Clients and Friends,
The Regional Multiple Listing Service (RMLS) Market Action Report for August real estate sales in the greater Portland area markets including Yamhill County is out. The news continues to be good for both sellers and buyers; but not great for either, at least in our area.
View the August 2013 Market Action Report
View the August 2013 Home Sales Report
About Resources for Our Clients:
Bella Casa Real Estate brokers work diligently to stay current on market conditions to be the best in the business. These monthly reports and our commentary are central to analyzing the multiple listing data. We also provide a weekly detailed lists of what is currently pending (accepted offer) and what was sold (closed) during the current week so you can monitor what is selling and what is not; see our website at http://thebellacasagroup.com/market-conditions/. There you can see addresses and prices for these, which is something difficult to find on any public website.
You will also find helpful articles further expounding what we are learning, and helpful tips for our clients to make better decisions about their properties and their goals. Additionally, we run a daily blog with a wide assortment of articles and information we assemble and create to educate our clients, to expose and promote our properties, to inform about our service areas and their current events, and sometimes we just have some fun on the blog. The blog catalogues a great amount of helpful information for our clients; see http://thebellacasagroup.com/blog/.
Of course, our most valuable service is in providing personal and custom service according to your goals and with your resources. Call or email us anytime for this.
Regarding the August Report:
The Closed Sales bar graph on page 4 visually tells the story we have been hearing this year. The red/rust bar representing 2013 has done significantly better than any of the previous 5 bars/years. You can see the dip in June as an interest rate hike of more than 1% hit the market and caused a partial paralysis in the activity. You can also see the normal annual cycle where we expect some drop off in sales activity at this time of the year. At the current rate of sales, our inventory, measured in ‘months to sell’ is 3.1 months in Portland. On the attached Monthly Sales Report, we see Washington County at 2.4 months, and Yamhill County at 5.8 months worth of inventory to sell.
Because we are now comparing our annual numbers against a year which was already improving, the numbers are more modest than earlier this year when we were comparing against numbers which were at the bottom of the market and had not yet moved. Please also note that it is a ‘sellers’ market’ in Portland and Washington County but not in Yamhill County where it is a balanced market (4-6 months) but the advantage still leans toward the buyers (and based on current negotiations, they know it!).
The Longer Perspective… (we still have a ways to go)
Residential Sales for Yamhill County:
- 2006: 1631
- 2007: 1278
- 2008: 867
- 2009: 805
- 2010: 815
- 2011: 834
- 2012: 996
- 2013: 834 year-to-date (9/16/13)
Residential Average Sales Price for Yamhill County:
- 2006: $271k
- 2007: $286k
- 2008: $274k
- 2009: $230k
- 2010: $221k
- 2011: $199k
- 2012: $214k
- 2013: $244k year-to-date (9/16/13)
Autumn and Winter Sales:
We have had some of the best sales months ever between November and January; the most successful agents will tell you the same. Contrary to popular belief, the fall and winter months are not bad to sell your home or buy a new one, why?
1. Only serious buyers are in the market place (not as many tire-kickers).
2. Sellers are serious about selling; otherwise they would not choose the extra intrusions over the holidays and in the wet season.
3. Companies and businesses reorganize and relocate workers at the end of the year and beginning of the New Year.
4. People make decisions which affect their taxes before the end of the year, or for the next year and that often involves buying or selling real estate.
5. We have become an incredibly mobile society and are no longer tethered to the school year so sales are now more evenly spread throughout the year.
6. The holidays are a great time to move because the work year contains so many holidays and office shut-downs which give the time to move.
We look forward to serving you in the months ahead. Thank you for your referrals and your trust in us.
Best regards,
Randy
