The fourth quarter of 2022 saw a significant cooling off of the residential real estate market when compared to the same quarter in 2021. For 2022 there were only 59 sales that closed, for a total value of $51.48 million, between October 1 and December 31. That compares to 84 homes sold in the same period in 2021 for an aggregate of $66.53 million.

November of 2022 was particularly difficult for realtors, with only 17 sales. December rebounded a bit with 20 sales, three of $1 million or more, half the number in December of 2021. Sales are off dramatically in all ranges.

Average home prices for the quarter improved, however. In 2021 the average for homes sold in the fourth quarter was $794,213. For the quarter just ended the average sales price was $872,159.

It is the median price, however, that matters to realtors. Last quarter’s median sales price was $701,632 as compared to $696,333 for 2021, nearly identical, meaning prices remain surprisingly high for units sold. For all of Deschutes County the November median price was $647,500, with Sisters outpacing the market by some $53,000 per unit.

In November the median for all of Oregon was $515,000 from Redfin data.

It takes much longer to sell a home, with the number of days on the market growing to 39 in 2022 compared to 14 in 2021.

The price per square foot has not changed much — $355 last month versus $344 in December of 2021. This despite the fact that lumber has declined 66.45% after being up 52.9% in 2021 and 77.3% in 2020.

Labor is still tight and it’s taking eight to nine months to finish a 2,400-square-foot custom home when it took six months in 2019.

According to Bloomberg News, new U.S. home construction continued to decline in November, and permits plunged as high borrowing costs paired with widespread inflation eroded housing affordability and demand.

Residential starts decreased 0.5 percent to a 1.43 million annualized rate, according to government data released Tuesday, December 27. Single-family home building dropped to an annualized 828,000 rate, the lowest since May 2020.

Applications to build, a proxy for future construction, decreased 11.2 percent to an annualized 1.34 million units. Permits for construction of single-family homes fell 7.1 percent to the weakest pace since 2020.

There are 82 properties for sale in Sisters Country, including 19 homes listed at over $1 million. Land prices remain high, with a 3,485-square-foot lot on East Black Butte Avenue offered at $175,000; 0.86 acre on Golden Stone for $339,000, and 0.52 acre on Schooner for $299,000.

Of the nine “apartments” for rent Sunday, there were only two were classic apartments – a 440-square-foot, one-bedroom unit for $1,150/month and a 663-square-foot, one-bedroom for $1,375/month. The other seven were homes ranging from $2,300 to $6,000/month.