Special offer

Kalispell Market Report: Land - April 2021

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with eXp Commercial, Referral Divison RRE-BRO-LIC-75443

This report covers the residential land market (active listings and sales) in Kalispell Montana as of the end of April 2021. Similar to the housing market, land sales remain strong.

 

 
 
Available Inventory

As of early May, there were 78 residential land parcels for sale in the Kalispell area which is a 34% increase since the last month's report. That's great news for buyers since higher inventory levels equates to more choices.

 
Kalispell Market Report: Land - April 2021 Pie chart of # of listings on marketFive or more acres

Of the land currently for sale, 54% of listings include five or more acres. While most of the land in Montana could be considered rural, I define rural as those properties in the 5+ acre category. Those are most likely to be parcels located on a gravel mountain road, agricultural farming land, or acreage adjacent to National Forest or lumber parcels. They are often not located in a development, but by themselves, and provide privacy and multiple building and usage options.

 

The currently active properties over five acres range in price from $90K to $6.9M with an average price of ~$1.1M, same as the last report. The listing at the lowest end of the price spectrum is 20 acres of property in southwest Kalispell. The property has beautiful views but electric service is a mile away and access is challenging.  The highest priced parcel includes 359.4 acres with views of the Swan mountains, wetlands and all the associated birdlife, and a potential for a 700 unit development.

 
Below five acres

In terms of the listings below five acres, many are located in developments. These parcels currently range in size from .12 of an acre to 4.96 acres and in price from $75,000 to $790,000 with an average price of ~$230K. Many of these come with monthly or annual HOA fees. They are also often covered by CCRs or Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions which define rules for building and living in that area.

 
Land Pricing

Price per acre can vary dramatically and often don't seem to make sense to those viewing prices. Why is one 20 acre parcel priced under $100K and another $300K or more? Great question. There are some pricing rules that seem to be true for land.

 

The first is, every parcel is unique. With land, you can't say the average price is $/acre, and this is a 20 acre parcel and therefore it should be $/acre times 20 acres. Instead, the specific topography, physical and legal access, utility availability, distance from town, potential usage, views, zoning, covenants and more need to be taken into account in order to come up with a legitimate price point. If you are thinking of selling your property and are told by an agent that the average price for land is a certain amount, and that you can just multiply that by the number of acres you have, call me. That's simply not the way the process works.

Kalispell Market Report: Land - April 2021 chart that indicates decreasing costs with higher purchases

 

The second general rule is that the more land you are selling or buying, in general, the less you should expect to pay per acre. For example, looking at the last four months of rural land sales in Kalispell, you can see that as you purchase more land, the price per acre has decreased. Price per acre drops as you buy or sell more land. Note: This information will be updated monthly to provide a running average for 2021 sales.

 

Bottom line

The bottom line with land in Kalispell, Montana is that every piece is unique, with different requirements, rules, views, utility options, amenities and of course prices. If you want to purchase land, in addition to knowing what you want to spend, you'll need to know how you want to use it, what kind of amenities you might like, and what kinds of rules you could live with. That will help you and your real estate professional select the right locations and parcel sizes!  

 

Sales Trends

Land listings continue to sell at a strong rate in 2021. In April, 32 land parcels sold which was a 23% increase over March and 167% higher than last year. There are currently 29 land deals that are either pending or under contract which is less than last month. Most of the pending deals from last month closed, but with higher inventory, there should be a healthy amount of sales in May as well.

Kalispell Market Report: Land - April 2021 bar chart of # of land sales

 
Length of Time to Sell

Land listings typically take longer to sell than home sales. The average days on market for land in 2020 was 7.3 months. Through March, the average days on market was less than five months, but in April, that measurement reached 7.3 months. During April, nine properties that had been on the market more than a year sold, meaning even those difficult-to-sell parcels are moving. During April, the fastest time from listing to sale was 27 days while the longest was two years. The takeaway is that land that is priced well for its location, services and amenities can sell quickly.

 

As mentioned previously, my explanation of the longer timeframe to sell land as opposed to homes has to do with the buyer market. There are fewer buyers who want to start from scratch, buying the land and then waiting for a home to be built. And those buyers who ARE interested in doing so have very particular requirements. It could take a long time for them to find the right parcel.  

 

Sales Prices

As mentioned above, average or median sales prices are meaningless when discussing land sales. The qualities of one lot over another are so different as to make most comparisons moot. That being said, I am including a view of the total dollar value of all land sold per month to provide some kind of comparison to the previous year.

 

As can be seen in the chart below, 2020 total land sales equalled $52M which had been more than double the previous year. In April of 2021, close to $8.8M of land was sold, which is more than four times the same time last year and double last month. Also of interest, there are currently 29 land parcels under contract with a list price value of $8.2M. Next month should remain higher than the same time last year.

Kalispell Market Report: Land - April 2021 Bar chart of total $$ sold

 

In terms of the lowest and highest prices for a land parcel sold, the lowest price parcel in April sold for around $60K. It was .16 of an acre in a subdivision on the west side of town. At the other end of the price range were 91 acres of land with approval for subdivision. This sold for more than $2M. The bottom line about prices for land - no matter your budget, you can find options in your price range!

 
Summary

Every piece of land is unique, even those in a development. Views can be dramatically different just moving from one acre to another. I love walking land with clients! If you are interested in selling or buying land, and you want to work with a boot-wearing broker who is ready to find the borders, call me at 406-270-3667. I'd be happy to help! To see previous land-related market reports, click here.

