October Residential Highlights 

Market Activity continues to be on the decline when compared to 2008. Pending sales fell 39.6% when comparing October 2008 with October 2007.  The number of closed sales and new listings also fell, 21.4% and 21.6% respectively.

Comparing October to September, we also saw a decline across the board, although not as intense as the comparison above. There were;25.6%; (1,268 v. 1,705) fewer accepted offers in October. Additionally, there were 14.2% (3,605 v. 4,200) less new listings added to the inventory. Further, there was a 10.7% (1,465 v. 1,640) drop in closed sales.

At the month’s rate of sales, the 16,257 active residential properties would last approximately 11.1 months.

Year-To-Date

Comparing January-October of 2008 to the same time period in 2007 there have been 31.3% fewer closed sales  and 30.2% less accepted offers this year. In addition, there was a 7.5% decrease in the number of homes added to the market.    

Affordability 

Due to a decrease in the median home price in the Portland Metro Area ($267,000 in September) and a drop in the average interest rate (6.04% per Freddie Mac) a family earning the median income ($67,500 in 2008, per HUD) can afford 109% of the monthly mortgage payment on a median priced home according to a formula from the National Association of Realtors®. The formula assumes that the buyer has a 20% down payment and a 30 year fixed rate of 5.97% (per Freddie Mac).

Courtesy of RMLS Market Action Reporrt

68 Wheatherstone Offered at $325,000Offered at $325,000.  Very private Townhome-style condo that feels like a traditional home.  New roof & siding in 2004.

Private courtyard and fountain. Formal hardwood entry, traditional moldings & wainscoting, gas fireplace with marble surround.  3 large decks.  Backs to greenspace.  

Vaulted Master with deck.  Lower level has family bonus room with wet bar and 4th bedroom, laundry & full bath.  

Mt. Park amenities. Low HOA dues and wonderful neighbors. Taxes $3,932.50/year.  HOA Dues $706/quarter + $240/semi-annual.  

Click here for more pictures.

 Click here to download entire report.

Courtesy of RMLS. Download the entire report here.

August Residential Highlights
Market activity in the Portland metro area appears to have slowed in August, compared to the same period a year ago. Comparing August this year with that of August 2007, new listings dropped 27.1%. Closed sales were off last year’s pace by30.7%, while pending sales also fell 22%. In a month-to-month comparison (July v. August 2008),new listings dropped 16% (4,398v. 5,237). Closed sales were down3.3% (1,770 v. 1,831) and pending sales decreased 4.7% (1,908 v.2,003). At the month’s rate of sales, the17,556 active residential properties would last approximately 9.9months at the month’s rate of sales. This is down slightly from last month (10 months).

Year-to-Date
Comparing January-August2008 with the same time in 2007,new listings decreased 5%. Pending sales and closed sales fell 30.8% and 33.9%, respectively.

Sale Prices
The average sale price for August 2008 was down 6.7% compared to August 2007, while the median sale price dropped7.3%. Month-to-month, the average sale price and median sale price are both down when compared with July’s levels; the average sale price dropped 2.7% ($331,300v. $340,500) and the median sale price was down 2.8% ($280,000 v.$288,200).

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Mortgage rates have already drop today (by about a half point) and may drop more. Tighter lending requirements, however, are expected to remain.  Read more from CNN Money here. 

Courtesy of PortlandWaterfront.com

MarketWatch: Homebuyers and holders of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac debt are the likely beneficiaries of a U.S. Treasury plan to takeover the beleaguered mortgage giants, but it is less clear how shareholders will fare.

A capital infusion by the Treasury could harm investors in the firms' common and preferred stock in the near term, but may ultimately prove a boon to shareholders if the companies rebound, analysts said.

"If the companies are stabilized and the crisis passes, the stock will be worth a lot," Peter Wallison, former general counsel to the Treasury and a frequent critic of the firms, argued. The Treasury is finalizing a plan to backstop Fannie and Freddie that will likely involve an injection of capital into the firms and a shake up of their top management, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

The intervention, which could be announced this weekend, is expected to put the companies into the conservatorship of their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency. The companies' boards met Saturday to discuss the plan.

Fannie and Freddie have provided financing for 70% of mortgages originated in recent months, as purely private investors have fled the market.

CBS NEWS:The government is expected to take over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as soon as this weekend in a monumental move designed to protect the mortgage market from the failure of the two companies, which together hold or guarantee half of the nation's mortgage debt, a person briefed on the matter said Friday night.

Some of the details of the intervention, which could cost taxpayers billions, were not yet available, but are expected to include the departure of Fannie Mae CEO Daniel Mudd and Freddie Mac CEO Richard Syron, according to the source, who asked not to be named because the plan was yet to be announced.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and James Lockhart, the companies' chief regulator, met Friday afternoon with the top executives from the mortgage companies and informed them of the government's plan to put the troubled companies into a conservatorship.

WSJ Online: "The Treasury Department is close to finalizing a plan to help shore up mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, according to people familiar with the matter. Precise details of Treasury's plan couldn't be learned. The plan is expected to involve a creative use of Treasury's new authority to make a capital injection into the beleaguered giants. The plan includes changes to senior management at both companies, according to a person familiar with the plans. An announcement could come as early as this weekend."

This could be GOOD news for the mortgage market; but BAD news for the shareholders of the two GSEs.

MarketWatch picked up the story as well: Shares of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac slumped during Friday's evening trading session on concerns a possible government bailout of the mortgage giants might wipe out equity holders.