INCLINE VILLAGE REAL ESTATE and CRYSTAL BAY REAL ESTATE WEEKLY UPDATE

INCLINE VILLAGE REAL ESTATE & CRYSTAL BAY
REAL ESTATE WEEKLY UPDATE MAY 6, 2008

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I apologize for being a few days behind on the weekly Incline Village real estate updates recently, and it's really been quite difficult keeping up with the daily updates.  Recently, I put 4 properties into escrow and on two of them I represent both the buyer and the seller.  It's a tremendous amount of activity in a very short period of time and now I have a huge responsibility to bring all of these to a successful close in the next 30 to 45 days.

During the past week we had 23 new listings, 13 of which were repeats.  Sales activity is picking up nicely with 8 properties going into escrow and 4 transactions closing escrow.  For the second week in a row we did not have any of the expensive luxury properties get an accepted offer.  The most expensive property that went into escrow last week was only $1,495,000.

The current inventory on the Incline Village MLS stands at 394 a slight increase from a couple of weeks ago. 

In my conversations with the other top real estate agents in Incline Village they are remarking that more buyers are coming to town and that they feel a general increase in sales activity.  Sellers seem to be realizing that unless they have an extremely unique property with either a great Lake view or an incredible location they have to sell at a reasonable price and not push the envelope.

My advice to buyers is to ignore the asking prices and do your own analysis of each particular property that interests you.  Then, write an offer at what you consider to be a fair sale price.   You never really know what the motivation of a seller might be, and you won't get that great deal unless you try!

Where you can find the occasional great value it's because the seller is very motivated and has likely owned the property for a long time.  This allows them to make a nice profit as opposed to a killing and all parties can be satisfied.  I've had several transactions in the past six months where I represented the buyers and the price we offered was within 2% of the asking price or counter offer and we could not come to terms.  So, anyone expecting a "gift" from a seller will most likely be disappointed.

Incline Village Real Estate Weekly Sales Statistics April 28 - May 4, 2008

                                                                    HOUSES             CONDOS                PUDs
Currently on the Market            200                               147                                47
# For Sale Under $1 Mil.              47                                 140                                23       
Lowest Priced Unit                           $460,000                  $152,000                  $333,000       
Highest Priced Unit                         $47,000,000           $3,598,000              $2,450,000
Median For Sale Price                    $1,795,000               $520,000                  $1,049,000

New Listings 23 - (Includes 13 Repeats) 
New Transactions Going Into Escrow:8 
Closed Escrow:4      
Property Mix Going Into Escrow - Condos: 3  PUDs: 1   Houses: 2    Land: 1   Inv: 1   
Range in Escrow: $375,000- $1,495,000

One Year Ago
Weekly Sales Statistics May 8, 2007

                                                                    HOUSES             CONDOS                PUDs
Currently on the Market             162                               148                                54
# For Sale Under $1 Mil.              50                                 135                                 26       
Lowest Priced Unit                           $549,000                  $219,000                  $439,000       
Highest Priced Unit                         $14,950,000           $3,200,000              $2,547,000
Median For Sale Price                    $1,695,000               $535,000                  $1,100,000

New Listings 20 - (Includes 5 Repeats) 
New Transactions Going Into Escrow:9
Closed Escrow:4       
Property Mix Going Into Escrow - Condos: 3  PUDs: 0   Houses: 6    Land: 0  
Range in Escrow: $419,950- $2,899,000

Every Incline Village Real Estate category will have pockets of strength or weakness based on location, elevation, quality and age of construction and remodeling, deferred maintenance, square footage, lot size and other factors.  Each property should be evaluated on its own merits.  The trends are general indicators showing which sectors of the Incline Village real estate market are weaker or stronger at this point in time.  Based on current sales statistics from the Incline Village MLS this is my personal analysis of the Incline Village real estate market trends for the next 18 months.

  Price Range                             HOUSES             CONDOS                PUDs
0 - $500,000                                 N/A                        Flat/Down                    Plateau
$501,000 - $1,000,000                Variable                  Variable                           Up      
$1 million - $2 million                      Variable                   Plateau                         Plateau       
$2 million - $5 million                         Up                           Plateau                            N/A
  $5 million +                                                Up                              N/A                               N/A