illustrates something important about this dataset: a market can have relatively few above asking sales overall while individual homes still generate intense competition.

South King County Had Plenty of Competition Too

I don't want this report to turn into a Seattle and Eastside story, because the June data doesn't support that.

Auburn had 59 analyzed sales, with 21 above asking, or 35.6%.

Federal Way had 61 sales, with 20 above asking, or 32.8%.

Kent had 73 sales, with 21 above asking, or 28.8%.

Burien had 22 sales, with 8 above asking, or 36.4%.

The dollar amounts were often different from the large six figure over asking sales showing up in some Seattle neighborhoods, but the competition was absolutely present.

And for buyers working at lower price points, these areas represented a meaningful share of the county's competitive sales.

That's another reason “where are the bidding wars?” can't really be answered with a single city name.

They were happening in different forms across the county.

Housing Type Was One of the Clearest Dividing Lines

Just like we saw in Snohomish County, housing type changed the picture considerably.

There were 1,506 residential resale sales in the June King County analysis.

Of those, 433 sold above asking, or 28.8%.

Townhouses were very different.

Among 142 townhouse sales, only 11 sold above asking, or 7.7%. Forty six sold at asking and 85 sold below.

New construction showed a similar pattern.

Among 145 new construction sales, only 13 sold above asking, or 9.0%. Sixty two sold at asking and 70 sold below.

That is a huge distinction.

A buyer looking at a resale house in a competitive Seattle neighborhood could have been experiencing multiple offer pressure while another buyer shopping for a townhouse or new construction home elsewhere in King County had considerably more room.

Both buyers were technically shopping in the same county during the same month.

Their markets weren't remotely identical.

Explore the June 2026 King County Sales

The interactive map below contains the 1,742 King County sales included in this June analysis.

You can explore where homes sold above asking, where buyers negotiated below asking and how quickly homes attracted the offer that ultimately led to closing.

You can also narrow the map by price range and housing type and click individual markers to see the area, sold price, difference from asking and cumulative days on market.

Locations are generalized to the neighborhood or area level rather than exact property addresses.