The number of home sales in Washington state set a record last year despite the economic aftereffects of Sept. 11 a recent report shows.
The Washington Center for Real Estate Research says low mortgage rates and increased housing affordability offset economic uncertainty to push home sales in 2001 up by 5,000 over the last record year, 1999.
In all, 125,000 existing homes were sold in Washington last year, according to the research center, which is based at Washington State University.