2006
prices leap, slow and finally settle at year's end
Home sales - RMLS
figures show December's median price grows 8.1 percent over December 2005
Friday, January 19, 2007
DYLAN RIVERA
The Oregonian
What a year it was to get into -- or out of -- a home.
The housing market came into 2006 sprinting prices into record territory. Monthly appreciation -- peaking at 23.5 percent in February -- piled upon the previous year's record prices.
But then, in late spring, Portland-area housing eased up. The area's most active real estate agents noticed slower sales. By midsummer, the inventory of houses for sale bumped up to 3.5 months' supply, the highest level in more than two years -- a softening trend that paralleled the weakening housing market in many U.S. cities.
August's median price was 8.7 percent higher than in the previous year -- far from the August 2004 pace of a 19.4 percent one-year increase.
The sprint had slowed to a vigorous stride.
Figures released on Thursday by the Regional Multiple Listing Service show a median home price of $273,500 in December, an 8.1 percent jump from December 2005. It was a slight decline from the $278,000 median in November, characteristic of seasonally weaker winter sales.
That's far from December 2005's 20.5 percent appreciation rate.
Thursday's report also closed the book on 2006. For the year, the Portland area had a median price of $270,500, almost 14 percent over the 2005 median of $237,500. That's far stronger growth than most metro areas nationwide, and also better than the national housing trends. The early sprint provided a cushion for the late jog.
Economists predict job growth will slow this year, in the Portland area and nationwide, and mortgage interest rates will creep up. Still, many predict enough local job and population growth to push Portland-area housing price increases higher than the national trend.
The "For Sale" signs will be going out with the spring thaw. Time will tell whether buyers come knocking.
©2006 The Oregonian