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:
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.
When comparing the week of November 30 through December 6 with the week prior, the number of times an RMLS™ subscriber opened a Supra lockbox increased 32.6% in Washington and 35.4% in Oregon.
Click the chart for a larger view
Archive
View an archive of the Supra lockbox statistical reports on Flickr.
When comparing the week of November 16-22 with the week prior, the number of times an RMLS subscriber opened a Supra lockbox decreased 7% in Washington and 3.8% in Oregon.
Click the chart for a larger view (Washington, top; Oregon, bottom)
Archive
View an archive of the Supra lockbox statistical reports on Flickr.
When comparing the week of November 9-15 with the week prior, the number of times an RMLS subscriber opened a Supra lockbox increased 7.3% in Washington and 1.3% in Oregon.
Click the chart for a larger view (Washington, top; Oregon, bottom)
Archive
View an archive of the Supra lockbox statistical reports on Flickr.