Portland Market Stats

The Regional Multiple Listing Service released the numbers for July 2015 last week.  There are a few items to note.

Inventory remains quite low.  At our current rate of sales, it would only take us 1.7 months to sell all the homes currently on the market.  This is for the whole Portland metro area.  In Portland's close-in neighborhoods, inventory continues to be a real challenge.  In the 97214 zip code, there are currently 19 houses on the market, ranging from $389,900 to $825,000, with a median price of $660,000.  And in the 97232 zip code, there are currently 11 houses on the market, ranging from $349,000 to $849,000, at a median price of $669,950.

With short inventory comes shorter market times.  In July, houses that closed had been on the market an average of 45 days, compared to 57 days in 2014. In Portland's east side neighborhoods we are seeing market times of 23 days in North Portland, 25 days in NE Portland and 32 days in SE Portland.  These market times are from the time a listing becomes active in RMLS, until an offer is accepted and the listing status becomes pending.

We're doing a pretty large volume of business. July 2015 had the most closings of any July on record, with 3452 closings, up 28% from July 2014.  Wow.

We're still seeing plenty of buyers entering the market as we head toward fall, and usually see a flurry of activity as the holidays draw near. If you've been thinking of buying or selling, there is still time to get it done before the end of the year.  Get in touch and I'd be glad to outline first steps.  leslievjones@gmail.com  503-312-8038

Read the full Portland report.

Fall is for buying (and planting)

The RMLS just released the statistics for the month of September, and they reflect what we've been seeing in my office. We continue to see increases in activity; the amount of pending and closed sales.  There were 10.6% more accepted offers in September 2012 than in September 2011. Though we are seeing a bit of seasonal slowing with 13.8% fewer pending sales, in September 2012 than in August 2012. Similarly, closed sales were up 19.4% in September 2012 when compared to September  2011, but down  18.0% from August 2012.

Prices continue to show gains.  The median year to date sales price rose 3.8% when comparing September 2012 to September 2011; $230,420 compared with a median year to date sales price of $222,000 in 2011. 

Inventory, the number of homes available on the market, is bumping along, slightly higher in September 2012 at 4.6 months than August's low of 3.9 months.  That is, at our current rate of sales, it would take 4.6 months to sell all available properties.  This is still quite low, with a balanced market thought to be somewhere around 6 months. We continue to see multiple offers and very short market times for well priced properties in good condition.

So far in October, we are seeing the predicted seasonal slowing.  Indeed, most of my current buyer clients right now are investors. Still reasonable prices, low interest rates, Portland's low vacancy rates and dismal investment returns from other investment vehicles, make buying that rental house or plex kind of attractive. In addition, buyers who REALLY want to be in their new homes by Christmas are pretty motivated too.

I'd be glad to talk with you about what is happening in your neighborhood.  Give me a call at 503-312-8038 or email me at leslievjones@gmail.com.

Read the full RMLS market report.

How's the Market? Hopping!

The RMLS just released the statistics for the month of July, and holy cow, the market looks as busy as I 've been.  We continue to see pretty big increases in activity; the amount of pending and closed sales.  There were 23% more accepted offers in July 2012 than in July 2011, though  2.6% less than in June 2012.  Similarly, closed sales were up 15.4% in July 2012 when compared to July 2011.

Prices continue to show gains.  The median sales price rose 7.8% when comparing July 2012 to July 2011, with the median price in the Portland area being $245,000 in July 2012 as compared to $227,200 in July 2011.

Inventory, the number of homes available on the market, has increased a wee bit such that we now have  4.6 months of inventory.  That is, at our current rate of sales, it would take 4.6 months to sell all available properties.  This is the lowest our inventory in any July since July 2006.

In the coming months, I expect we'll see a wee bit of  normal seasonal slowing in August and early September, followed by some healthy sales activity from mid-September to Thanksgiving.  There are often  pretty good deals to be had in the fall; folks who tried to sell in the spring, but somehow missed out.  Getting a sale closed before the holiday can be sort of a last ditch effort.  Many investors make a habit of buying in the fall.  Similarly, buyers who REALLY want to be in their new homes by Christmas can be pretty motivated buyers.

