Published October 25, 2026 in Market Update

Prices are splitting across Mason Co Buy Box

By Thomas Earnest

Real estate, Mason Co Buy Box

The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that U.S. house prices rose 2.6% from July 2025 to July 2026. That sounds like one story. It is not the story in Mason Co Buy Box.

The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 262 homes sold across Mason Co Buy Box in the three months ending August 31, 2026. Behind that one number, prices moved in very different directions by ZIP code.

Where prices rose

Hoodsport (98548) was the strongest gainer. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the median sale price there at $487,500, up 7% from the same three months of 2025. Shelton (98584) was close behind, with a median of $440,000, up 6.8% year over year.

Where prices fell

Grapeview (98546) tells a very different story. The Real Estate Data Aggregator shows the median sale price there dropped 29.9% to $672,500. That is a big drop, though it still left Grapeview as the highest-priced ZIP in the market. Allyn (98524) fell 8.5% to $507,000.

Prices dipped a little in Belfair (98528), down 1.9% to $515,000. Union (98592) slipped 0.9% to $527,500. Elma (98541) fell 3.4% to $425,370. Not every ZIP moved the same way, and not every drop was steep.

Supply is rising in some spots

Allyn (98524) saw the sharpest inventory jump. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 38 homes for sale there, up 100% from a year earlier. Months of supply climbed 4.1 months to reach 5.8 months. More homes and fewer buyers is one reason prices slipped there.

Hoodsport (98548) had 10 months of supply, up 3.7 months from a year ago. Prices rose there anyway, but only 15 homes sold, down 31.8%. That is a thin market: a few sales can swing the median.

Where homes still move quickly

Shelton (98584) and Hoodsport (98548) both had a median of 19 days on market, according to the Real Estate Data Aggregator. That is the fastest in the market. In Shelton, 22.4% of homes sold above list price, up 7.9 points from a year ago.

Union (98592) moved slower at 55 days on market, but 38.1% of its homes went under contract within two weeks of listing. That share rose 9.5 points year over year. Pending sales in Union were up 50% from a year earlier. Speed and price do not always go together.

The national backdrop

Nationally, Realtor.com reported that mortgage rates climbed above 7% for the first time since January 2025. That matters for buyers across every ZIP code here.

Realtor.com also reported that 20.8% of listings nationally took a price cut in September, the highest share since October 2022. That lines up with what the Real Estate Data Aggregator shows in parts of Mason Co Buy Box, where sellers are adjusting.

CNBC reported that a monthly payment on a median-priced home took up roughly 33% of a median family's income in 2025, up from 26% in 2022. Affordability is tighter than it was. That shapes what buyers can offer, and what sellers can expect.