by RMLS Communication Department | Jan 22, 2010
Average square footage of sold homes increases in most RMLS areas
There’s been a lot of talk lately about the size of homes being built and purchased getting smaller. The National Association of Home Builders reported that the “the average size of a new home that was completed in 2009 fell to 2,480 square feet from 2,520 square feet in 2008,” according to the Wall Street Journal. The median home purchase shrank from 1,825 square feet in 2008 to 1,800 square feet in 2009, according to the National Association of Realtors®.
I wanted to find out if the same would hold true in RMLS™ coverage areas, though, and here’s what I found:
As you can see, only three areas that we cover in Oregon & Washington dropped (Columbia Basin, Douglas County & Union County). In Portland it grew 1.52% and it was up 1.37% in Clark County. Coos County posted the largest increase at 4.85%.
I found our numbers a bit surprising. One school of thought is that the square footage would drop because first-time buyers have dominated the market in 2009, which you would think would mean smaller houses. That would make sense to me; I was a first-time buyer in 2009 and my house is 1,088 square feet.
On the other hand, what may have actually happened is that prices on homes with large square footage dropped so much that buyers have been snapping up more space for less money.
What do you think? Is the square footage of homes you’re working with shrinking? Are buyers more interested in smaller homes now? Or are they looking to grab more space while prices are low?
by RMLS Communication Department | Jan 14, 2010
Real estate activity in Oregon and SW Washington up in most RMLS areas
In the December 2009 RMLS™ Market Action report, sales activity was up in most areas that we cover, compared to December 2008. Though this is a positive sign, it should be taken with a grain of salt, because last December brought record lows for pending and closed sales in many areas.
Portland saw a 52.6% increase in closed sales this month and a 40.9% increase in pending listings, while Clark County closed sales were up 48.1%, and pending sales rose 33.8%. Baker County, Coos County, Curry County, Lane County, the Mid-Columbia region and Union County also saw both closed and pending sales increase over last December.
Sales volume down for the year in most areas
Given lower sales totals and lower prices, this should come as no surprise, but total sales volume for the year fell in most areas in 2009. Portland dropped from $6.3 billion in 2008 to $5.5 billion this year. Lane County was down from $740 million in 2008 to $669 million in 2009.
Notable, however, is an increase in sales volume in Curry County – up to $66 million this year from $59 million in 2008. And Clark County matched its total sales volume of $1.2 billion in 2008.
Year-end stats, Clark County shines
Clark County seems to be ahead of the pack when it comes to sales activity. For the year, pending sales were up 19.5% and closed sales up 13.8% compared to 2008. That’s far ahead of most areas; for example, in Portland, pending sales were up 4%, and closed sales were down 0.9%. Only Curry County outpaced Clark County in percentage of sales increase for 2009, with pending sales up 31.3% and closed sales up 23.7%.
However, the increase in sales has come at a price – Clark County saw the largest decrease (-12.6%) in median sale price for the 11 areas we cover.
by RMLS Communication Department | Jan 4, 2010
House Hunters Take Time to Enjoy the Festivities
When comparing the week of December 21-27 with the week prior, the number of times an RMLS™ subscriber opened a Supra lockbox decreased 41.5% in Washington and 42.9% in Oregon.
Click the chart for a larger view
Archive
View an archive of the Supra lockbox statistical reports on Flickr.
by RMLS Communication Department | Dec 21, 2009
Activity Dips; Perhaps House Hunters Were Holiday Gift Shopping Instead
When comparing the week of December 7 – 13 with the week prior, the number of times an RMLS™ subscriber opened a Supra lockbox decreased 9% in Washington and 11.2% in Oregon.
Click the chart for a larger view
Archive
View an archive of the Supra lockbox statistical reports on Flickr.
by RMLS Communication Department | Dec 17, 2009
RMLS Portland home sales by price range, November 2009
The original deadline for the homebuyer tax credit was November 30 and it appears that this may have had an effect on home sales in November. Homes that sold for $250,000 or below (likely the price range for many first-time buyers) made up 55.3% of all sales in Portland this November, which is up 10.3% compared to November 2008.
Below is a breakdown of sales by price range:
by RMLS Communication Department | Dec 15, 2009
Sales up, but in comparison to a dismal month last November
The big highlight this month for many areas is a large jump in closed sales compared to last November. Curry County posted a 141.7% increase and Portland and Clark County set records for percentage increases in same-month sales at 72.4% and 70.5%, respectively.
While these stats are obviously a good sign for market activity, continue to keep in mind that last year we were at the height of the economic crisis and we hit some of the lowest points in sales totals in recent years. So, yes, sales are way up compared to last year, but remember that we’re comparing it to unusually low sales totals.
Has the winter slowdown arrived?
Closed sales had been on the rise in many key areas month-to-month through October, but it appears that the winter slowdown has arrived. Compared to this October, pending and closed sales were down in most areas, including Columbia Basin, Douglas County, Lane County, the Mid-Columbia region, Portland and Clark County.
Inventory up
Inventory ticked up in every area except Curry County and Union County, however, most areas are well below last year’s inventory levels thanks to fewer listings entering the market and higher sales totals. For example, Portland’s inventory stands at 7.1 months – 53% less than last November’s 15 months of inventory.
