What's Up With the Bend Real Estate Market?

For many Brokers, the past two years of real estate sales in the Central Oregon area have felt like warp speed.  The buyer frenzy in attempting to find a home that worked, writing as strong an offer as possible only to find out that the offer was one of many and the seller choose another, and then starting over again at another home to have that offer rejected as well.  Some of our brokers wrote as many as 10 offers for the same buyer before something was finally accepted or the buyer became so discouraged they stopped searching. From the seller side, putting a home on the market and then having 10 offers over the weekend which bid the price up to figures never seen before, sorting through them and finding the best offer that worked for the seller. This was the Bend Real Estate market after the Covid-19 pandemic hit with the resulting stay at home orders. Home became a refuge for many and an excuse to move to a location that better suited this new reality. Bend became one of the hottest markets in the country.

But the slowdown in the market we are now seeing feels like someone slammed on the brakes. The rise in mortgage interest rates has impacted the purchasing power of many potential buyers, especially those first-time homebuyers. Sellers are coming to the realization that multiple offers are no longer the norm and with more inventory on the market, they need to price their home at a figure that makes sense in the market. Price reductions are occurring daily with over 40% of active listings having had at least one price reduction.  The asking price of a listing is no longer the starting price of a bidding war. Many sellers are willing to look at a lower offer and negotiate a price that will work for all parties. And most buyers are no longer waiving appraisals or home inspections to have their offer accepted.  We are getting back to a more balanced market - which is a good thing for all parties.

When June, 2022 is compared with June, 2021, the following can be noted for Bend single family homes on less than an acre:

• Average price up 2.3% to $859,398*
• Median price up 10.4% to $719,500
• New listings up .3% to 308
• Homes for sale down 22.7% to 415
• Pending sales up 22.8% to 318
• Sold homes down 25.2% to 193
• Average days on market up 71.4% to 12
• Months of supply at 2
• Average price per square foot up 5% to $421
• Average percentage of list price to purchase price down 4% to 100.8%
• Dollar volume of closed sales down 23.5% to $165,863,753

Expectations for Bend Home Sales in 2022

The rate of home price appreciation is slowing while days on market is growing. Inventory levels are rising as are options for home buyers. And sellers are realizing that the summer of 2022 is not the same as the summer of 2021. We believe the market is changing back to a more normal one in which the appreciation rate of home values are 4-6% per year instead of the 40% we saw between 2020 and 2021, interest rates are around 5-6% and we have 4 plus months of inventory. Bend home sales were strong in 2019 and if our market returns to these trends, it will be good for both buyers and sellers.