December 2020 real estate graphs

Clatsop home supply ends year at historic low

ASTORIA — Capping a year in which the “law of supply and demand” nudged Clatsop County home values to a historical new level, December was marked by a leveling in the median price even while the housing inventory became tighter.

There were only 68 houses listed for sale in the county in December, according to data from the Clatsop Association of Realtors — less than half as many as in August and fewer than a third of the 209 active listings in March 2020 as pandemic restrictions were beginning to be imposed. A year ago in December 2019, there were 244 listings, equaling a decline of 72%.

Only five active listings were priced under $249,000 as December ended, with five more priced between $250,000 and $299,999.

The average selling price was $507,668 in December, 11% more than a year earlier, but a decline from the $540,516 in November. December’s median price — meaning half sold for more and half for less — was $389,500, about level with December 2019 and down from $426,000 in November.

Houses are spending a median of 60 days on the market between the listing and closing, down from 101 days in December 2019 and 82 days in November 2020. The absorption rate — a real estate industry measurement of how fast sales are burning through the available inventory — fell below one month to 0.97, compared to 3.59 in December 2019. This means that unless more houses were listed, it would take less than a month to exhaust the available supply.

The average list price of the 39 houses listed in December was $771,110, up 23% from 12 months earlier. Eighteen of the new listings were for $500,000 or more, compared to six listings at that level a year before.