You know how you were hearing buzz about the Portland housing market slowing down? At least a little bit? We even saw a slow winter and a rocky spring, just as the experts predicted we would.

And while it’s true that we’re still not seeing the red-hot market of the past few years, the outlook this summer buying and selling season is bright and sunny. Let’s look at what that unexpected burst of energy in our housing market means.

Home Prices

The median sold price for homes in Portland was $415,000 during the second quarter of the year, which is actually up slightly from the $410,00 we saw during the second quarter of 2018. However, compared to past years, this is a very modest year-over-year price increase.

At least for now, skyrocketing price increases for Portland homes have subsided. But this doesn’t mean that home values are returning to previous levels.

If you’re a homeowner in Portland, you’ve got nothing to worry about. Home values are still 32% higher than there were during the pre-recession home value peak. They’re also 79% higher than they were during the housing crash. If you’ve owned a home in Portland for even a couple of years, you’ve almost certainly built up some substantial equity in it.

Days on Market

More listings mean that homes are sitting on the market a little bit longer—around 13 days on the market is the median right now. But it was just 9 days during this time period last year. We’ve slowly seen inventory in Portland increase over the past year or so, which is likely why homes are sticking around a bit longer.

However, it’s still a good time to be a seller! Many homes, especially the ones that are on the lower end of the price spectrum, still go fairly quickly due to the lack of affordable inventory. We have 2.1 months of inventory on the market at the current sales pace, but 6 months is a balanced market. This means that it’s still very much a sellers’ market.

But there’s good news if you’re a buyer, too. There are fewer bidding wars and homes that go for well over asking. This might give you a little breathing room if you’re looking to buy a home here in Portland this summer.

Homes Sold

There were 8, 417 homes sold during the second quarter of this year, which is a slight decline over the 8,771 homes sold during the second quarter of last year. Not too much of a change there.

But this number does indicate that we’ve broken the 10-month slump in home sales we saw last year and at the beginning of this year.

Interest Rates

So many economists predicted much higher interest rates than we currently have. In fact, we’re still hovering at just around 4%. These incredibly good rates are helping people when it comes to affording their monthly mortgage payments, despite the ever-increasing prices of homes.

But no one knows exactly how much longer these great interest rates will be around. It may be smart to buy know before they increase.

Ready to Buy or Sell?

Buying or selling in a market like ours comes with plenty of good and bad for both buyers and sellers. If you’re wanting to buy or sell in the near future, give me a call! I’ll be happy to sit down with you and help you come up with a game plan for our new normal here in Portland.