New Construction Condo Sales Pick Up
CONDO REPORT, Q4/2010 – PORTLAND, OR
Condo Sales End The Year On A High Note
Roughly 200 condos sold in Portland’s city center during the last quarter of the year. Sales were up about 10% from the previous quarter, but down 10% from the same quarter one year ago. With more than 80 sales closing in the final month of the year, December marked the third strongest month for the year, behind May (102) and June (92).
Much of the increase in sales for the month of December can be attributed to new construction sales, where sellers were eager to close out for the year. With the exception of The 937 Condos in the Pearl District, essentially all other new development condos with substantial inventory in Portland’s city center closed more than a dozen sales respectively. For the quarter, the Atwater Condos in Portland’s South Waterfront booked almost $8 million in sales, the highest quarterly amount since holding an auction a year ago. The fourth quarter was also a highlight for neighboring John Ross Condos, as the last remaining developer owned unit changed hands, ending a more than 5-year sales stretch. Sales were also high at the Encore ($7.1 million). American Plaza was among the most active in the re-sale category, followed by The Civic Condos and The Marshal Wells Condos in the Pearl District.
A total of 35 units or approx. 15% of all condo sales that occurred in Portland’s city center in the final quarter of the year were bank-owned, up 1-2 percentage points from the previous quarter.
Prices Continue On Path Of Stabilization
For the Portland-metro area as a whole median home prices are down about 5% from where they were year ago (according to RMLS Market Action). Median condo prices tend to fluctuate considerably more from month to month than the market as a whole. As such it’s helpful to look at the 12-month moving average for median prices (a metric that RMLS Market Action does not employ). Based on the 12-month moving average median prices appear to be trending up slightly over the last couple of months and are up 1-2% points since the same time last year.
Once again, a large number of new construction sales is at least partly responsible for the increase in price points as these units tend to be higher priced. Among the top 50 priced condos in downtown Portland that sold in the fourth quarter only a handful were re-sales. Overall, about 25% of all condo sales were in the +500k range, with four units closing for more than a million dollars. Unit #1402 at the Westerly was the most expensive condo that sold in the Portland metro area for the quarter. At a 500k reduction over asking price, the buyer buyer paid $2.2 million for this 3,650 sq. ft penthouse. At the opposite end of the spectrum, prices started at about 100k for a 900 sq. ft studio at McCormick Pier or a 488 sq. ft pad at the Irving Street Lofts. Roughly 40% of all units sold in Portland’s city center condo market during the fourth quarter closed at or below 250k.
With the right representation, several buyers were able to drive hard bargains,such as these deals:
- Strand Condos, Penthouse #1103 – sold at 140k below asking price
- Cambridge Condos, 2-bed/2-bath, 2000 Sq. ft, Mt. Hood Views – sold at a 60k discount
- 40k discount at Eliot Condo #1705 for all cash offer
- Meriwether Condos, 889 sq. ft, sold for less than 200k
However, bargains such as these were not to be had by all. Roughly a quarter of all buyers settled at or above asking price.
