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Andy Zeigert / The Bulletin
Bend home sales up in September
By Jeff McDonald / The Bulletin
Published: October 09. 2008 4:00AM PSTBend’s housing market showed a positive sign in September when the number of single-family home sales rose to the highest level in more than a year, according to a report released Wednesday by the Bratton Appraisal Group.
In September, 120 homes sold in Bend, up from 97 in August, according to the report, which tracks real estate data for single-family homes on less than an acre and excludes condominiums, townhomes, duplexes and mobile homes.
The jump was significant, according to Andy Zook, an owner of Bend-based Arbor Mortgage Group.
“Price points continue to fall,” Zook said. “First-time homebuyers are smelling the opportunities. Buyers are being drawn back into the marketplace.”
Seventy-six of the 120 homes sold last month in Bend, or 63 percent, were priced below $300,000, according to the report.
Median sales price per square foot, which is the most reliable indicator of how much people are paying for homes, dropped from $157 in August to $139 in September in Bend, the city’s lowest level since April 2005. The city’s median sales price, meanwhile, dropped slightly to $276,000 in September, down from $283,000 in August.
A year ago, the median price — which measures the point at which half the homes sold are priced higher and half lower — was $332,000 in Bend in September 2007.
The nation’s economic crisis has dampened enthusiasm in the real estate community, according to at least one broker who has seen buyer interest waning over the past few weeks.
“There was a sense that we were getting close to the bottom,” said Leighsa Francis, a broker for Re/Max Equity Group in Bend. “But all of a sudden (with the economic crisis), fears resurfaced. Now, I don’t think we are close to the (local housing market) bottom. Two months ago, I thought we were.”
Jade Meyer, chief financial officer for Brooks Resources Corp., which has development projects throughout Central Oregon, expressed cautious optimism about September’s sales uptick.
“What’s killing us (in Bend) is that inventory” of homes on the market, he said.
It would take 15 months to clear the existing inventory of homes from the Bend market if sales were to continue at the current pace and no new homes were listed, according to the report. Typically, about six months is considered a healthy level of inventory, real estate officials have said.
Other communities in Central Oregon also showed signs of improved sales, high inventories and falling prices in September and the third quarter of 2008, according to the report.
In Redmond, home sales rose from 32 in August to 40 in September as square footage prices fell to $117, their lowest level since July 2005, according to the report. The median price in Redmond in September was $204,000, down from $224,000 in August and $244,000 in September 2007.
High inventory continues to plague other communities, including Sisters, which has recorded 83 sales in the past 12 months and has 135 homes listed for sale, according to the report. The city recorded 19 sales in the third quarter.
Bratton measures all communities outside Bend and Redmond on a quarterly basis only.
Sunriver had 17 sales in the third quarter, and has seen 81 homes sold in the last 12 months. Currently, 167 homes are listed for sale.
In La Pine, 62 homes are listed, more than double the 30 homes that have sold in the last 12 months. The city recorded six home sales in the third quarter.
Jefferson and Crook counties, reported 23 and 44 home sales in the third quarter, respectively. The counties sold 84 and 126 homes in the last 12 months and have 116 and 242 homes listed for sale, according to the report.
Central Oregon’s improving home sales in September mirrored a national housing report released Wednesday by the National Association of Realtors, which showed pending home sales jumped 7.4 percent in August.
Pending home sales activity surged as buyers took advantage of lower home prices and affordable interest rates, according to the association’s Web site.
Prospective homebuyers can get a 30-year fixed mortgage for less than 6 percent, Arbor Mortgage’s Zook said.
“There’s a lot of mortgage money available,” he said. “For the reasonably qualified homebuyer, there are numerous options at very reasonable rates.”
Homebuyers can put as little as 3 percent down and buy a house with a loan from the Federal Housing Administration, Zook said.
Central Oregon residents outside of Bend are eligible for 100 percent financing from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s rural housing program, he said.
Or they can get a conventional loan if they are “reasonably qualified,” he said. That means having income that can be documented, a down payment and a good credit score, he said.
Jeff McDonald can be reached at 541-383-0323 or at jmcdonald@bendbulletin.com.
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