Kelso, WA 98626 housing market
Data through Aug 2026 · Balanced market · leverage 49
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Home Value
$387,462
−0.2% vs. a year ago
Buyer Leverage Score
49
Sep 2026
Months of Supply
2.7 months
Aug 2026
Days on Market
52 days
Sep 2026
Price Cut %
30%
Sep 2026
Sale-to-List Ratio
99.1%
Aug 2026
Mtg Payment as % of Income
38%
Aug 2026
Rental Rate
$1,462/mo
Aug 2026
Overvalued %
39%
Aug 2026
Expected Disaster Loss
$329
Dec 2025
What this means
- Valuation. Prices are 39% above what local incomes have historically supported (this area's pre-2020 price-to-income ratio).
- Prices. Home values are flat over the past year (U.S.: +1.2%).
- Supply. There are 17% more homes for sale than the 2017-19 norm and falling (−19% vs. a year ago), so buyers have more to choose from than before the pandemic.
- Negotiating. Buyer leverage is moderate (49/100; U.S.: 54): homes sell for about 0.9% below their final list price; 30% of listings had a price cut (U.S.: 26%).
- Affordability. A mortgage on the typical home takes 38% of the median household income (U.S.: 35%); it takes about $96k a year to keep the payment at 30% of gross pay. That includes about $1,357 a year for home insurance (U.S.: $1,790).
- Buy vs. rent. Buying costs about $947/mo more than renting a typical home (mortgage payment vs. typical rent).
- Disaster risk. FEMA expects about $329 a year in natural-disaster damage per $100k of building value (U.S.: $155), mostly from flooding. Flood isn't covered by standard homeowners insurance.
- Outlook. Leaning up: likely −7% to +10% over the next 12 months (67% chance of a rise).
Next 12 months
Leaning up
Prices are more likely to rise than fall over the next year. Likely change: −6.7% to +9.6% (80% range; middle estimate +2.6%), chance of a rise 67%, of a 5%+ drop 13%.
HouseVane's model, refit every month on local market signals and national ones, trained only on data known at the time. How accurate it has been.
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Other ZIP codes in Cowlitz County, WA
| Area | Home value | 1-year change | Buyer leverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Longview, WA 98632 | $385.9K | −0.1% | 53 |
| Woodland, WA 98674 | $588.2K | +1.8% | 90 |
| Castle Rock, WA 98611 | $478.8K | +1.1% | 84 |
| Kalama, WA 98625 | $541.4K | 0.0% | 82 |
| Silverlake, WA 98645 | $482.2K | +0.2% | 65 |
| Cougar, WA 98603 | $556.3K | +4.2% | 88 |
| Toutle, WA 98649 | $500.1K | +2.6% | 96 |
| Ryderwood, WA 98581 | $265.7K | −1.6% | 30 |
| ZIP 98609 | – | – | 13 |