It’s almost summer here in South Lake Tahoe, and while the temps aren’t too hot with this recent cold front, the real estate market is scorching. We haven’t seen buyer activity like this in years. I’ve seen several properties receive multiple, competing offers. They are oftentimes selling for more than list price. Things are getting crazy here and many of us real estate professionals are putting in long hours in order to keep up.
At the moment, there are 94 homes in escrow in South Lake Tahoe (We hit 100 last Friday.) We haven’t seen this many homes in escrow since July 2005, which was a month before the peak of the market. See the tables below for more statistics.
Our overall inventory is shrinking as well. Currently, there are 381 single-family residences for sale. Last year there were 414. The year before, 522. In May 2006, there were 424. With Tahoe homes reaching affordable prices and buyer confidence increasing, look for these trends to continue.
Speaking of prices, home prices have leveled off since the start of the year. I’ve checked the homes currently in escrow, and median sale price will continue to hold steady for at least the next couple months. Perhaps we are at the bottom of the market?? Statistics are increasingly pointing in that direction. A balanced market is traditionally defined by 5 to 7 months of inventory on the market. At 6.1 months of inventory, we have already reached that point in the under-$300,000 price band. We are quickly approaching that point in the $300,000-$400,000 price band. As inventory continues to decrease and sales increase, the statistics should catch up and begin to truly reflect how busy our market is.
A couple caveats …
Ninety-four homes in escrow today can’t be compared to 94 homes in escrow a few years ago. The reason for this is short sales. Short sales typically take longer to close than a normal escrow. Thus, with some homes sitting in escrow for long periods of time, this inflates the total. That said, however, only 15 short sale homes went into escrow over 45 days ago. Subtract these from our total and the 79 remaining homes in escrow still hasn’t been matched since September 2005, which was virtually the peak of the market.
In addition to this, the traditional definition of a balanced market, 5 to 7 months of inventory, may not apply in this market. Previous markets have not been affected by foreclosures like this. A new wave of foreclosures could drive prices down further. On the other hand, prices have leveled off for the last half year. And no one can argue that our shrinking inventory is a good sign of rebound.
All that said, now might be THE time to buy in South Lake Tahoe. And with another amazing Tahoe summer approaching, what better a time to come and start shopping!
Month & Year | Listings at Month’s End | Escrows at Month’s End | Homes Sold | Median $ Over Last 90 Days | Median Sale $ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
May 2009 |
381
|
94
|
26
|
$315,000
|
$315,000
|
Apr 2009 |
383
|
60
|
28
|
$319,000
|
$295,000
|
Mar 2009 |
372
|
46
|
26
|
$320,000
|
