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Market Updates

March Market Update

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The real estate market in Portland is showing no signs of slowing down. As we head into spring we fully expect to see the same trends continue. If you are on the fence about buying, I’d jump off now even though it is competitive. Interest rates will keep climbing as we continue through the year and that will only lessen your buying power as home prices also continue to climb.

Breakdown

The average sales price jumped up to $542,000 from $514,000 in just a month. That also gives us a 14% increase from last year. Portland has been seeing a 10-14% increase in sales price since way back in 2018. Even if you are buying at these higher prices, you are still going to be gaining equity over the next couple years.

As we see the weather change we are also seeing more homes come onto the market. This is good news for buyers, but things are still very competitive out there. Homes are selling for an average of 8.5% over list price, in some neighborhoods this is close to 12%. Make sure you are taking to your realtor about specifics so you can be making informed decisions whether you are writing offers or planning on listing your home.

As we mentioned above, if you are waiting for the bubble to pop or the other shoe to drop, you may be waiting for a long time. The market is healthy and climbing and most economists agree this will continue for at least another year. Once inventory finally starts to stabilize we will see a slow down and plateau, but it shouldn’t cause prices to drop. If you have specific questions feel free to reach out and we would love to chat with you! Lastly, if you need some tips to get your offer accepted, head over to THIS POST to read all the things we are doing to win for our buyers.

December Market Update

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The market stats for December 2020 were recently released. It is time to dig into them and see what they mean. Almost every stat dropped last month, in some areas that is good news, in some it is bad news. The only number that rose last month is the number of sold listings. This lines up with what we know about the Portland market. There are tons of buyers out looking for homes.

December market update
Stat Breakdown

The average sale price dipped a bit, this almost always happens at the end of the year, a lot of people take a break for the holidays, so with less offers driving prices up, we saw the number drop down a bit. The days a home sits on the market are still continuing to drop along with the inventory levels. If we remove the outliers, the average days on market is actually just 7 days. So houses are flying off the market. In general we will see them listed mid week, open all weekend, and pending by early the next week. Because of this, Inventory has dropped all the way down to .8 months. As a reminder, this means if we don’t list any new homes, everything on the market will be sold before the end of the month. It’s lower than it has ever been, so if you have any thoughts of selling, now is the time!

For the whole Portland metro, homes are selling at an average of 6.7% over asking price. For a $500,000 house, that is $30,000 over asking price. As a buyer it is more important than ever that you pay close attention to your budget. If you only want to spend $500,000 we need to be shopping in the $450,000 range.

It is tough out there right now for buyers, but with a savvy agent, and a little luck, people are finding homes that are a great fit. We are helping our clients get into homes that they love right now, so if you want help with your home search, fill out the form below and we can’t wait to talk with you! If you want to see our other market updates, you can head HERE.

November Market Update

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It’s time for the November market update and 2020 continues to surprise us with the stats. Largely due to the lack of sales we experienced in the early spring, our market is still stronger than ever. In short, homes are selling quickly, inventory is at it’s lowest in history, and prices are rising every month. Here is a snapshot of the numbers from the past month and if you want a more detailed description, read on below!

November Portland Market Update

The most important things to mention is that this month we saw the inventory drop from 1.1 months to 1 month, which is the lowest it has been in the entire history of the RMLS. This is caused by the decrease in new listings from 3,500 in October down to 2,238 in November. Historically less people list their homes with the holidays coming up, but with the number of buyers currently in the market, the lack of listings is really driving demand and with it, increasing prices.

Secondly, the average sales price has risen 12.7% since November of last year. With December being as busy as it has been I’m sure we will see an increase through the end of the year. This is great news if you are a seller. We didn’t expect to continue seeing appreciation with double digits this year, but there it is. Because of the tight inventory, we do expect 2021 to look much the same as this past year. If you aren’t quite ready to sell, you likely have a bit of time to still get in on this hot market.

The most surprising statistic is that the number of days a listing is on the market actually increased this month. Our best guess is that many sellers are seeing what homes are selling for and listing too high. When a home is priced too high, it forces price reductions and longer days on market. But as always, a well-priced home is selling in a matter of days, usually with stiff competition.

If you have questions about how this affects you as a buyer or a seller, please reach out to us! We are happy to make a personalized plan for you. You can also see what your home is worth by clicking HERE

Happy Holidays!

October Market Update

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October 2020 has been one of the busiest months to date for the real estate industry. Typically we see things start to slow down, less listings, less pendings, and less buyers out in the market. The numbers show that this year, that is not the case.

October 2020 Market Stats

Compared to last year we have 14% more homes on the market and 21% more closings. So while we are seeing new homes come onto the market in higher than average numbers, we are still not able to keep up with the demand. As a seller this means that if you are priced appropriately, your home will sell very quickly. As a buyer this means that we will likely be competing with other buyers and will need to be aggressive.

