• The total dollar volume of residential homes sold in 2016 was $150,834,410 or a 7 percent increase over the previous year;
• The average sales price in the fourth quarter was $176,491 or a 10 percent increase over 2015;
• And the number of residential units sold was 941, a 7 percent increase over 2015.

“We’re seeing a large uptick in the numbers,” Shaw said last week. “Commercial property is starting to move, too.”

“In 2014, we had about a 4.5 percent gain in the dollar volume sold. In 2015, we saw a 7 percent increase in total dollar volume and total units sold. Last year, there was $142 million in total sales; this year about $151 million in sales. That up $10 million,” Shaw said.

A recovery pace

And that is where the market should be at as a telltale sign it has pulled out of the recession, Shaw has said in the past. When the market hits that 7 percent pace that makes it more stable, he noted.

“I look for a 9 or 10 percent increase in 2017,” he said.

This year, there were 82 new housing starts, up about 20 homes from the previous year.

“New construction stimulates a lot of things in the economy,” Shaw said. “It means jobs for electricians, plumbers, framers, roofers, sheetrockers, lumber sales people, concrete. What one new house does to the economy is very important.”

Where are the buyers coming from?

Shaw said the majority of buyers are retirees from Northern California (the Bay Area on up) and from Reno and Carson City, Nev.

“What I’m convinced of is that we are drawing people in who are retirees due to our affordability. It is just about unmatched in southern or central Oregon,” he said.

For example, a 1,700-square-foot home at Pheasant Run subdivision off Homedale Avenue, sells for about $265,000. In Bend, the same floorplan sells for about $485,000 and has less acreage. The value to a retiree is great because it gives them more disposable income; money they would spend on dining out, for example, or putting into their property in the form of improvements.

The second wave of home buyers are the young professionals, young families.

“We are also seeing several small businesses expanding, thanks to the help of the Klamath County Economic Development Association (KCEDA) and those people are coming in for jobs, family wage jobs. Sky Lakes Medical Center is also bringing in new families,” Shaw said.

Average home price climbing

The total residential housing units sold in 2015 was 881; this last year it topped 940.

“And here’s a biggie,” Shaw said. “The average sale price of a home was $162,000 in 2015. This year it was $176,000; almost a 10 percent increase.”

Further, the list of homes that were foreclosed on by lenders from the recession – and are still in the market – are selling for an average of $87,000. Once those homes are out of the market and off the books, the average home sale price should climb to about $190,000, Shaw said.

Also, it was rare that a higher-end, $400,000 home sold in the county. That is starting to pick up as well, he said.

The big challenge the area faces is convincing developers the Basin is a smart place to invest.

There are several large subdivisions awaiting development; such as the Regency subdivision near Hosanna school; the River Run subdivision; Southview and other property adjacent to the Stewart-Lennox and south suburban areas; all have about 200 lots on them.

“We still have a fair amount of inventory on that type of property,” Shaw said. “But if you look at the restrictions being placed on the more populated towns in Oregon – Portland, Salem, Beaverton – they have nowhere to expand. We have less restrictions here.”