As a realtor, I receive considerable information on helping people become homeowners. What has surprised me is how often I hear that many of these programs are underutilized or people find out about them too late. According to the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, access to housing and homeownership counseling can make a big […]
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Out of Reach 2017 Report for Oregon
The National Low Income Housing Coalition’s “Out of Reach” Report for 2017 shows that the median rental household in most Oregon counties cannot comfortably afford a two-bedroom apartment. As expected, Deschutes County is one of those counties. The Source has reported on this multiple times in our ongoing Housing Crisis series. According to the report, […]
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Real Estate Statistics for May 2017
According to the most recent Beacon report, closed sales in Bend for the month of May 2017 decreased by 4 transactions over April 2017 for a total of 216 sales as compared to 220 for April 2017. The median sales price declined from $394,000 in April to $374,000 for May. Not only were fewer homes […]
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Getting a Zero Down Payment Mortgage
Tips & Tricks
In these days of escalating rents in which rent payments can be more than a mortgage payment, many people are unable to save any money for a down payment. As a result, many think that home ownership is not possible without a down payment. The reality is that there are several opportunities to become a […]
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Fannie Mae Initiative for Affordable Multifamily Housing
Fannie Mae has recently announced its Healthy Housing Rewards Initiative. The program is meant to provide incentives to builders of multifamily rental housing that incorporate healthy design features. This will apply to new construction as well as rehabilitated affordable multifamily rental properties. The target market is properties where at least 60 percent of the tenants […]
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Why Aren’t There More Starter Level Homes Built?
While we are feeling the effects of the national entry level housing shortage in Bend, we aren’t seeing builders jumping onboard in big numbers to build starter level homes. The demand is definitely there for smaller, starter-type homes, as evidenced by local sales statistics of homes priced $300,000 and under. Millennials and renters desire to […]
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Real Estate Statistics for April 2017
The Beacon Report, based on real estate statistics from our local MLS, released its report of the April 2017 figures—which allows some interesting comparisons to last year’s Bend single family residence sales of 1 acre or less. According to the report, closed sales in Bend for the month of April 2017 increased by 50 transactions […]
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Insight on Causes of the Housing Shortage
The Oregon Office of Economic Analysis puts out some interesting information and insights, and a recent blog addressed the housing shortage. One would think that with job growth, increased demand for owner-occupied and rental housing, population growth and rising home prices, that there would be a construction boom to meet the supply the market is […]
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Will a Baby Boomer Sell-Off Cause the Next Housing Crisis?
There have been several recent articles in industry literature on the possibility of our next housing crisis occurring as baby boomers sell off their homes en masse. Other literature sees this as a good thing, saying that this will open up the starter home inventory for millennial buyers. A recent report from the Harvard Joint […]
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The Struggle With Low Housing Inventory
According to the April 18 financial release by Freddie Mac, the low inventory levels are continuing to push prices up and there’s concern because the rise is outpacing job income growth. They reported that for the month of March, higher home prices combined with higher interest rates decreased affordability. Many statistical reports, including our local […]