February’s Bratton Market Report for Bend, Oregon Now Being Served

February’s Bratton Market Report for Bend, Oregon Now Being Served


The Bratton Report numbers for last month has the median price for a home in Bend moving up from $186,000 in January to $199,000 in February. Moving in concert with the median price is the number of homes sold last month moving up twenty homes to 134, with the price per square foot inching up as well to $111. A reoccurring number for this report is 111, in this case representing the days on the market. This number has flat lined for the time being with the same number being recorded for January. Building permits hit a level not seen since July of 2008 but still remains a weak at 28 permits.

It will be interesting to see if the number of building permits increases seasonally this year. From what I have witnessed most of the building permits have been issued for west side projects in Bend with Northwest Crossing leading the way. The price point for these new homes remains above $300,000. Given the competition we are seeing for homes under $250,000 I would not be surprised to see builders buoyed by this information and be more willing to step to shoulder the risk of building lesser priced spec homes. Some might think this would be crazy but if the opportunity to purchase a new home versus a seasoned home came up I think a good portion of folks will choose the newer product.

With 65 lots under $30,000 that have either sold or have pending sales since last March and 13 lots currently available for sale, could these lots be the basis for builders that brings new homes to the market for under $250,000?

For now the recovery continues, we will need to monitor how the incredible increases in gasoline prices effects the overall economy and the positive gains we are beginning to see. Will we see continued confidence and recovery? Or do we continue to bounce along the bottom, waiting to release the pent up demand to move forward?

Now Serving Duke Warner Realty's February Bend Market Trends Report

Duke Warner Real Estate Trend Report is now available on my web site http://www.shopbendhomes.com/ .  I should have the Bratton Report available in just a few days, once it is released.

February’s report shows that we are continuing to see a decline of available listed home. The decline this month is slight with ten fewer homes actively marketed. We actually had more new listings this February than the previous month but with the market heating up were able to sell more homes.

The competition for good homes under $200,000 is getting pretty stiff, last weekend there was one newly listed home that received 31 offers on the first weekend. Others are not quite so dramatic but still are garnering plenty of attention from potential buyers. It will be interesting to see if this new found competition will lead to an influx of traditional sellers in the spring and summer selling months that are just around the corner.

Another trend to watch that could support the thought that we have reached the bottom of this downturn is if the amount of price reductions each month continues to decrease. This number has continued to fall as sellers are coming to market with a more realistic idea of what their properties are worth in today’s market. This in turn should help sellers get there properties sold in a quicker fashion.

We are still waiting for the much vaunted shadow inventory to hit the market. Many of my colleagues are in agreement that this may not happen in great quantity here in Bend. The recent court battles over robo- signing by the big lenders has been resolved for the most part and lenders have re-filed notices of default with the county but the amount of filings are nothing like we have seen in the past few years. What we will most likely see from these new filings is an increase in the number of homeowners that attempt a short sale and eventually a few more bank owned listings.

As of this writing the current number of homes actively listed as short sales is 46. On the bank owned side our inventory is down to 33 homes stick built homes. The number of homes in the bank owned category over the past couple of years had fluctuated between the high seventies and the low nineties. The blip from homes that are currently receiving their notices of default will hit the court house steps early this summer. As this passes we may see increase in the amount of bank owned homes going into the winter months.

The wild cards to the upcoming spring and summer selling season are the Presidential elections (with all their promises and rhetoric) this fall, the forecasted higher gas prices that should affect the overall economy and the stability of the European economy. With little control over any of these, I think those of us with the means will move forward with their lives and take advantage of the favorable real estate market conditions in Central Oregon property.

If a friend or you would like a personal assistant for your Central Oregon property endeavors I am available and look forward to hearing your goals.