Real Estate Trends in Oregon

I wish I could say we're out of the woods. But here in Eugene/Springfield, there are signs that the market is improving. This month's Multiple Listing Service Market Update showed an increase in volume for November as well as a 2.50 % median increase in prices from the month before. My opinion is that this is due at least in part to a reduction in the inventory of distressed properties (short sales and foreclosed) as they were purchased and now out of the market. There has been an unusual number of "good" property listed in December, indicating that sellers feel more confident about their prices.

However, the median sales price from a year ago (November '08) was still down 3.5%. I'll be surprised if values decline much from now on.

Foreclosures have been flooding the market in the final weeks of December. The banks have been holding back releasing them, so this is far from over. The good news for sellers is that brokers, buyers' lenders, and buyers have all discovered that buying a foreclosed property can be a real nightmare. One of the biggest challenges has been getting repairs done (and PAID FOR!) that are increasingly being required by lenders of new loans. Of course, it depends on the policies of the bank that owns the foreclosed property, but in general, they don't want to pay for any repairs. So many buyers are looking for a more conventional transaction.

Short sales (where the seller still owns the property but wants to avoid foreclosure by getting the lender to accept less than is owed) are even worse. The longest transaction we had for buyers on a short sale was 9 months! And there is NO ONE willing or able to pay for repairs. So beware!

All this is good for people who are not selling under duress, however. The tax credits both for first time buyers and repeat buyers (restrictions apply), have helped a lot to stimulate sales. Only time will tell, but barring another economic crisis, we see a brighter season ahead for 2010.

Let's hope the employers see a good uptick so people can become employed again! Happy New Year to all.