Market Talk! S.Oregon Real Estate for July 3.

This Fourth of July Holiday will be one of the most low-key holiday events we’re ever going to experience with COVID-19 back dominating our lives.  Celebrate with distance, and stay safe.  Despite what’s going on in our lives, real estate activity continues to rebound and giving opportunities for both buyers and sellers in unprecedented fashion. Last week’s activity shows how it breaks down by county.
This past week continued a trend in June.  Buyers are purchasing larger, more expensive homes than before. Of the 62 closed sales in Jackson County last week, half were priced above $350,000.  Low mortgage interest rates are having an effect on the market right now, allowing buyers to purchase more expensive homes.  The median price of $380,000 is the highest of the year.
We talk about mortgage rates with Guy Giles, of Mutual of Omaha Mortgage on this weekend’s Real Estate Show, KCMX AM 880 Saturday 10 am, Sunday 6 pm.
Guy reports rates as low as 3% for 30-year fixed rates with decent credit scores.  Check out what other products buyers will find today as they search for the right loan. These rates are the fire driving demand. So much so, the chart below shows that during May, the average homeowner received 2.7 offers per sale.  That shows you how much interest and demand is out there for housing even with COVID-19 hurting our economy.
The biggest issue facing our market is low inventory levels.  There are currently less than 700 listings in Jackson County today.  A year ago at this time, there were over 1,000.   Note below that applications for mortgages is up 25%.  So this market looks like it will continue like this for some time to come.

We reached a milestone of sorts this past April when the average rent payment was larger than the average mortgage payment in the USA.  COVID may have had something to do with this but none the less it continues to make more sense to buy than rent as the most effective way to build wealth for you and your family. The last time mortgage averages were lower then rents was in 2016.
Have you noticed a large amount of agriculture activity taking place across the region recently?  Hemp planting is underway in many locations.  It appears significantly less acreage is going to be planted compared to a year ago. In the Klamath Basin, where the photograph below was taken last week, hay production is in full swing and irrigation water providing the life-line to these crops. We are also in the midst of a drought and we expect irrigation season to end by Sept. 1 this year.
Finally, we celebrate this Independence Day Fourth of July weekend different than ever before with no parades, fireworks, and physical distancing practices.  Enjoy the weekend with family and friends and together, lets beat this COVID-19 virus once and for all.  As for Real Estate, call or text anytime we love talking Real Estate with you.
Pete Belcastro  5416217036  call or text anytime.