Greetings:
Economists at Bank of America warned this week that the US housing market is “stuck and they are convinced it will not become unstuck” until 2026 or later. They said that home prices will stay high and will go even higher. The housing shortage will persist. There are many reasons from builders not building, high building material costs, strict zoning laws, many present homeowners staying put, and high interest rates, which leads to affordability issues. Home prices spiked during COVID-19 along with the Fed’s war on inflation which led to higher mortgage rates that priced many potential buyers out of the market. This hit first time home buyers especially hard.
Our new reality in the housing market is lack of supply and it is predicted that, just in the State of Oregon, we are over 442,000 housing units short. The Governor declared war on the housing crises last year with an ambitious plan to build over 36,000 housing units per year, which has resulted in very few new units thus far. We need to ask our state and local officials what they are doing to help us solve this issue or it is going to get worse.
“WE NEED MORE HOUSING!’’
Our new listing inventory in the month of June at (213) increased by +2.9% from (207) taken in May 2024. Listings year-to-date through June from 2023 to 2024 have increased by +14.8% from (907) to (1041) in 2024. The trend is upward in terms of more homes to choose from for the buyer. Earlier, I noted that inventory is increasing nationwide as well. However, even with the increase in homes on the market, we are still in a sellers’ market because there just isn’t enough inventory. A normal market for real estate is a 6-month supply of houses for sale and currently there is a 3.9-month supply.
Pending sales in June are down slightly to (147) -0.7% in compared to June 2023. Year-to-date for 2024 pending sales increased to (730) which is up +3.1 from 2023 at (708). We follow pending sales because it is a good indicator of how many closings we will have in the next 30-60 days. In June 2024 closed sales (112) decreased by -10.4% from the (125) closings in May 2024. So far, the year-to-date closings for 2024 compared to 2023 are up slightly +0.2% from (636 to 637.)
The average sales price of a home in June for Douglas County increased by +7.0% to $400,000 up from $373,900 a year ago. Also, the median price home year-to-date has increased +2.2% from $315,000 to $322,000 in 2024. As we look at area trends comparing the average sale prices of homes year-to-date: North Roseburg home prices (Winchester) decreased by -11.5% to $266,900; NW Roseburg home prices were up +2.7 to $529,100 (Hucrest and Melrose area); SE Roseburg home prices were up +1.8% to $315,800 (downtown area); SW Roseburg (Melrose) were down -2.2% to $432,700; Glide and E. Roseburg home prices were down 3.9% to $555,800; Sutherlin-Oakland home prices were down -3.5% to $346,000; Winston and SW Roseburg prices were down -1.4% to $339,600; Myrtle Creek home prices were +2.9% to $283,400; Green District home prices were down -1.0% to $301,500; North Douglas County homes prices were down -1.6% to $287,100.
I would encourage you to think about volunteering your time and talents to what you feel is your passion or find agencies that need help. I often find that volunteering gives you meaning and self-worth plus it helps our local community thrive and prosper. Again, keep all our Veterans in your thoughts and prayers for remember our “FREEDOMS ARE NOT FREE!” GOD BLESS THEM AND GOD BLESS AMERICA!
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