The Number Of New Real Estate Listings In Portland, OR Has Dropped Sharply

Portland, Oregon: A city full of good food, friendly people, and a fun atmosphere. What some call the beer capital of the world, Portland is a sizable city filled with 2.2 million people, per Pela. However, though it may be on the larger side, Portland can also have the feel of a much smaller and tight-knit community. For instance, they have an amazing bus and train system while also being very biker-friendly. And, they have no sales tax. Furthermore, the pleasant climate in Oregon is greatly appealing to outdoor enthusiasts.

However, while this Pacific Northwest metropolis is a great place to live, it may not be the best place to buy a house right now. Why? Because of the incredibly competitive real estate market in the past few years, Portland Monthly says that buyers have become accustomed to settling for a home with some flaws or one they didn't really desire. Unfortunately, in 2022 the number of new listings is even lower than previous years.

When looking at the above graph created with data from Zillow, it becomes clear that new listings in Portland, Oregon are declining rapidly. In the past five years, the highest the numbers got was in 2018 when they reached 4,989 total in June. Then in 2019, the number reduced slightly to 4,490. Because of the impact that COVID-19 had on the real estate industry, the count plummeted in 2020 to 3,477, then rose again to 4,517 the following year. Now, however, while the number of new real estate listings has not decreased as much as it did in 2020, it is lower than last year at 4,083. According to Rocket Mortgage, this could be because of the increase in people who can work at home from anywhere and the decrease in new builds. 

Further, Portland's house prices are also extremely high; Redfin says that the median price is $569,000, and Oregon Live says that both prices and mortgage rates are higher than last year. And, many homes are sold over their listing prices. However, experts are also saying that Portland's market seems to be cooling down. While properties are typically sold in about 20 days, that is longer than in the past, when some properties sold in just a weekend. Additionally, there are currently two months of inventory on the market; while a balanced market should have six months total, that is an improvement from previous years measured by weeks, per Portland Monthly.