Moving to Mercer Island, WA — Cost, Timing, Best-For

What to know before you move: cost, market timing, who it fits.

52
Momentum score
$2,341,751
Median home value
-1.9%
Home YoY
25,302
Population

If you're considering a move to Mercer Island, WA, the most important variables are the local housing market, the cost structure (taxes, insurance, utilities), and how well the city fits your day-to-day life. This page summarizes the housing market read; pair it with the cost of living page for the full picture.

Mercer Island is a city in King County, Washington, with an estimated population of 25,302. It anchors the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area. The median home value in Mercer Island is $2,341,751 as of 2026-04, down 1.9% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +4.9% annual growth (-7.2% from the 5-year peak). Rents in Mercer Island average $2,613 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (+0.0%). The composite momentum score is 52 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

Sideways market (-1.9% YoY). No urgency to time the macro trend — focus on the home and neighborhood.

Reasons people move here

  • The data is the data: Mercer Island has at least 5 years of Zillow tracking, full Census identification, and is included in the 1-criteria momentum score on this page.
  • Data is sourced from public datasets (Zillow, US Census) with full citations on the methodology page.

Things to know first

  • Expensive AND not growing: median home $2,341,751 with only -1.9% YoY. You're paying premium pricing for a flat trend.
  • Flat or shrinking population: -0.4% per year. Housing demand has to come from somewhere — verify the source.

More about Mercer Island

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