Bothell, WA — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·Washington·Bothell

King County · Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue · population 51,770

Bothell, WA
Image: Wikipedia · Bothell, Washington
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
View watchlist →
59
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Bothell stands

Home values down 4.4% in the last year.

Median home $1,067,401
1-year -4.4%
5-yr CAGR +6.1%
vs 5-yr peak -6.5%
Population +1.8%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2022-06$1067k$438k$688k$937k$1187k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
52/100
Somewhat walkable
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
22/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
76/100
Strong remote-work fit
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$2,455/mo$1,837$2,235$2,633202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent135126100120140202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 36.2
Rent

At a 36.2 price-to-rent ratio, renting beats buying in Bothell for most shorter holds. The premium you pay to own would take many years of rent savings to recoup, and that's before maintenance, taxes, and opportunity cost on the down payment.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
28 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
70 · w22%
Distance from peak
56 · w18%
Population growth
77 · w16%
Rent YoY
55 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
83 · w10%
Long thesis

Bothell has held up across the cycle: home values at $1,067,401 with +6.1% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Bothell is down 4.4% over the last 12 months and the trend isn't flattening. Falling knife rule applies: you don't catch one with your hands, you wait for it to hit the floor and stop moving.

About Bothell

Bothell is a city in King County, Washington, with an estimated population of 51,770. It anchors the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area. The population grew 1.8% annually from 2020 to 2024, a moderate gain. The median home value in Bothell is $1,067,401 as of 2026-04, down 4.4% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +6.1% annual growth (-6.5% from the 5-year peak). Rents in Bothell average $2,455 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (+1.5%). The composite momentum score is 59 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

▲ Bull case

●Healthy 5-year run: +6.1% annualized over 5 years, outpacing US inflation.
●Net positive migration: population up 1.8% per year — demand fundamentals are intact.

▼ Bear case

●Expensive AND not growing: median home $1,067,401 with only -4.4% YoY. You’re paying premium pricing for a flat trend.
●Cooling: -4.4% over the trailing year — momentum has stalled.

About Bothell (Wikipedia)

Bothell is a city in King and Snohomish counties in the U.S. state of Washington. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area, situated near the northeast end of Lake Washington in the Eastside region. It had a population of 48,161 residents as of the 2020 census.

Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

City facts

MayorMason Thompson
Area13.64 sq mi
Elevation302 ft
EstablishedApril 14, 1909
MottoWelcome to Bothell for a day, or a lifetime
Density3530.87/sq mi

Extracted from the Wikipedia infobox. Values may be slightly out of date relative to the latest sources.

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for King County right now.

NWS active alerts (WA)Washington Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. King County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Neighborhoods of Bothell

1 tracked · ranked by median home value
1North Creek$937,591-0.8%

Cities like Bothell

Kirkland, WA56 · StableRedmond, WA62 · RisingKenmore, WA55 · StableBellevue, WA55 · Stable

Run the numbers for Bothell

ToolCan I afford Bothell?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Bothell rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Bothell to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolBothell cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
45° / 35°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
77° / 56°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
152
~42% of year
Annual precip
38″ rain
10″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Very low
Tornado
Very low
Wildfire
High
Earthquake
Very high
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Bothell listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
75%
Very humid climate
Median household income
$90,400
Washington state median
Top industries (state-level)
Tech (Amazon/MS)Aerospace (Boeing)Agriculture

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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