What Is With All This Snow Anyway?

It's just about an even split here in Bend, Oregon: half the population loves all this white fluffy stuff and have used up all their sick days to spend flying down Mt. Bachelor, and half the population is huddled by the fire counting the days until summer. Is this amount of snow "normal" for Bend? A little look at history may tell us:

For the period between January of 1928 and December of 2005, the average maximum temperature for February was 45.2 degrees, with an average low of 24 degrees (that's looking pretty balmy as we stare -2 degrees in the face for tonight)! Average total snowfall for the month was only 3.2 inches. Looking outside, we'd say we've far exceeded that so far this February. In fact, the storm mid-month brought more than 9" overnight to some places in Bend, Oregon!

Many visitors have been asking us if this weather is normal, and based on historical data, the amount of snowfall we've gotten this year is above average, and temperatures are colder than normal. So, if you like snow - get your gear on and get out and enjoy it! You can even Nordic ski right here in town! If you don't - well, it's likely next year will be a completely different story - and we do have very beautiful summers here in Bend, Oregon. Happy winter!

The View From My Seat ;Bend Oregon Real Estate

As transaction coordinator for Bend, Oregon real estate company The Garner Group, I really feel it when things pick up because action in our sales office keeps me hopping! And lately, I’ve been very busy and noticing some interesting trends:

1. Multiple Offer Situations
My husband, who buys homes, was recently one of thirteen offers on a single property in the $250,000 range. Another agent in our Bend, Oregon office mentioned that she was ready to make an offer on a home, and when she called the listing agent there were 27 offers already made on the property. In fact, four other agents at The Garner Group have run into similar problems recently.

2. Low Inventory
Inventory in MLS is the lowest it’s been in a long time, with only 495 residential listings in Bend, Oregon right now. Last month’s inventory was in the 570 range, so this would indicate that houses are selling faster than agents can list them! (Seems like the perfect time to list a home, yes?)

3. Transactions, Transactions (I’m Busy!)
In January of this year I opened 41 transactions with 38 of those accepted and on schedule to close. To have 93 percent of the transaction written in our Bend, Oregon real estate office come together and close is fantastic. This is compared to January 2010, when I opened more than 30 transactions and only had 13 that closed as scheduled.

Another interesting note: MLS average sales price for 2010 was $191,750. The Garner Group average sales price for 2010 was $320,089. I think that’s pretty awesome and wanted to share! We’re working hard as your Bend, Oregon real estate experts.