Local real estate market shows decline

The local real estate market is showing signs of slowing down, according to statistics from the Multiple Listing Service.

La Grande Realtor Andy Lilly, who tracks the information, said some 93 houses were sold in Union County in the first eight months of 2008. In the same period during 2007, 128 houses were closed.

The average price of a home, meanwhile, has fallen from $158,560 in 2007 to $144,248 now.

Also, it’s taking much longer to sell a house this year than it did last. In September 2007, the average-time-on-market was a mere 42 days; now it is 93 days.

In other local economic news, there’s evidence that tourism suffered in the gas crunch of this year.

The City of La Grande recently reported a 25 percent drop in transit room tax receipts in July and August, as compared to the same period last year. Union County reported a 30 percent drop.