The Associated PressA home is shown for sale in November in Portland.It turns out summer wasn’t quite over after all.

After a slow July, home sales in the Portland area soared in August, making it the strongest month by volume the local real estate market has seen in five years.

Monthly figures from the Regional Multiple Listing Service showed 2,311 homes sold during in August, 28 percent more than in the same month a year earlier. Another 2,387 homes went under a sales contract, which bodes well for the coming months when those sales are finalized.

At the same time, the median sale price faltered for the first time in seven months, falling from $287,000 in July to $281,000 in August. That price remains 7.1 percent higher than a year ago, and prices fluctuate seasonally in a normal market.

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Home prices rose through the spring and summer, lifted by the small supply of homes available. That inventory ticked upward in July, but fell back to a low 3.9-month supply in August. Six months is considered a balanced market, with anything below indicating demand outpaces supply.

Market analysts worried the small supply was constraining sales. Many homeowners are still unable to sell “underwater” homes, which are worth less than the amount owed on the mortgage. More still may be waiting for prices to pick up further before jumping into the market.

But the 3,099 homes newly listed for sale in August represented a 7.6 percent increase in compared with a year ago. It’s 2 percent fewer homes than were listed in July, but new listings vary seasonally.

Those homes that sold in August were on the market for an average of 97 days, from listing to closing. That’s more than a month less time on the market than a year ago.

Sales volumes improved most compared with a year ago in North of 26 and Lake Oswego/West Linn. However, both of those communities are still seeing price declines over the last 12 months compared with the 12 months prior.

–Elliot Njus
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