More Good News! Bend, Oregon Real Estate Rocks

Bend, Oregon real estate is hot right now. We're excited to see the market shifting, which is creating some unique "problems" like low inventory. The classic laws of economics can be seen at work, as this low supply is driving up prices on residential real estate listings. New home construction is continuing to rise, helping to alleviate some of the inventory demands (new construction sales have increased by 65% over last year), but constraints remain.

Active residential listings at the beginning of May were 18% below the same point a year ago. Last month the gap was 8.5%. This is pushing the number of sales down in comparison with last year at this time. The current inventory calculation is three months.Average year-to-date sale prices in Bend are 27% above last year at this time, with the price per square foot up a similar amount. This calculation is similar to CoreLogic index figures for the Bend Metropolitan Statistical Area, released May 7, that show March prices up 3.3% from the previous month and 19.8% over March 2012.

The inventory pinch is not the only factor supporting higher prices. Building material costs are rising across the country. National Assn. of Home Builders chief economist David Crowe said prices of gypsum, softwood lumber and concrete are running above 90% of housing boom levels. This is causing home construction costs to rise faster than appraised values.

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Green Real Estate in Bend, Oregon: The Garner Group

It's not a secret that we pride ourselves on a real focus on sustainability here at The Garner Group Real Estate. Our brokers put in the time it takes to educate themselves (and their clients) about the benefits to buying "green" to make sure everyone can make informed decisions when it comes to purchasing a new home. Last month, nine of our brokers have earned the Earth Advantage STAR designation from the Earth Advantage Institute - bringing our total number of STAR agents on staff to a whopping ELEVEN!  

The certification was granted following a course of training that included classroom lectures, visits to green building sites and a final examination. “STAR” stands for Sustainability Training for Accredited Real Estate Professionals.

The training enables the brokers to identify home features and building products that provide greater energy, water and resource efficiency and create a healthier living environment for their clients. The newly-minted EA STAR agents at The Garner Group are:

·         John Anderson

·         Erin Campbell

·         Victoria Davis

·         Shelley Griffin

·         Sean Haidet

·         Suzanne Iselin

·         Melody Lessar

·         Alison Mata

·         Angela Tweedie

( Jody Tuttle and Phyllis Mageau earned the designation at an earlier date.) 

As we said, green real estate is a priority at the firm, with several other agents demonstrating their commitment to serving the green building market by completing an advanced training program conducted by the National Association of Realtors. Lessar, Griffin, Mata and Tuttle have earned the association’s GREEN broker designation, along with Carol Donohoe, Matt Garner, Patsy Roome, Rob Davis and managing principal broker Sara LaFaver. All individuals are licensed Oregon brokers with The Garner Group Real Estate LLC in Bend, Oregon. 

Congratulations everyone!

Shelley Griffin

John Anderson

Suzanne Iselin

Erin Campbell

Alison Mata

Melody Lessar

Sean Haidet

Victoria Davis

Angela Tweedie