This low demand is causing home prices to continue to climb as well. We are up to an average price of $516,000 for the Portland Metro which is 1.2% increase from last month and a 12% increase from last year. We expect this trend to continue through this year and into the spring of next year. So if you are on the fence about buying, I would recommend getting into the market soon!

Both inventory and time on market remained the same as last month. 38 days seems like a high number when you compare it to what we are seeing in most neighborhoods. Many homes are going pending in 2-4 days. When we look further into the data we can see that both condo sales and luxury homes, which take longer to sell, are skewing that number up.

Want to see what is available across all of the Portland Metro? You can do so HERE! If you would prefer a specific search in an area of your choice, fill out the form below and we will get that set up for you!

March 2020 Portland Market Stats

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The statistics for March of 2020 are available, and as we look back, this gives us the best look at how the beginning of the pandemic affected our local market. Kate Brown issued stay at home orders on March 24th, so the housing market had not yet been affected by the pandemic. The quick and dirty breakdown of the numbers indicates that everyone was gearing up for the busy season. We saw a huge push of new listings, newly pending homes, and new closings. We also saw the average home price jump up and the days on market drop down. Keep on reading if you want a more in-depth look!

Portland Metro

Looking at the numbers for Portland, you can see that we were heading into a very strong market. March is always the beginning of our busy season. Many people believe June is the best month to sell a home, but here in Portland, it tends to be March or April. We saw a 25% jump in new listings in March compared to February and a 24% jump in closed sales. That shows that even though we are finally starting to get more inventory, there are plenty of buyers out there.

So far for 2020 we are at a 4.1% appreciation. This is a healthy and normal amount of appreciation. So while you may not be making a ton of money year over year, real estate remains one of the safest investments you can make. Also, a quick note about the market as I am writing this, we are in the heat of our lockdown, and while we did see real estate slow for the first 2 weeks, things seem to be picking up right where they left off. We have seen many new listings come onto the market, and everything close-in at a mid-range price is still selling quite quickly and often with multiple offers. If you are waiting for the market to tank before you jump in to buy, it isn’t going to happen.

Selling

If you are considering selling your home, now is an excellent time to get into the market. People are out looking for homes right now and I fully anticipate that when the stay at home order is lifted, we will see a huge push of new listings. More listings means more competition and less buyers for your home. We don’t have a crystal ball but the way things feel right now, it doesn’t seem like we are going to be as hurt by this as the media is tending to portray. Timing is always a personal choice, but if you are ready to move and thinking of selling, let’s come up with a game plan to ensure that you net as much money as possible. If you want an individual valuation, reach out to us and we can discuss details. You can also get an instant home value by clicking here.

Buying

If you are thinking about buying, these numbers may seem a bit intimidating to you, but know there will be many more homes coming on the market very soon. With interest rates being historically low, even if you do end up competing on a home, chances are you are still getting a great deal. You also never know when the perfect home is going to come on the market, so if you are thinking of looking, it doesn’t hurt to start now to see what is out there. You can search all the homes in the area HERE.

East Portland

Everything on the Eastside performed well last month. Days on market are down by more than a week, which means things are selling really quickly. 51 days seems like quite awhile, but if we remove the outliers, this number is much closer to 9 days. North Portland saw a huge jump in average sales price for March and is almost equal to that of Southeast Portland. With the Vancouver/Williams corridor becoming so popular, and all the new construction going up, prices have been jumping very quickly in North Portland. There are still affordable pockets, you just need to know where to look.

West Portland

Unlike last month, we saw the average sales price climb back up for West Portland. This number is back to where we were at the beginning of the year. We also saw the days on market climb a bit. It is only 1 day longer than last month, so this number is pretty arbitrary. As previously mentioned, the Westside has the majority of the luxury listings and condos, both of which simply take longer to sell. Numbers are staying pretty consistent on this side of the river, so you should be able to plan out into the future if you aren’t ready to make a move yet.

We hope this helps to breakdown the March market in the Portland area. If you have any specific questions about your neighborhood please send us a message! You can fill out the form below or reach out to us on Facebook. We are always happy to discuss how this specifically affects you and your home value!

February 2020 Market Stats

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Real estate by the numbers is out for the past month! The quick and dirty version of the February market is that inventory is still low keeping us in a seller’s market. Homes are appreciating by 5-7% over last year but dropped slightly compared to last month. And we are seeing many new listings as we get ready for the busy spring market. Read on below if you want details about your side of the river and the general market health.

Portland Metro February Market Numbers
Portland Metro

Looking at the numbers now just confirms what we were talking to our clients about last month. We saw more houses coming onto the market as seller’s were trying to get ahead of the spring rush. This push of listings also gave us more pending homes and therefore more sold homes. There are a lot of buyers out in the market and even though the inventory is climbing up, we are still seeing multiple offers on most close-in locations.

Many of us, myself included, expected to see more of a plateau in terms of appreciation, after the huge price jumps in 2017 and 2018. 2019 did see quite a bit of slowing, but so far this year the average sales price is up 5% over last year across the metro area. 4-6% appreciation is considered a steady and healthy market, so we should expect to see these numbers hold for at least a year or 2.

