Normal Winter Slow Down Coming

771 homes sold in Portland this October which is 105 less than September. Pending sales are starting their predictable softening into Fall and Winter. The market is still favoring sellers and promises to keep inventory low, although buyers should have an easier time this winter vs winter 2015, which had the lowest inventory ever.

Wild cards: As prices rise, more buyers are priced out of the market which could slow the pace of sales. Interest rates have dropped close to all time lows. Out of state investment continues to push prices and rents higher and keep inventory low.

I’m predicting around 700 closed sales in Portland (RMLS areas 141, 142, 143 & 148) in November.

Sales volume is a leading indicator for price. To help predict where the market is going I publish this sales volume trend report. The wisdom is that price follows volume so when you see a market trending higher in sales, prices will soon follow up and when sales volume is low, prices will stay flat or fall.