For the third time in the last four months, the median sales price of a home in the Bend, Oregon, real estate market set a record.

July’s median of $470,000 was $4,000 (0.86 percent) more than the previous high of $466,000, set in May. The $470,000 represented a 7.6 percent increase from July 2018.

A record median sales price also was set in April ($462,900).

Before April, the record-setting price was $449,450, recorded in June 2018. That figure was approached in January 2019 ($448,500), and once it was breached in April, the momentum in price has continued.

The average days on the market for a home sold in July was 87 days. That is the second-shortest time in our data set (dating to the start of 2007), behind the 84 days of June 2019. For a historical comparison, consider this: The average days on market has been fewer than 100 days in seven of the 151 months for which we have data; two of those rare periods have occurred in back-to-back months this year.

Another key statistic in evaluating a housing market is the inventory of homes on the market. At the pace of sales seen in July, it would take 3.1 months for all of the homes for sale in the Bend, Oregon, real estate market to be sold. That lies squarely on the side of a seller’s market, as six months is the commonly used demarcation between a buyer’s and a seller’s market.

Moreover, July’s inventory is skewed by homes at the extreme high end of the price range. For every price tier at $825,000 and less, the inventory of homes was 2.5 months or less – even more strongly on the seller’s side of the equation.

July’s sales figures showed the result of competitively priced homes in a desirable market. In each of the three price tiers from $525,100 to $825,000, the average sales price to list price was 100 percent.

The year-over-year increase in the median sales price noted above followed a rare year-over-year decline. In June, the median sales price was $445,050, a slight drop from the $449,450 of June 2018. June was the first time in 41 months that the year-over-year median sales price declined. July’s record seemed to indicate that the year-over-year dip was not the start of a trend.

We can’t tell if July’s figures hold any signs for the rest of the year, of course. We can say that in each of the last eight years, the year-to-date median price after July was less than the end-of-year median sale price. That would seem to indicate that the Bend, Oregon, real estate market has shown that it has legs in the second half of a calendar year.

Although my monthly review of sales data looks at monthlong snapshots of data, the market doesn’t adhere to the cycles imposed by a calendar. There is not necessarily a “right” time to buy and sell. To ensure you get the best outcome in your real estate transaction, having a highly experienced and highly ethical Realtor on your side is one of the best actions you can take. I encourage you to contact me at (541) 383-1426 or to visit Bend Property Search to connect with me through my website.