Selling

If you are considering selling your home now is an excellent time to get into the market. May-July are historically our busiest months for new listings, so if you want to take advantage of the huge buyer pool ahead of your competition, April could be the perfect month to list your home. Timing is always a personal choice, but you will likely net more money listing in the spring than early summer. If you want an individual valuation, reach out to us and we can discuss details. You can also get an instant home value by clicking here.

Buying

If you are thinking about buying, these numbers may seem a bit intimidating to you, but know there will be many more homes coming on the market very soon. With interest rates being historically low, even if you do end up competing on a home, chances are you are still getting a great deal. You also never know when the perfect home is going to come on the market, so if you are thinking of looking, it doesn’t hurt to start now to see what is out there. You can search all the homes in the area HERE.

East Portland

Overall the Eastside performed better than rest of the city in February. NE Portland saw the biggest jump in average home price, 2.5% since the beginning of the year, this is primarily due to some luxury listings closing. SE Portland continues to have the most new listings and the most closings because of its sheer size, at 247 closings, it had almost as many as NE and N Portland combined. North Portland is still one of the most affordable places to buy a home, with an average sales price of $407K you can still find cute homes in the 300K range.

East Portland February Market Numbers

West Portland

The Westside did vary a bit compared to the rest of the city, this is the only area that we saw the average days on market go up. The days on market are always quite a bit longer on this side of the river due to the condo sales. The condo market slowed substantially last year and this skews all the other numbers towards the negative. West Portland has a significantly higher average home price which also has a smaller buyer pool and therefore takes longer to sell.

West Portland February Market Numbers

We hope this helps to breakdown the February market in the Portland area. If you have any specific questions about your neighborhood please send us a message! You can fill out the form below or reach out to us on Facebook. We are always happy to discuss how this specifically affects you and your home value.

January 2020 Market Stats

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The time has come to once again look back on the market and reflect on how healthy the market has been. January of 2020 was a great month for Portland. Home prices are up 6.3% from January of last year! Despite all the recession rumors, everyone that owns a home is still making money. Interest rates are still insanely low. If you are thinking of buying, do it now before home prices jump up even more. If you want to read more about all the specifics, continue on past the graphic below!

January 2020 Real Estate Market Statistics
What these numbers mean to you

We also saw a significant jump in new listings, pendings, and sold homes. Many people entered the real estate market after the holidays which explains this big jump. While it is good to see homes coming on the market, we are still sitting around only 2.2 months of inventory. If no one else puts their home on the market, every single home will be sold in just over 2 months. As a buyer, this means there will be competition on all those ‘Pinterest perfect’ homes and you should expect multiple offers. As a seller, this means there is almost no competition and as long as you are priced appropriately, you should expect to sell quickly.

Despite this, we surprisingly saw the average days on market climb as well. If you separate this stat out by price point it paints a very different picture. Homes under $500,000 are, on average, selling in 7 days or less. Houses up to $1 million are selling in about 30 days. Homes over $1 million are selling in 60-100 days on average. If you want specifics on how long your home may take to sell, send us a message and we will happily send you some data.

Ready to make a move?

You sometimes hear us say “now is the perfect time to move” but whether you are a buyer or a seller, there are some really strong cases to be made about 2020 being the right year to do it. If you want to look at homes currently on the market you can do so here. If you want an instant evaluation of what your home is worth, you can do so here. Take advantage of the current interest rates to get yourself into a new and amazing home! You’ll be glad you did.

Does our analysis match your perception of the market? How did you feel January of 2020 went? Let us know in the comments!

October Market Stats

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It’s time that we look back on the Portland real estate market and analyze how healthy our market is. Enjoy the market stats!

If you want just a quick and dirty analysis; houses are still selling, they are still gaining value, and the market is still balancing from many years of incredible appreciation. If you want to get a little deeper, keep reading!

Portland Metro Market Stats October 2019

We saw a small uptick in home sales in the month of October. That was very likely due to the interest rate dropping back down. This caused a flurry of buyers to jump into the market and we saw both pending and closed sales jump up from October of last year. We also had quite a few more closings than September which is a sign that the market is holding steady.

New listings, and therefore overall inventory, dropped this past month. We expect this to happen every fall as sellers prefer to sell in the warmer months. Surprisingly, we also saw the total days on market increase. Typically with low inventory we would also see the days on market lower. When we have buyers competing for the same house, things tend to sell faster. I think in this case, buyers are being more cautious about the homes they are buying, so if it isn’t priced perfectly, they move on.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, home prices are up 1.2% from last year. While this isn’t the type of gain that we are used to, it’s important to note that the number is still climbing. We expect this trend to continue through the holidays and into next year.

With talk of a looming recession, it’s important to watch these market stats closely. Whether you are thinking of buying or selling, you don’t want to miss your ideal window.

Do you have specific questions about your home or area? Feel free to reach out to us at Team@ThatPortlandLife.com!

Want to know what your home is worth right now? Click Here