Lake Tahoe Real Estate Market Report: Oct 22-28

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Active Inventory Summary:

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Active Listings: The inventory for residential Lake Tahoe real estate has been declining weekly for the past few weeks to 815 residential Lake Tahoe real estate for sale; 602 single family homes and 213 condominiums for sale.  The current Lake Tahoe real estate  inventory level is at the lowest point since April of this year.  Coldwell Banker has almost 15% of the active listings in the market and continues to be the market leader for listings.

Lake Tahoe Foreclosures (REO)-Lake Tahoe Short Sale Active Listings: Of the active listings, there are 85 Lake Tahoe properties listed as Lake Tahoe short sales, (10.4%) and 8 Lake Tahoe properties listed as Lake Tahoe foreclosures (REOs) sales, (1.0%).  The total percentage of distressed Lake Tahoe real estate listed for sale, (11.4%) is vastly different than the percentage of distressed Lake Tahoe properties sold on a year to date basis which is just over 28%.

Months of Inventory: Based on the current inventory and sales for the previous 30-day period, the market has a little over 4-months of inventory available.

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Sales Summary:  Year-To-Date

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Total Sales 2012 Vs 2011:

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Total Sales: For 2012, there have been 1,136 residential Lake Tahoe properties sold in the market as compared to 973 for the same period in 2011 which is a year over year increase in Lake Tahoe real estate sales of over 16.8%.  Of the total Lake Tahoe real estate sales in the market this year, 902 have been single family Lake Tahoe homes, while 234 or 20.6% of the sales are Lake Tahoe condominiums.  I n 2011 for the same period, Lake Tahoe condominiums represented 27% of the sales which is much higher than what we are experiencing in 2012.

Lake Tahoe Foreclosures (REO) & Lake Tahoe Short Sales: Of the Lake Tahoe real estate sold this year, 163 have been Lake Tahoe foreclosures (REO’s), (14.3%), and 165 have been Lake Tahoe Short Sales, (14.5%) which results in just over  28% of the Lake Tahoe properties sold being distressed properties.  In 2011 for the same period, there were 172 Lake Tahoe foreclosures (REO) sales and 132 Lake Tahoe short sales or just over 32% of the total Lake Tahoe real estate sales.

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Sales by Price Range: For the year, there have been 732 residential Lake Tahoe real estate sold priced below $500,000, 304 Lake Tahoe properties sold between $500,000 and $1,000,000 and 100 Lake Tahoe luxury homes sold over $1,000,000.

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Median and Average Sales Prices: The median sales price for Lake Tahoe real estate sold year to date is $396,000 while the average sales price is $547,057. For the same period in 2011, the median sales price was $400,000 and the average sales price was $548,391 which is a (1.0%) decline in median sales price and a (0.2%) decline in the average sales price from 2011 to 2012.

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Last Week’s Sales: For the week of October 22^nd, a total of 30 Lake Tahoe real estate sold which was down slightly from the prior week’s sales of 34 Lake Tahoe properties.  Of the Lake Tahoe real estate sold last week, eight (8) Lake Tahoe properties sold at a price above $750,000.

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Pending Sales: Currently there are 205 pending residential sales in the market which is down slightly from the previous week.  Currently 16% of the pending sales are distressed Lake Tahoe real estate with 18 being Lake Tahoe short sales and 14 being Lake Tahoe foreclosures (REO’s).

Lake Tahoe Market Activity Summary:

The month of October has been on fire with 137 Lake Tahoe properties closing through the 28^th.  The 137 Lake Tahoe properties sold thus far in October are up 32% from the same period in October of 2011 where 104 Lake Tahoe real estate sold.  On a year to date basis, there have been 1,136 residential Lake Tahoe real estate sold as compared to 973 for 2011 which is an overall favorable increase of 16.8%.

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage is #1 in the entire market in terms of both residential units sold, (504 sales) and sales volume sold, ($202 million).

The median sales price for residential Lake Tahoe real estate has decreased from last year by a slight (1.0%) to $396,000, while the average sales price is almost identical to last year with a less than 1% decrease to $547,057.  These price trends over the past 90-120 days continue to suggest that the Lake Tahoe real estate market has reached or is nearing the bottom.

The segment of the market with the highest level of activity continues to be Lake Tahoe real estate priced under $500,000 as over 64% of the sales or 732 Lake Tahoe properties have sold in this price range which is similar on a percentage basis to 2011 where 66% of sales or 640 Lake Tahoe properties sold in this price range.

Lake Tahoe Luxury homes sales, homes priced above $1,000,000, are up 16% from 2011.  There have been 100 Lake Tahoe luxury homes sold which represents over 8% of sales this year as compared to 86 Lake Tahoe luxury homes sold last year in this segment.  The median sales price for Lake Tahoe luxury homes in 2012 is $1,500,000 as compared to a median price of $1,650,000 in 2011 which is down (9%). Similarly, the average sales price of Lake Tahoe luxury homes in 2012 is $2,022,511 as compared to $2,081,179 in 2011 which is a decrease of (2.8%).  Coldwell Banker is the market leader for Lake Tahoe Luxury homes sold over $1.0 million with 25 Lake Tahoe real estate sold with a sales volume of $35 million.

The mid range Lake Tahoe real estate market sales, $500,000 to $1,000,000 are up 23% from last year with 304 Lake Tahoe real estate sold in this segment or 27% of sales as compared to 247 Lake Tahoe properties sold or 25% in this range in 2011.

In the area of distressed Lake Tahoe real estate we are mirroring the national trend of more banks supporting short sales as compared to last year.  For 2012, Lake Tahoe short sale properties closed have gone up by 25% with 165 closed Lake Tahoe short sales in 2012 as compared to 132 closed Lake Tahoe short sales in 2011.  For the first time this year, Lake Tahoe short sales closed exceeded Lake Tahoe foreclosures (REO) properties closed.  Conversely Lake Tahoe foreclosures (REO) properties closed in 2012 have gone down (5%) with 163 Lake Tahoe real estate closed in 2012 as compared to 172 Lake Tahoe real estate closed in 2011.  Overall, distressed property sales, (Lake Tahoe foreclosures (REO) and Lake Tahoe Short Sales) represent over 28% of the sales in 2012 which is less than the 32% in 2011.

The active inventory of residential Lake Tahoe real estate has been steadily declining the past 6-weeks and is at the lowest point since April of this year with 815 residential Lake Tahoe real estate  for sale.  There are 602 single family homes and 213 condominiums listed for sale in the market.  On a year over year bases, residential listings are down 28% from last year at this time as inventory at this time in 2011 was 1,139 residential Lake Tahoe properties as compared to today’s inventory of 815 Lake Tahoe properties.

NOW MAY THE BEST TIME TO BUY! With the existing inventory of residential Lake Tahoe real estate in the market, homes priced at 12-year lows and some of the lowest interest rates in history, savvy real estate investors are taking advantage of this market and acquiring homes in many of the Lake Tahoe and Truckee resort communities.  Now may be one of the best times for Buyers considering an investment in a vacation home or investment property in the North Lake Tahoe area.

Contact Olja Mihic, Lake Tahoe Realtor Today to Find Out More about the Opportunities Available in the Tahoe-Truckee Market.

Note: Data on this page is based on information from the Tahoe Sierra Board of Realtors, MLS.  Due to MLS reporting methods and allowable reporting policy, this data is only informational and may not be completely accurate.  Therefore, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage does not guarantee the data’s accuracy.  Data maintained by the MLS may not reflect all real estate activity in the market.  DRE License # 1908304