New listings in the Bend, Oregon, real estate market rose in March and reached their highest level since July 2022.
There were 198 new listings in March, compared with 126 in the month before. We’re accustomed to seeing new listings increase as the spring months approach, but this year’s 57 percent increase is the biggest month-to-month increase for any March in our data set, which dates to the start of 2007.
Even as new listings rose in March, the pace of sales picked up. March ended with an average days on market of 47, down from 57 in February. Inventory dropped slightly from 1.9 months to 1.8 months in March. The average sales price to list price in March was 99 percent, the highest in six months.
The median sales price for the 125 homes sold in March was $680,000. That represents a 3.1 percent increase from February’s figure of $659,450. The 3.1 percent month-over-month increase was the largest since the median price went up 7.0 percent from June to July last year.
March’s median price represented an 11.7 percent drop from March 2022. Looking at year-over-year price changes dating from February 2022 to February 2023, we see a steady slowing in the rate of the year-over-year increase. The median prices were higher than in their respective months a year earlier (until January 2023), but every successive month showed a smaller rate in that increase.
January 2023 ended with a 0.2 percent year-over-year drop, and February 2023 had a 14.7 percent decrease. The trajectory of the year-over-year change in median sales price turned upward in March; there was a year-over-year decline, but the rate of the decline slowed. The coming months will tell if February’s year-over-year figure remains an inflection point in the year-over-year median price change.
The median price in March rose even though the highest-priced tier of homes had a subordinate share of all homes sold. The percentage of homes sold that were priced at more than $925,000 was 22 percent, compared with 28 percent of February’s sales being in the most exclusive tier.
The tier of homes priced between $525,100 and $625,000 had the most sales in March (31 percent of all sales), the second-highest sales price-to-list price percentage (99.5 percent) and the second-lowest inventory (1.3 months).
Real estate activity tends to increase as the weather gets warmer, and March’s data seemed to show a continuation of that trend. If this is the season for you to be in the real estate market – whether you’re looking for a home or considering selling your current residence – I invite you to contact me at (541) 362-1031 or by visiting Bend Property Search to connect with me through my website. I am confident I can work with you to forge a successful real estate experience.