I'd be glad to talk with you about what is happening in your neighborhood.  Give me a call at 503-312-8038 or email me at leslievjones@gmail.com.

Read the full Portland report from RMLS.

How's the Market?

The Portland real estate market continues to show improvement, according to the recently released RMLS statistics.  We've been seeing pretty big increases in activity; the amount of pending and closed sales.  There were 16.4% more accepted offers in May 2012 than in May 2011, and 6.65% more than in April 2012.  Similarly, closed sales were up 20.4% in May 2012 when compared to May 2011, and up 15.1% higher in May 2012 than in April 2012.

Prices are showing slighter and slower gains, but are showing gains, nonetheless.  The median sales price rose 6.6% when comparing May 2012 to May 2011, with the median price in the Portland area being $234,500 as compared to $220,000 in May 2011.

Inventory, the number of homes available on the market, continues to decline such that we now have only 4.2 months of inventory.  That is, at our current rate of sales, it would take 4.2 months to sell all available properties.  This is the lowest our inventory has been since March, 2007.  Slowed foreclosures may in part be responsible for this dearth of houses.  In addition, there are many folks who would like to sell, but can't or don't want to sell short.  They are reluctant landlords, while waiting for the market to recover. Depending on when they bought, there could be a bit of a wait.

In the coming months, I expect we'll see some normal seasonal slowing in August and early September, followed by some healthy sales activity from mid-September to Thanksgiving.  There are often  pretty good deals to be had in the fall; folks who tried to sell in the spring, but somehow missed out.  Getting a sale closed before the holiday can be sort of a last ditch effort.  Many investors make a habit of buying in the fall.  Similarly, buyers who REALLY want to be in their new homes by Christmas can be pretty motivated buyers.  

I'd be glad to talk with you about what is happening in your neighborhood.  Give me a call at 503-312-8038 or email me at leslievjones@gmail.com.

Read the full RMLS Market Action.

How's The Market?

Okay then.  I, and agents in my office, have been feeling the market take off; but for too few houses on the market.  The market stats, released today by RMLS support this feeling.

Year over year, both pending and closed sales are up from February 2011 to February 2012.  Closed sales are up 17.5% and pending sales are up 32.5%.  At the same time, new listings dropped 13.6%  Between January 2012 and February 2012, closed sales grew 3.1% and pending sales grew 15.7%.  So we have been busier compared both to last month and last year, but with fewer choices for our buyer clients.

This increase in activity is slowly being reflected in prices.  The average sales price increased from February 2011 to February 2012 by 4.3% to $255,100.   This is a month to month increase of 2.4%.  Are prices going to take off?  I don't think so.  Though we may see some slight gains in housing prices over the coming months.

Our total market time is hovering around 138 days as compared to last February's total market time of 177 days.  This represents a 22% decrease in market time, so things are moving more quickly.

Recovery?  I don't know.  We do expect to see an increase in foreclosed properties hitting the market as a result of the robo-signing settlement reached recently.  We do expect to see some banks accelerating the rate at which they approve short sales and an increase in the % of short sales , also as a result of the robo-signing settlement.  Inman News did an interesting article on this.

Have questions about your house or neighborhood?  Thinking of buying or selling?  Give me a call: 503-312-8038

So How Is the Market?

You know those bumper stickers, Keep Portland Weird?  Well the real estate market is helping to achieve that mission.The Portland real estate market is just plain weird. 

Anecdotaly, my office and several others close in have been very hectic.  Many of our buyer clients have written offers ending up in multiple offer situations, losing out.  We've seen this both in the lower, first time buyer/investor price range, ($200,000- $300,000) and in the higher move-up range of $500,000 and up.

Then, out comes the RMLS monthly report with the Portland market stats, which gve few if any hints to the market we have been experiencing.  The ony sign of an improving market is that the average sales price came up slightly from March 2011 to April 2011 from $261,100 to $267,300.  The median price also came up from $215,000 to $219,400.

But...both the number of both pending and closed sales are down, and the number of active listings on the market have increased a tad.

We know the housing recovery will be long and slow, but ...

Click here too see the full Portland market report.