Our Portland market is shifting, so as a buyer, you need great intel and you need to look at all the comparable homes sold yourself.
Our market is shifting here in Portland, and there are two keys to finding the right home if you’re a buyer.
First, when I say a “shifting market,” I mean we’re shifting into a neutral-to-slightly-depreciating market. As we know, real estate is micro-local, and certain areas are still in a strong seller’s market. Overall though, the Portland market is shifting. We’re seeing more price reductions and homes are spending more days on the market. Specifically, we’ve seen a 63% increase in price reductions year over year.
With that being said, the first key to taking advantage of these conditions is intel. You need to make sure your agent is asking sellers lots of questions. Do they understand that we’re in a shifting market? They should be able to provide data.
The second key is to look at the comps yourself. You can’t look at comparable homes sold back in June or July, because it was a better market then than the one we have now.
There are a lot of great opportunities for buyers out there right now. There’s more inventory available, and sellers are willing to negotiate. Interest rates are also still historically low—people are freaking out because they’re at 5%, but that’s still an incredible rate. We should see a seasonal shift downward during the fourth quarter, so that’ll be an even greater opportunity for buyers. If you’ve had a tough time finding the right house, the fourth quarter will be a great time to get in the game.
If you have any other questions about our market or you’re thinking of selling a home soon, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d be glad to help you.
