Archive for the ‘Truckee Real Estate’ Category
Snow Envy! 
Truckee/North Tahoe Sales By Year 2011 2010
Total Sales 1217 1136
Single Family Residences 956 866
Condos 261 270
Average Sales Price $535,834 $640,727
Median Sales Price $397,700 $430,000
Truckee Only Sales
Single Family Residences 582 506
Average Sales Price $541,833 $591,609
Median Sales Price $435,000 $472,000
Beyond the numbers:
There was a slight increase in total sales, and a substantial decrease in the average and median prices of properties sold from 2010 to 2011.
There were 186 short sales and 206 REO sales in 2011…thus 32% of the sold properties were considered “distressed sales.”
66% of the sales were under $500,000, compared to 60% under $ 500,000 in 2010.
At the end of 2011, there were 854 listings on the market. Given the current level of inventory, and the speed at which houses are currently selling, there is roughly six months of inventory available—assuming no new listings come on the market. And we can probably assume that not only will more properties come on the market, but that as spring and summer roll around the total number of properties on the market will increase.
What does it mean for you:
If you are a seller: Houses are selling, because the prices have been driven down to a point where buyers now feel like they are getting a deal. With about 1/3 of all sales being short sales or properties owned by banks, there is significant downward pressure on prices. This will probably continue until the inventory of total homes on the market is significantly reduced, and the percentage of those sales that are distressed drops as well. Most experts believe that will not be happening in the next year.
What is selling? The lower priced the better. In fact, in the lowest price ranges there is quite a bit of activity with competitive properties sometimes garnering multiple offers and/or offers over the list price. Properties in the medium and higher price ranges are selling more slowly, with more downward pressure on prices.
If you are a buyer: Great deals are out there, but in many cases the deal is already reflected in the listing price, especially for lower priced homes. If you are interested in an REO or short sale purchase, while there is potential to get a deal, there also may be heartache and headache involved in the process. Patience and flexibility will be required. If you find a house that fits you and it is priced right-act accordingly by putting in a strong offer now.
If you are considering an investment you need someone who really understands the complications of the local market. I have been active in the Truckee-Tahoe real estate market for over 25 years, in good times and bad, from roaring markets to whatever it is we have now. I keep up to date and communicate with my clients on a regular basis. If you need help, give me a call.
Are you a procrastinator? Well, you may have lucked out this winter. Even if you haven’t gotten around to winterizing your house yet, the lack of snow may have given you a second chance. Check back to my November 1st blog and review the “10 Things to Do before winter.” Even if you don’t get your house winterized, perhaps just making an effort to do so will make it snow…while you are at it would you please do your part by washing your car, taking your snow tires off, and making plans for a big outdoor event…that should make it snow.
Sales Information is based on sales reported to the Tahoe Sierra Multiple Listing Service and Coldwell Banker. The median priced sale is the price where half the sales were more expensive and half the sales were less expensive.
Share this: Lynn Richardson, Your Friend in High Places
Well… it’s Thanksgiving time again, which is supposed to be a time when we relax, take stock of our lives and rejoice in all we have to be thankful for. Relax?, with kid’s dance performances, sport activities, holiday parties and potlucks, everything seems busier than ever. It’s going to be one long race until January 2nd when I can hopefully put my feet up and think about 2012.
Let’s try to remind ourselves to slow down, take a step back and use Thanksgiving as an opportunity for gratitude? Even when we are feeling stuffed from a great family get together or exhausted from driving all over the country visiting family and friends, let’s take a minute to express our gratitude for the good things that we have.
I can be thankful first and foremost for the fact that I am alive…walking, talking, laughing. That is one huge gift.
Then there is my family, including teenage twins. Sounds scary, but I just read comments on Facebook from another North Tahoe High School grad about her son graduating and leaving the nest. She remembered when she left home her father told her, “Just when you got interesting you were gone.”
Then of course there is the place where we live. One minute it’s a raging snowstorm, the next it’s a peaceful blanket of white, lying below an impossibly blue sky. We have hiking, biking, skiing, and a ton of other things to enjoy, but we also have a great community of folks who moved here because they loved the place…and then they somehow found a way to make a living and stay here.
Besides my family and community activities, I get to work with challenging, enlightening, wonderful and heart warming people from all over the world. I either find them their own little piece of mountain paradise, or I help them move into a different direction in life. It’s incredibly hard, but fulfilling work, especially in the current real estate economy, but when you see the expression on someone’s face when you hand them the keys to their new home, it’s worth it, and a blessing.
So thanks to everyone who contributed to making my life full and interesting this past year. May you find gratitude in your life as well.
Share this: Lynn Richardson, Your Friend in High Places
My last post was on the joys of fall colors in the Sierra. Well, with that joy we are beginning to see below freezing morning temperatures. Sure it makes us all begin to dream about the snow to come, but it also should be waking us up to the fact that there are some things you need to do prevent damage to your mountain home, or just to make life more enjoyable during the cold months.
Ten things to do:
1) Have your furnace checked and make sure it is running smoothly, and be sure to change the filter if needed. Then turn it on and make sure the thermostat is set to at least 50 degrees to keep the pipes from freezing.
2) It is also recommended that if you are not using your home, shut the water off. If you do not have an easy to use stop and drain valve you should have one installed. Be sure the valve is located inside the house in a location that is easy to access.
3) Look in your backyard and notice all the things that will be buried in the snow once it arrives. Will you need any of those things in the next six months? Could they be damaged if six feet of snow sat on them?
4) Disconnect all of the hoses from the outside of the house. If left on during the winter they may cause the pipes to freeze.
5) Woodstove or Fireplace: When was your chimney swept? Make sure the firewood you need is in a dry place that will be accessible in the snow.
6) How’s the roof? Any leaks you saw last year that you forgot to fix this summer?
7) Smoke Detectors and Carbon Monoxide detectors-Now might be a good time to check them and install new batteries.
8) Have an emergency kit ready in case the power goes off and/or you are snowed in: Candles, flashlights, matches. Water bottles. Non-perishable food. And for sanity purposes: Books, games, a radio that will operate without power.
9) Close up curtains and drapes to keep the warmth in, and the bears from noticing you have a freezer that they should come in and inspect for tasty morsels.
10) Snow removal: Is your snowblower maintained and do you have a can of gas ready to go? Shovels?
Need a plumber or heating contractor? Here are a few I have used:
Plumbers
Mitch Milner 530-448-1308
John Greenside 530-587-1354
Heating people
Joe Hennessey 530-386-2867
Heat Tech, Steve Davis 530-587-7061
Share this: Lynn Richardson, Your Friend in High Places
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