$335,250
|
Feb 2009 |
381
|
39
|
28
|
$360,000
|
$329,500
|
Jan 2009 |
367
|
36
|
17
|
$370,000
|
$302,000
|
Dec 2008 |
354
|
32
|
26
|
$401,000
|
$412,450
|
Nov 2008 |
369
|
35
|
31
|
$425,000
|
$370,000
|
Oct 2008 |
395
|
35
|
46
|
$440,000
|
$470,000
|
Sept 2008 |
435
|
69
|
29
|
$420,000
|
$440,000
|
Aug 2008 |
468
|
45
|
34
|
$399,000
|
$443,750
|
July 2008 |
482
|
53
|
36
|
$396,000
|
$391,500
|
June 2008 |
465
|
57
|
30
|
$392,000
|
$365,000
|
May 2008 |
414
|
47
|
31
|
$396,000
|
$415,000
|
Apr 2008 |
372
|
44
|
21
|
$387,000
|
$379,000
|
Mar 2008 |
361
|
40
|
34
|
$402,500
|
$387,500
|
Feb 2008 |
374
|
52
|
16
|
$445,750
|
$412,500
|
Jan 2008 |
366
|
33
|
16
|
$466,500
|
$428,000
|
Dec 2007 |
382
|
28
|
34
|
$460,000
|
$502,000
|
Nov 2007 |
403
|
42
|
27
|
$415,000
|
$460,000
|
Oct 2007 |
353
|
15
|
39
|
$415,000
|
$425,000
|
Sept 2007 |
442
|
30
|
30
|
$415,000
|
$398,250
|
Aug 2007 |
538
|
45
|
38
|
$437,500
|
$421,500
|
July 2007 |
557
|
40
|
25
|
$440,000
|
$435,000
|
June 2007 |
552
|
33
|
35
|
$435,000
|
$440,000
|
May 2007 |
522
|
47
|
32
|
$465,500
|
$460,000
|
Apr 2007 |
423
|
32
|
28
|
$474,000
|
$392,500
|
Mar 2007 |
359
|
37
|
30
|
$482,500
|
$507,000
|
Feb 2007 |
327
|
25
|
25
|
$485,000
|
$492,500
|
Jan 2007 |
331
|
37
|
21
|
$475,750
|
$395,750
|
Dec 2006 |
339
|
29
|
40
|
$477,000
|
$497,500
|
Nov 2006 |
362
|
50
|
44
|
$464,000
|
$483,500
|
Oct 2006 |
411
|
55
|
53
|
$444,000
|
$450,000
|
Sept 2006 |
463
|
63
|
31
|
$449,500
|
$442,000
|
Aug 2006 |
548
|
46
|
36
|
$465,000
|
$427,500
|
July 2006 |
571
|
49
|
37
|
$480,000
|
$475,000
|
June 2006 |
532
|
51
|
37
|
$482,290
|
$480,000
|
May 2006 |
424
|
50
|
35
|
$482,580
|
$465,000
|
Apr 2006 |
302
|
50
|
32
|
$489,000
|
$504,000
|
Mar 2006 |
264
|
39
|
38
|
$495,000
|
$485,140
|
Feb 2006 |
262
|
51
|
21
|
$477,000
|
$489,000
|
Jan 2006 |
256
|
32
|
20
|
$464,500
|
$508,750
|
Dec 2005 |
198
|
n/a
|
31
|
$460,000
|
$450,000
|
Nov 2005 |
282
|
42
|
53
|
$485,000
|
$455,000
|
Oct 2005 |
300
|
69
|
55
|
$500,000
|
$485,000
|
Sept 2005 |
313
|
93
|
63
|
$495,000
|
$495,000
|
Aug 2005 |
270
|
96
|
79
|
$485,750
|
$510,000
|
July 2005 |
209
|
110
|
74
|
$482,000
|
$484,500
|
June 2005 |
188
|
113
|
65
|
$480,000
|
$456,000
|
May 2005 |
172
|
96
|
57
|
$489,000
|
$495,000
|
Apr 2005 |
116
|
91
|
72
|
$475,000
|
$488,500
|
Mar 2005 |
88
|
83
|
50
|
$440,000
|
$440,000
|
Feb 2005 |
72
|
86
|
34
|
$433,000
|
$449,500
|
Jan 2005 |
85
|
63
|
47
|
$405,000
|
$405,000
|
Price Range
|
Active Listings
|
Absorption Rate in sales/mo. (% of inventory) | Months Supply of Inventory (Sept.) |
---|---|---|---|
$0-$300,000 |
50
|
8.17 (16.33%)
|
6.1 |
$300,001-$400,000 |
67
|
8.08 (12.06%)
|
8.3
|
$400,001-$500,000 |
67
|
5.08 (7.59%)
|
13.2
|
$500,001-$650,000 |
57
|
4.00 (7.02%)
|
14.3
|
$650,001-$800,000 |
49
|
2.00 (4.08%)
|
24.5
|
$800,001-$1,000,000 |
35
|
1.33 (3.81%)
|
26.3
|
$1,000,001-$2,000,000 |
40
|
1.17 (2.92%)
|
34.3
|
$2,000,001 and up |
16
|
0.08 (0.52%)
|
192.0
|
There are lot of great deals to be found out there. Thanks for the information.
http://www.neighborcity.com