The South Lake Tahoe Real Estate market finished out the year with a strong month of sales in December. Although the number of single family home and condo sales was down slightly from the previous year, both the total volume in dollars and the median sales price increased substantially. There were 42 single family homes and condo/townhouses that were reported as sold on the South Lake Tahoe MLS, down from 51 sales in December, 2012 and down from 49 sales in November, 2013.

The median price of the single family home sales increased from $245,000 in 2012 to $329,950 which was a 34.7% increase in a 12 month period. The median sales price is also up from $325,000 from the previous month.

South Lake Tahoe Real Estate Stats for December, 2013

• There were 42 single family homes and condos that were reported as sold on the South Lake Tahoe MLS in December, down from 49 in November and down from 51 in December, 2012.
• The median sales price was $329,950 in December, up from $325,000  in November and up from $245,000 in December, 2012.
• The average sales price was $428,252, up from $420,686 in November and up from $312,159 in December, 2012.
• The average sales price per square foot was $236, up from $235 in November and up from $188 in December, 2012.
• The average days on the market was 136 and the median days on the market was 105.
• There were 4 short sales that closed escrow, up from 3 sold short sales in November and down from 7 in December, 2012.
• There were 5 bank owned foreclosures that were sold in November, up from 1 in November, and down from 9 in December, 2012.

There are currently only 169 active single family homes and condos available on the South Lake Tahoe MLS for buyers to choose from. With the low number of properties for sale, new listings are really getting a lot of attention and activity.  Out of the 169 properties that are currently active, 142 are single family homes and 27 are condo/townhouses.

Distress sales only account for 3% of the active inventory of properties currently on the market. There are 2 active short sale listings and 3 active bank owned foreclosures listed on the South Lake Tahoe MLS.

There are currently 74 homes/condos that are in escrow which accounts for 30.5% of the total inventory, up from 67 escrows last year to date. There are 16 short sales in escrow and 3 bank owned properties which accounts for 25.7% of the current pending sales.

South Lake Tahoe Real Estate Activity by Price Range

                Price range                                   Number of Escrows

• Under $200,000                                       16
• $201- $300,000                                        20
• $301- $400,000                                       22
• $401- $500,000                                        7
• $501-$600,000                                         3
• $601- $700,000                                        3
• $701- $800,000                                        0
• $801- $999,000                                        0
• Over 1 Million                                           3

As you can see the majority of the current activity in the South Lake Tahoe Real Estate market is in the under $400,o00 range. The number of escrows in the under $200,000 drops off only because the inventory in that price range is disappearing. With only 3 homes in escrow over $700,000, the upper end market, especially in the Tahoe Keys is light.

For more information about the South Lake Tahoe real estate please call me at (530) 416-2625 to discuss!