 

Originally published at thehousekat.com.

Posted by

Kalispell, Bigfork, Lakeside and Somers areas. 

Are you getting ready to sell or purchase land or a home in Kalispell  or the surrounding vicinity? Let’s talk!

Facebook | LinkedIn
About Me
My Blog
theHouseKat.com
Email Me

(406) 270-3667
CALL OR TEXT

KAT PALMIOTTI, BROKER

 

Comments (26)

Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Endre Barath, Jr. - So far this year, 64% of all sales are under 5 acres in size. I'm not surprised since there are a lot of new developments being built in the valley, most are under an acre.

 

Good morning, Nina Hollander, Broker  - Yes, let's hope!

May 08, 2021 05:15 AM
Wayne Martin
Wayne M Martin - Chicago, IL
Real Estate Broker - Retired

Good morning Kat. Thanks for your detailed analysis of Klispell vacant land. So much for a buyer to consider or they can contact you and feel at ease that you will assist them in the analysis. Enjoy your day. 

May 08, 2021 05:52 AM
Grant Schneider
Performance Development Strategies - Armonk, NY
Your Coach Helping You Create Successful Outcomes

Good morning Kat - this is great news to have more land available and interesting that there are many smaller lots.  You have a strong growth area.

May 08, 2021 05:58 AM
Brian England
Ambrose Realty Management LLC - Gilbert, AZ
MBA, GRI, REALTOR® Real Estate in East Valley AZ

I would only rely on the House Kat for information about land available in Kalispell, give her a call if you are in the market for some!

May 08, 2021 07:12 AM
Will Hamm
Hamm Homes - Aurora, CO
"Where There's a Will, There's a Way!"

Hello Kat and thanks for another great report.  Proud of the way you got into your new area and learn so much of it in a short couple of years.

 

May 08, 2021 09:28 AM
Rocky Dickerson
Realty One Group - Las Vegas, NV
Superior Service!

Ah, Kat, I could just imagine having a great lot and building the perfect home there

May 08, 2021 01:39 PM
Roy Kelley
Retired - Gaithersburg, MD

Good Monday morning, Kat.

Take care, be safe and have a productive week.

May 10, 2021 07:42 AM
Endre Barath, Jr.
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties - Beverly Hills, CA
Realtor - Los Angeles Home Sales 310.486.1002

Kat love it would you believe in my market if I did statistics like this 64% would be under 6000 sq ft:)Endre

May 10, 2021 11:14 PM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

I would be happy to assist callers, Wayne Martin !

 

We do have a strong growth area Grant Schneider - which is good and not so good!

 

You are too kind Brian England !

May 11, 2021 04:54 AM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Thank you Will Hamm !

 

Come on out Rocky Dickerson !

 

Thank you Roy Kelley  - I wish the same to you.

 

May 11, 2021 04:55 AM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Endre Barath, Jr. - And actually, from some of your posts, I would have assumed that about your area! :-)

May 11, 2021 04:55 AM
Roy Kelley
Retired - Gaithersburg, MD

Good Thursday morning, Kat.

Take care, be safe and have a great day.

May 13, 2021 04:45 AM
Debe Maxwell, CRS
Savvy + Company (704) 491-3310 - Charlotte, NC
The RIGHT CHARLOTTE REALTOR!

I'm loving that you're seeing an increase in the larger-sized parcels, Kat! Absolutely fantastic report - I'm loving your video report in addition to the great graphs!

May 13, 2021 12:01 PM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Have a wonderful Friday, Roy Kelley !

 

Thank you Debe Maxwell, CRS ! I need to do more video"ing" - but it's a slow go.

May 14, 2021 04:52 AM
Joan Cox
House to Home, Inc. - Denver Real Estate - 720-231-6373 - Denver, CO
Denver Real Estate - Selling One Home at a Time

Kat, your reports are so well-done, and your knowledge is amazing for buyers and sellers in and around Kalispell.

May 14, 2021 07:21 AM
Roy Kelley
Retired - Gaithersburg, MD

Good Friday afternoon, Kat.

Take care, be safe and have a lovely weekend.

May 14, 2021 12:33 PM
Wanda Kubat-Nerdin - Wanda Can!
Red Rock Real Estate (435) 632-9374 - St. George, UT
St. George Utah Area Residential Sales Agent

People in your selling area should definitely use your services Kat! Your market reports are thorough and easy to follow.

May 18, 2021 06:37 AM
Patricia Feager, MBA, CRS, GRI,MRP
DFW FINE PROPERTIES - Flower Mound, TX
Selling Homes Changing Lives

Wow! Kat Palmiotti - your knowledge and expertise excels and you do more for the consumers than most agents. Selling land is not easy. I admire your talent when providing information about land sales. 

May 18, 2021 09:58 PM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Thank you Joan Cox - I appreciate you!

 

Thank you Roy Kelley - I miss my notification on my own posts. I am seeing this almost a week late. So enjoy your next weekend!

 

Wanda Kubat-Nerdin - Wanda Can! - Thank you! I appreciate your comment!

May 19, 2021 04:59 AM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Thank you Patricia Feager, MBA, CRS, GRI,MRP - I appreciate you! And I know you understand since you've stood on this land!

May 19, 2021 05:00 AM