Eugene, OR

Come view the USA Track and Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon with Realtor Karen Church of RE/MAX Integrity. Lane County is a terrific hostess. Walk or run the Prefontaine Trails in the morning and then spend the day in the sun watching our amazing United States Athletes compete to see who will make the World Championship Team. Go to www.usatf.org to get a schedule. I will look for you at Hayward Field. I will be the one cheering the loudest!

Data-wise, what could be better than knowing the median home selling price for SANTA CLARA or any other Eugene, OR neighborhood (RMLS data area)?

The median home sales price (see my last blog entry) is a great measure of central tendency -- a way to know what a whole class of data is doing.

But there is just no substitute for knowing what size of home is really selling better than others.

Accordingly, below is a compilation of homes closed in May, 2009 in SANTA CLARA (North of Belt Line Road), grouped according to the range of the square footage of the home.

You can see how many homes sold in each size range during the month...and how many homes within that size range were for sale (i.e. active listings) on June 16.

(This data excludes homes that were reported as manufactured or tandem (one-half of a duplex).

That is, only single family residences are show on the chart below.)

So: in SANTA CLARA: WHAT''s HOT? And WHAT's NOT?

What's hot: Homes between 1200 and 1399 square feet.

Most of these have three bedrooms, two baths and a family room -- the basic American standard.

These are the favorite choice of buyers using the $8000 refundable federal tax credit.

For these homes, the available inventory (shown in green above) is right in there -- equal to the very low "months of available inventory" experienced in the recent boom years.

What's not: Homes well above the minimum (3 & 2 home) in both square footage and price.

There remains a very high supply of homes in these ranges -- in terms of number of "months of available inventory" (shown in yellow above).

The first time home buyer credit (though available to anyone who has not owned a home in the last three years) has little impact in this range.

The difficulty of finding financing at affordable interest rates in the old "jumbo" loan category has also been a major factor.

(This chart derived from data published by Portland RMLS by Jim Hale, Principal Broker, ACTIONAGENTS.NET)

In May, 2009, the median sales price for homes in Eugene, OR's SANTA CLARA neighborhood (RMLS area) was up from this April but down from May, 2008.

SANTA CLARA's median residential price for May was $226,700. That is lower than the median for May in any the past four years -- putting this measure of central tendency back to approximately where it was at the beginning of the housing boom.

One half of all homes sold for more than the median, one half sold for less.

The median is perhaps the more accurate measure of what is happening in the market place. The mean price (arithmetic average) is easily distorted by a few high or low values.

This trend echoes data in an earlier post on this blog which reported that the Case-Shiller index for the Portland Metro Area showed home prices there declined by 15.3% for the year ending in April, 2009.

Year-on-year, prices in SANTA CLARA are still in decline. However, the trend for the early months of 2009 has been more up than down.

(This chart derived from data published by Portland RMLS by Jim Hale, Principal Broker, ACTIONAGENTS.NET)

In May, 2009, the inventory of homes for sale in Eugene, OR's SANTA CLARA neighborhood declined dramatically from the high recorded in May, 2008.

The number of active listings declined 34% from 2008 (and was also 23% lower than in 2007).

This is great news for SANTA CLARA sellers. A decline in inventory is a necessary first step toward stabilized prices (and, later, increased confidence and increased sales) .

However, this trend was partially mitigated by the fact that the number of closed sales in the SANTA CLARA neighborhood stayed level in May, compared to the prior year.

Of course, the inventory level (number of active listings) remains higher than during the unprecedented 2004 - 2005 boom period.

SANTA CLARA home sales in May (23) were well below the average for the 2002-2005 period (38).

However, the real new is: The inventory domino has fallen.

(This chart derived from data published by Portland RMLS by Jim Hale, Principal Broker, ACTIONAGENTS.NET)

Quiet parklike setting but the convenience of great shopping and the busline a few steps away. Slider off living room opens onto a patio and a beautiful lawn. Balcony off master bedroom looks out onto the treetops. Good storage, stacked washer and dryer and refrigerator included. Wood burning fireplace. Low HOA dues of only $120 per month.

Property Staged by The Notably Well-Dressed Home and offered by Peggy Saleeby / Keller Williams Realty / 541-520-9779

Mature and well-maintained landscaping throughout this condo community:

Living room leads to back patio and shared greenbelt:

Kitchen with eating bar for two:

Master bedroom:

Master bedroom includes niche for reading as well as enclosed deck:

Second bedroom with built-in bookshelves:

More photos of beautifully landscaped grounds: