Red-Hot Market for Metro-Area Home Sales Continued in August

Homebuyers can’t get enough of what they want in the Portland metro area, according to the latest monthly recap from the Regional Multiple Listing Service.

The median price for a closed home sale through August was 17.4% higher than last year. That median sale price in August was $525,000.

The number of closed sales continues to be high—3,219 in August—higher than any August in the past five years. Low interest rates have certainly played a part in the market’s strength, but rates are low everywhere so the price increase and high volume of sales suggest homeowners still want to be here.

Inventory—the measure of the quantity of homes for sale—ticked up slightly to one month’s supply. That means there are enough homes on the market to equal the number of sales in August.

By historical standards, one month’s supply is very low: As recently as August 2019, the inventory was 2.3 months. But inventory got as low as 0.7 months in May, which may suggest that higher prices are encouraging more owners to put their homes on the market.