The month of March was another active month in the Central Oregon real estate market, following busy late winter months. The number of active listings fell just slightly, but the number of pending sales and sold listings have continued to climb. The Central Oregon real estate market is still strong, with a promising spring coming up, we expect to see more listings, sales and pending sales.
Pending Listings at a High
March was a busy month, as evidenced by a very high number of pending listings. In prior months, pending listings haven’t broken 200. March came in as the highest number of pending listings with 273 since July 2016, which ended with 276 pending sales. This likely promises an active April with a higher number of completed sales. Both January and February finished with high pending listing numbers, which resulted in climbing numbers of completed sales in February and March.
Number of Sold Properties
March finished with 171 sold properties, jumping from 128 in the month of February. The number of pending sales from February contributed to a higher number of finalized sales in March. The high number of sold properties is evidence of a continued seller’s market from prior months in the Central Oregon area.
March finished with a higher median sales price than prior months and years. The median sales price grew to $395,000, which is the highest it’s been since May 2007, when it topped out at $396,250. Typically, March sets the base pricing standard for the remainder of the summer season and real estate year. In most markets the highest median sales prices are seen in the fall, around September or August. So we can expect to see sales pricing grow throughout the remaining spring and summer months.
Continued Seller’s Market
The number of active listings has continued to drop slightly since last summer, solidifying the seller’s market in Central Oregon. With a more limited number of available properties, it benefits the seller to be able to sell more easily. Another factor that comes with a limited number of properties, is more completed sales, with buyers finding what they’re looking for and making offers immediately sometimes above asking price.
Final Analysis
Pricing in Central Oregon has continued to rise for the last five years, as Central Oregon is still a highly-desired place to live, work and play. With a low inventory of available homes, now is a great time to sell or buy. Get your property listed before the summer real estate boom hits.
If you need help buying or selling real estate, we would love to help you. Visit us at dukewarner.com, browse our Facebook page, or call us at 541-382-8262.
