Median home price is $807,000

The number of homes sold in Sisters Country this past June was only 24 as compared to 30 in the prior year, but prices remain high and inventory tight. Eight homes in each June period exceeded $1 million in closing price. The average price in June of 2022 reached $944,985 but the median was exactly $700,000. The median price is what professionals follow.

The average sale price is calculated by adding all the sale prices for homes sold in a specific area within a specified time frame and dividing that total by the number of properties sold. For instance, if ten properties sold in the last 30 days, the average home price would be calculated by adding the sale prices for all ten properties and dividing that figure by ten.

The problem with the average sale price is that if one or more properties were sold at an extraordinarily high or low price, the average is skewed higher or lower as a result. In this case, the average becomes a somewhat unreliable metric.

The median sale price on the other hand is the sale price in the middle of the data set when you arrange all the sale prices from low to high. The median sale price, then, represents the figure at which half of the properties in the area sell at a higher price and the other half at a lower price.

That number broke through $800,000 last month, a median price not previously seen in Sisters. The average price per square foot rocketed to $635 last month compared to $428 per square foot in June of 2022.

The total of all transactions for June 2023 declined to $22.4 million from $28.35 million for the prior June.

As new subdivisions complete or mature, prices rise. Pine Meadows saw a home on West Hope sell for $1.8 million in June. A lot on the same street closed at $570,000. There remains a scarcity of homes, notwithstanding that there are 110 listings for all of Sisters Country.

That includes Black Butte Ranch and a large number in Cloverdale. Within the city limits there are only about 20 finished homes on the market. However, it’s taking four times as long to sell a home this year compared to last — 28 days vs. 6 days.

Cash buyers remain prevalent, realtors say, especially those for homes in the $800,000-plus range.

Hayden Homes is sold out in their latest subdivision, McKenzie Meadows. The Woodlands appear to be selling homes nearly as fast as they build them, with 12 units now occupied or sold in phase one’s 21 homes. When completed, The Woodlands will exceed 300 dwelling units.

Renters are still struggling to find affordable apartments. There are 13 units in Sisters listed but eight are homes, not traditional apartments. A 3-bedroom, 2-bath apartment on Lundgren Mill rents for $2,550/month. A 600 sq. ft. studio on Tall Fir Court is offered at $1,195/month, and a 2-bedroom, 600 sq. ft. unit on N. Reed rents for $1,243 monthly.

The 30-year fixed mortgage rate hit 7.22 one day in June and today stands at 6.78 percent, the highest since the year 2000. Whopping interest rates and double-digit rises in insurance are tamping down the number of buyers.