The single-family housing market in Redmond and Bend appears to have tempered and stabilized after months of low inventory and rising prices, according to the monthly Beacon report.

Since April, the median price of a single-family home has bounced around the mid-$600,000 range in Bend, said Donnie Montagner, owner of Beacon Appraisal Group LLC of Redmond. In Redmond, the prices have stabilized around $450,000 since April, Montagner said.

“It’s hard to say if we’ve hit the peak on the median sales prices,” he said. “It’s good news for buyers and good for the community as a whole because there are more choices and a moderately increasing market that takes a lot of the guess work out of where we’re going in the real estate market.”

There’s a seasonal aspect in home sales, which also could account for the stabilization of prices. With school starting, there’s a softening in demand in fall going into winter, Montagner said.

In Bend, the median sales price of a single-family home was $650,000 in September, compared to $635,000 in August. The median sales price is the midpoint value of all transactions in a month. It has been influenced by a seller’s market, where more than one buyer is bidding on a home. The median sales price is also influenced by the number of homes selling in the million -dollar-plus price range.

Homes are averaging a week on the market in Bend and Redmond, with some neighborhoods still receiving multiple offers and others having to reduce price, he said.

In Redmond the median sales price of a single-family home remained the same in September as the prior month at $450,000, according to the report.

“There is a significant savings in Redmond,” Montagner said. “For folks interested in Central Oregon they want to be in Bend, not Redmond, where the market is less volatile because the housing products are more aligned with the market.”

In Sisters and Sunriver there is about half a month’s worth of inventory in the single-family housing market, according to the report. Sunriver’s median sales price in September was $858,000 and in Sisters the median sales price was $610,000.

In La Pine it was noteworthy that the community has three months of inventory on the market, he said.

“It’s hard to say if we’ve hit the peak on the median sales prices.”

Donnie Montagner, Beacon Appraisal Group