Lack of inventory + Willing buyers = Seller’s Market
In many ways, our lack of snowfall has demonstrated just how robust demand for the region really is. Promising economic conditions; particularly in Northern California, are fueling a boom in activity, even in the absence of snowfall.
While ski conditions have not warranted staying on the mountain from dusk till dawn, visitors have enjoyed other activities like ice skating, hiking, biking on low elevation trails and we’ve even had sightings of paddling on Tahoe.
All in all, January of 2018 posted 94 residential transactions. This compares to 92 in January, 2017; a 2% increase in what is historically the slowest month for closings of any given year. Also interesting, the average sale for 2018 was $1,066,642 compared to $788,674 during the same period last year.
Scarcity drives buyers toward higher priced properties.
While properties in the region have not necessarily appreciated by the above 35%, demand for homes has effectively elevated the property values, and the scarcity of available inventory has driven consumers toward higher priced homes that typically have a much longer marketing cycle.
Major transactions in January included six Martis Camp homes from $2,450,000 to $8,800,000. Additionally, a lakefront home on Tahoe’s West Shore traded for $7,500,000.
Also remarkable, Northstar properties sold upward of $2 million and a home in Gray’s Crossing traded $55K over asking at $1,735,000 and $576 price per foot!!
The market currently shows 445 residential properties for sale ranging from studio condos for $175,000 to magnificent lakefront properties for $75,000,000. At 2017 absorption rates, this equates to just 3 months’ supply; a dramatic swing in favor of sellers.
In Summary: Sellers should consider selling NOW
With the end of ski season, spring is often the time when most homes come to market in the Tahoe-Truckee region. So owners contemplating a move would be smart to accelerate plans to list their home sooner rather than later – benefiting greatly from reduced competition and a willing pool of buyers.
