The Northwest MLS recently started reporting “keybox activity” for their service area of ~19 counties in Western Washington. This is an indicator of how many buyers and agents are actively showing homes each week, and is a great leading indicator of sales activity.
Not surprisingly, showing activity was strong in February-April and declined in May 2010 with the expiration of the home buyer tax credit. We don’t have a lot of historical data to compare to, but home showing increased by 19% in March-April 2010 compared to February 2010. May saw a 22% decline in showings compared to traffic in March-April.
As of June 13, 2010, here are the number of times that listed homes were accessed throughout Western Washington:
