The Price Is Right
Economic, real estate downturns combine to drop housing costs
By Damian Mann
Mail Tribune
April 16, 2008 6:00 AM
Not long ago, finding a home for under $200,000 was almost impossible in Jackson County.
The tide has turned and some house prices are hovering around $100,000 or less, though that won't buy a dream home.
"You wouldn't have seen this two years ago," said broker Sandra Schell of Help-U-Sell Real Estate of Southern Oregon. "Things have changed."
Schell said the catch with most of these houses is a generally undesirable location or something that needs work. With others, you're just getting the structure but not the land, which is leased.
Schell has one town home on West Main Street in Medford that just dropped from $97,000 to $90,000. It's 1,120 square feet with three bedrooms, one bathroom and was built in 1972. It also has a very tiny lot that is .02 acre.
Because of the neighborhood, Schell said, "It's a little questionable over there."
Schell doesn't think these prices will last long, expecting the market to turn around in 2009. She said demand will increase because "too many people want to come into the area."
For the moment, house prices continue to slide, with 30 to 40 price reductions posted daily, she said. As of noon Monday, Schell said 23 listings had dropped their prices.
With so many reports about the bleak housing market, Schell said many people are worried. But for buyers, she said, there are plenty of deals out there.
"Anybody who has money should be picking up properties right and left," she said.
Roy Wright, a local real estate appraiser, said five urban homes have sold for under $100,000 since the beginning of the year.
"There's no way of telling, but they were probably all foreclosures," he said.
One house on Taylor Street in Talent sold for $93,000 in February. It was 1,620 square feet with a one-car garage on .14 acre. Another Talent house, which is 1,344 square feet and has three bedrooms and two bathrooms and sits on the same size lot, is for sale at $89,000.
On Monday, Wright said there were 13 houses listed in Jackson County that are selling for under $100,000.
At $125,000 or less, there were 31, he said.
For instance, on North Columbus Avenue in west Medford, a 920-square-foot house on a .17-acre lot is selling for $106,900.
The median price for houses in urban areas in Jackson County was $235,000 in March, which means half sold for less than that amount and the other half sold for more.
On Broad Street in Butte Falls, there is a 1,056-square-foot house built in 1912 with two bedrooms and one bathroom that is going for $99,900.
The house comes with a bit of land — .15 acres — unlike some in the sub-$100,000 price range.
Broker Pat Saunders said the catch with this house is that it is a so-called "short sale."
Two banks have different loans on the property, so a potential home buyer would have to negotiate the sale, a process that could take four months rather than the typical one-month escrow, she said.
The final price could be $99,900, but it also could be more depending on the negotiations with the banks and how many potential buyers come forward. So far, one person has expressed interest in buying the property, she said.
At some point, the bank will have an appraisal done on the house once offers are made, but the appraisal won't necessarily determine the final price. With so many houses on the market, and so many in foreclosure, the banks are willing to come down.
"They normally come down to get rid of it rather than go into foreclosure," said Saunders.
Banks also will make certain the buyer has the cash or ability to secure a loan before any deal goes through. Credit is tighter now, which makes it more difficult to secure loans.
Saunders said short sales aren't for everyone. "It's a long process but you can save a lot of money," she said.
Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476 or dmann@mailtribune.com.
