by RMLS Communication Department | May 2, 2011 | Fun Facts, Homeownership, Market Trends, Statistics
See a visual representation of distressed properties in our market!
One request we’ve frequently gotten from subscribers is to display data on Short Sales and Bank Owned properties. As a result, we have created brand new infographics to show how distressed properties identified as Short Sales or Bank Owned were represented in the 2010 housing market. This is the first report in an ongoing series that will show you how our local market has been affected by the economic downturn.
(Click the image to enlarge)
The above infographic shows a visual representation of the number of Bank Owned and Short Sales in all areas in the RMLS™ system during 2010. The top half shows new listings and sales for the entire year, while the bottom half shows new listings and sales by quarter. To download or print the infographic, click here.
Below are links to additional infographics for some of our larger areas:
Portland Metro
Clark County, WA
Lane County, OR
Douglas County, OR
*If you want information on percentages of distressed sales in other areas not represented by our infographics, please contact us at communications@rmls.com.
As can be seen from the above infographic, the percentage of distressed sales within the overall housing market greatly increased in closed sales compared to new listings. Additionally, the amount of Short Sales decreased by more than a third when comparing closed sales with new listings. The quarterly trend shows an increase of new listings which were distressed, particularly in Quarter 3 and Quarter 4. Looking at sales, Quarter 2 and Quarter 3 both show decreases in distressed sales compared to Quarter 1, and Quarter 4 ended with only a 0.1% rise in distressed sales compared with Quarter 1.
Here are some additional facts about distressed properties in 2010:
- Distressed properties comprised 24.1% of new residential listings, and 29.3% of residential sales.
- Short Sales were 11.8% of new listings, and 8.9% of sales.
- Bank Owned properties were 12.3% of new listings, and 20.4% of sales.
by RMLS Communication Department | Sep 23, 2009 | Homeownership, Industry News, Portland
PMAR’s public service website, HOWNW.com (Home Ownership Opportunities Northwest) has a new section that offers consumers information from reliable sources such as the National Association of Realtors®, the Federal Trade Commission, Fannie Mae and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency about how to avoid foreclosure and fraud.
To explore these useful new resources, visit: http://hownw.com/consumer/avoidingforeclosure.asp
by RMLS Communication Department | Aug 24, 2009 | Homeownership, Market Trends, Oregon Real Estate, Portland, Statistics
There’s been some encouraging news lately in the RMLS™ market areas. The number of sales and pending sales are finally outpacing the totals from the same month in 2008. How much of it might be a result of the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit, though?
I recently put together some statistics for the Oregonian on the Portland metro area, and thought I would share them with you.
There is no question that home sales in the lower-end of the market have seen a big jump this year. In 2007, homes priced between $0 and $249,999 only made up 35% of all sales in the Portland metro area. In 2009 so far, they make up 49.6% of the market.
As you’d expect, coinciding with the increase in lower-end homes is a drop in high-end homes. Homes priced $500,000 or above have dropped from 13.5% of the market in 2007, to just 8.2% of the market this year.
Click on the graph for a larger view
The question is: what will happen when the $8,000 tax credit expires on December 1?
I know the tax credit definitely got me off the fence & I can literally think of 15 of my friends and acquaintances (off the top of my head) who have bought or are actively looking to buy.
So in my humble opinion, there’s little doubt that the tax credit spurred people to buy. But as the deadline for the credit approaches, it should be interesting to see where sales go.
by RMLS Communication Department | Jun 11, 2009 | Homeownership, Market Trends, Portland, Statistics
Rumor has it that first time buyers (thanks to the $8000 tax credit) and investors are making the bulk of home purchases these days. Like all savvy shoppers, I’m sure they want to make sure they are getting a good deal.
While, ultimately this is extremely personal calculation (because it depends on the buyer’s income, mortgage rates, how well the house will meet their needs, etc.) there is one generic indicator that we can use to get a sense of where the market is at overall: the Affordability Index.
This graph shows the affordability index for the Portland Metro Area by quarter since Sept. 2003.
According to our calculations (which are based on a formula we got from the National Association of Realtors a while back) houses have been becoming increasingly more affordable since September 2008. But what does that mean?
Let’s look at the index rating for April, which was 1.41 (see graph above). In theory, someone making the median family income $70,000 according to HUD (surprisingly it’s up this year) would earn 41 percent more money than they would need to be able to afford the monthly payment on the median priced home in the Portland Market ($246, 400 according to the April 2009 Portland Market Action–of course).
That is IF they got a loan at the 4.81 percent average interest rate per Freddie Mac in April AND they had a 20 percent down payment (which we all know isn’t all that common for first time home buyers these days).
Question is: what will happen now that interest rates are starting to creep back up? We’ll let you know in the July issue of Market Action—that’s the next time we calculate and report affordability in the newsletter.
by RMLS Communication Department | Jun 4, 2009 | Events, Homeownership
June is National Homeownership Month and if you read the blog, you probably know I am a new member of the homeowner community.
After getting through my first transaction, I can say that I definitely understand how some first time homebuyers can be intimidated by the process of buying a home. Per the old adage, “nothing good comes easy”, and I emphasize the good.
Between choosing a Realtor and a lender, finding the right home, negotiations, inspection and the mounds of paperwork at each step, it can make your head spin when you have no experience with it. Fortunately, Realtors help alleviate all of those concerns and lend understanding to each stage of the process.
However, for those first time buyers who may not have chosen a Realtor yet, or a just looking for more information, our friends over at the Portland Metropolitan Association of Realtors® (PMAR), have put together a great website for potential buyers – HOWNW.com (Homeownership Opportunities Website Northwest).
The website features a very helpful Home Buying Process section. I peeked at the site a few times before I decided to buy and found it very helpful. The site also includes a section that allows potential buyers to search for homeownership programs that may fit their needs.
Even though I had a good Realtor, along with friends, family & colleagues around me that are knowledgeable about real estate, I still found it stressful at times (I’m a worrier), so I think any other resources that can shed some light on the process are worth highlighting – here are a few others I was able to find:
American Bankers Association – National Homeownership Month Resources
CNN Money: Money 101 – Buying a Home
Portland Housing Center: Schedule for Homebuying 101 Classes
Image courtesy of John Salazar
