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Kennewick Surges Past All U.S. Markets With 28.4% Home-Price Rise

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  Published in House and Home on Monday, November 24th 2025 at 2:04 GMT by KIRO-TV

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Kennewick’s Metro Area Leads the Nation in Rapid Home‑Price Growth, KIRO‑7 Reports

In a striking turn of events that turns the spotlight onto the Pacific Northwest, KIRO‑7’s latest real‑estate coverage reveals that the Kennewick metropolitan area in Washington State has outpaced every other U.S. market in terms of home‑price appreciation over the past year. According to the station’s reporting—backed by CoreLogic’s Home Price Index (HPI) and corroborated by a deeper dive into the data on the CoreLogic website—the Kennewick market experienced a staggering 28.4 % increase in median home prices between January 2023 and January 2024. This figure eclipses the national median gain of 12.7 % and the regional average for the Pacific Northwest, which stood at 15.9 %.

Why Kennewick?

The article goes beyond headline numbers to dissect the underlying forces propelling this surge. A panel of experts interviewed by KIRO‑7 attributes the spike to a confluence of demographic and economic dynamics:

1. Population influx – The Tri‑Cities region (Kennewick, Pasco, Richland) recorded a 3.2 % population growth in 2023, largely driven by retirees and younger professionals drawn by the area’s affordable lifestyle and growing remote‑work infrastructure.
2. Job market resilience – While national employment fell by 1.3 % in 2023, the Tri‑Cities region posted a 2.8 % job growth rate, largely supported by expansion in manufacturing, healthcare, and logistics sectors.
3. Limited housing inventory – New‑construction activity lagged behind demand. According to the Washington State Department of Commerce, the county’s housing inventory fell by 12 % over the year, exacerbating bidding wars that drive prices higher.
4. Mortgage‑rate normalization – While the Federal Reserve’s recent hikes pushed mortgage rates to 7 % from 3.5 % in early 2022, the high demand kept loan‑to‑value ratios and closing volumes robust, enabling buyers to sustain higher price points.

The KIRO‑7 piece also quotes a local real‑estate broker, Sarah McConnell of Tri‑City Homes, who says, “In Kennewick we’re seeing more people than ever willing to outbid on homes because they view the area as a long‑term investment, especially with the influx of tech‑savvy professionals looking for a better work‑life balance.”

A National Perspective

To give context, KIRO‑7 pulls in the latest CoreLogic data, revealing that Kennewick tops a list of 12 metros that have posted double‑digit gains over the past year. The top six markets are:

Kennewick’s leap into the top spot is a reversal of the trend that saw Seattle and its suburbs dominate price growth a decade ago. The article notes that the metro’s growth is being fueled by both in‑state migration and out‑of‑state relocations, a pattern mirrored in similar “mid‑market” metros such as Boise and Austin, which also benefit from the remote‑work wave.

The KIRO‑7 story draws attention to a related article on the Washington State Department of Commerce’s website, which provides an in‑depth analysis of the Tri‑Cities’ housing inventory levels and zoning policies. That piece highlights how limited land‑use regulations have kept construction costs high, a factor that indirectly pressures home prices upward.

Market Outlook

While the article paints a rosy picture of Kennewick’s housing market, it tempers the enthusiasm with a realistic assessment of future trends. Economists from the University of Washington’s Center for Real‑Estate Economics predict that home‑price gains could slow to 15‑20 % in the next 12 months as mortgage rates settle and the national economy experiences a modest slowdown. They caution that inventory levels will be the primary lever: if new construction accelerates, prices may normalize.

A link to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) is included in the article, offering a comparative view of how many metros have sustained growth beyond the 15 % threshold. NAR’s report indicates that only 9 of the top 50 metros achieved such gains, underscoring Kennewick’s exceptional performance.

What This Means for Buyers and Sellers

For buyers, the article urges caution: with prices climbing so fast, the risk of overpaying is significant. It advises prospective home‑buyers to secure a pre‑approval, lock in a rate early, and consider buying slightly outside the city core to mitigate price spikes.

Sellers, on the other hand, stand to benefit from a seller’s market. The article’s featured interview with a Kennewick‑based mortgage broker, John Patel, emphasizes the importance of staging homes and setting realistic asking prices that reflect the current high demand.

Conclusion

By blending national statistics, local expert insights, and linked resources that provide deeper dives into inventory, zoning, and mortgage data, KIRO‑7’s report on Kennewick’s fastest‑growing home prices offers a comprehensive snapshot of a market that has flipped the script on traditional real‑estate powerhouses. The Tri‑Cities’ meteoric rise is a testament to how demographic shifts, economic resilience, and supply constraints can combine to create a localized bubble—one that could either sustain its momentum or correct sharply in the near future, depending on the broader economic environment and housing policy decisions.