By Logan Riely, Seattle Times

The 24th Annual Gingerbread Village was unveiled Monday at the Sheraton Seattle Hotel lobby. Creations were inspired by scenes from the wizarding world.

The event came together with more than 1,000 volunteer hours, an estimated 1,200 pounds of dough, 800 pounds of icing, 200 pounds of white chocolate, 250 pounds of almond paste, and hundreds of pounds of candy.

By MBAKS Senior Policy Analyst Allison Butcher

At the end of the first quarter of 2018, King County is leading the way in building permit activity in the region, with single family permits up 19 percent and multifamily permits up 25 percent compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, single-family permits have dropped 19 percent in Snohomish County and multifamily permits are down 58 percent year-over-year.  For the three-county region as a whole (King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties), permits are up 7 percent and 9 percent, respectively.

The Builders' Bulletin is intended to provide a convenient way to track housing in our market and includes information from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, State of the Cities Data Systems, Office of Financial Management and the Washington State Employment Security Department.

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By Margo Greenman, 425 Business

With inventory down 25 percent, home values and rents both increasing, and more people moving to the region, the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties said the local housing market is struggling with a housing affordability crisis.

"Despite efforts to add more housing, including a rise in apartment home construction in the region, the demand for housing has significantly outpaced supply," Master Builders Association executive director Shannon Affholter said in a press release. "Lack of buildable land and other barriers to new home construction have contributed significantly to escalating housing costs and a housing supply shortage in King and Snohomish counties. Unfortunately, this is making it harder for families and workers to find attainable housing near job centers."