BELLINGHAM – The median sales price of a Bellingham home surpassed 400-hundred-thousand dollars for the first time in a quarter.

Real Estate expert Troy Muljat says it hit $405,000 in the third quarter, up nearly 9.5 percent from the same time a year earlier.

Home SALES, however, are down more than 20 percent.

Muljat says that’s due to a lack of inventory.

All of Whatcom County saw its median price rise more than 9 percent to $352,000.

The number of homes sold fell more than 8.5 percent countywide.