December 2017 was the icing on the proverbial Tahoe Truckee Real Estate cake. All in all sales volume was 30% higher than December 2016. The big winner was the Tahoe Basin with a 77% increase. Another winner is Tahoe Donner with a 47% increase. Greater Truckee saw a modest increase of do I dare say it, just 12% while Squaw Alpine was exactly the same as last year. I can’t help but wonder what these numbers might have been had we had more inventory to choose from.
The year end wrap up would read like this, remember we had unbelievable amounts of snow to start the year. For most of January, February and March trying to find a house let alone show a house was a challenge. Homes were so buried it significantly delayed the start to what many would consider our normal selling season. Once the snow began to melt we saw the inventory ramp up like it normally would and with it sales. The effect of all the lakes, reservoirs and rivers being full was clear, the drought was over and people were excited to be in and around the water again. The remainder of the year saw very strong sales for both full time residents and second homes. Values continued the steady pace of appreciation. We saw a tremendous amount of new construction sales as builders struggled to keep up with that demand. There were dozens of new homes built and sold in and around Truckee. Much of that market being million plus dollar properties. So much so that the average price of the 1,160 single family home sales in our region was $1,007,618. Hard to believe I know.
Whats next?
I am not sure anyone knows. The forecasts from organizations like National Association of Realtors and California Association of Realtors were all completed prior to tax reform. I will say so far so good for our area. There has been no mass panic or run on selling primary or second homes. Until the final details are released I think we will hold the course we have been on which is a good one. Steady appreciation and good sales volume. The three primary things we are going to have to watch going forward are tax reform, interest rates and inventory. Short of the tax reform really coming out and hurting home ownership I don’t see there being much change in interest rates and inventory levels. We know there is a housing shortage not just in our region but across the state and the country. That leads me to believe if more sellers do come to the market there will be buyers out there ready to buy.
-Matt Hanson, Broker
2017 Realtor of the Year
Tahoe Siera Board of Realtors
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