Bend Oregon Real Estate Market Trends

If you’re a buyer interested in Bend Oregon real estate, these are GREAT days!  Mortgage rates are terrific…Prices are hitting bottom…doesn’t get better than this!  There hasn’t been a better time to buy real estate in Central Oregon in a long time.  You'll find great bargains on quality homes in all of Central Oregon:  Bend, Redmond, Sisters, Sunriver, LaPine and Prineville!

If you’re thinking of buying a home in the Bend Oregon area, you should sign up for Teri’s free New Listing Notification Service or call or email today!  Teri Green is a Senior Real Estate specialist and sells quality homes in Bend, Redmond, Sisters, Sunriver, La Pine and Prineville, Oregon.

Let me elaborate on our Central Oregon real estate market trends:  There are 1,985 residential properties listed for sale in the MLS for the Central Oregon Area at this time.  This leaves us with 7.5 months of inventory.   Last year at this time, we had 2,645 residential properties listed for sale in the MLS for the Central Oregon area with 12.0 months of inventory to work through.  Why is this important to look at?  Our real estate market has clearly been defined as a buyer’s market since our real estate values peaked in May of 2005.  Since that time, property prices have continued to reduce.  Anytime a months of inventory goes under 6 months, the market will most likely be defined as a seller’s market.  Meaning property prices are starting to go back UP and the seller is more in charge of the selling price of their property.  There can be more bidding wars, multiple offers, listing prices increase as a home remains on the market.  That has not been our experience recently in Central Oregon or in the nation!  With our current months of inventory dropping this year from 11.0 months in January to 7.5 in April, those properties that are listed very competitively are actually experiencing multiple bids and some bidding wars!  Wow!  But, for those overpriced properties NOT priced competitively, they sit…offer-less and often showing-less (if you will). 

It seems we are approaching some improvement if you consider the movement of real estate an improvement.  Since I’m a real estate broker for The Hasson Company, I’m anxious to see real estate properties MOVE.  Not only for me, but for Bend’s economic-well-being.  It seems that when real estate is healthy, other industries are also enjoying the good health (employment, restaurant sales, car sales, vacation spending, etc.) 

One impacting factor locally however is our total of New Notices of Default.  During “normal “ times, Deschutes County might experience 300 New Notices of Default in a given year.  So far this year we have seen 1,437.  Again I say, WOW!  Although I see “signs” of Central Oregon’s general economy improving or changing slightly, until the real estate market stabilizes this New Notices of Default total and reduces this supply to maybe 500 a year, I don’t see our economic pressures  letting up for our employed, our employers or our unemployed residents.  The good news is that we ARE heading in that direction!

There are many ways to interpret our local market trends.  In my world, these are the signs I watch and these are my interpretations.   I’m always being asked, “When do you think home values will return?”  And, “Do you think we have hit the bottom yet?”  If you were to look at our home values in a graph form, you will see the huge dropping of values from May of 2007 to now.  I believe the general Bend real estate market is “hitting” bottom currently.  But I also believe we will continue to bounce in this bottom range until we stabilize our New Notices of Default totals.  This could take one year, two years or more.  If we had a crystal ball, this recession, this economy, etc. would be much easier to tolerate and decisions would be much easier to make.  But, we don’t.  I will just say that if I had to give an opinion, it is my humble opinion that after we work thru the New Notices of Default totals and stabilize that issue, property values will inch up but not quickly…maybe at a rate of 3-4% a year.  Now does this mean your listed home will increase at that rate?  That depends… is your home listed at a competitive and current price?  Are you getting multiple showings?  Are you processing offers?  If not, you must lower your perceived value to a correct & current value and that would be your starting point.  Ouch.  (I know, I’m sorry)

Are there positive signs?  Yes, I see more hiring going on.  I see more building taking place.  I see more real estate being purchased and I see bidding wars for competitively priced homes.  All signs that we WANT to see.  We want to see employment and money in our pockets to spend or save providing security.  If you’re a buyer, these are GREAT days!  Terrific interest rates…it doesn’t get better than this!  There hasn’t been a better time to buy real estate in Central Oregon in a long time.  Great bargains on quality homes in all of Central Oregon.

I hope you found this information helpful to your understanding of our current market conditions.

If you’re thinking of buying a home in Bend, Redmond, Sisters, Sunriver, LaPine or Prineville, you should sign up for Teri’s free New Listing Notification Service or call or email today!  Teri Green is a Senior Real Estate specialist and sells quality homes in all of Central Oregon including Bend, Redmond, Sisters, Sunriver, LaPine and Prineville, Oregon.

For foreclosure information, Call Teri at (541) 350-8424 or visit  www.bendoregonrealestateplus.com

If you have questions about Bend or Bend real estate , Call Teri at (541) 350-8424 or EMAIL at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  . 

Or, you can  use our  FREE MLS Search to search for local real estate. 

Sincerely,

Teri Green
Bend Oregon Real Estate - Senior Real Estate Specialist
The Hasson Company
(541) 350-8434
www.BendOregonRealEstatePlus.com