Greater Reno-Tahoe Real Estate Market Update - 6-11

Reno-Tahoe Real Estate Trends - June, 2011

This blog post covers summary market statistics for Reno, Sparks, Carson City, Carson Valley (Minden/Gardnerville/Genoa), Dayton, Fernley, and Lake Tahoe (Douglas County only) for June, 2011. This is an extract from The Greater Reno-Tahoe Real Estate Report which CalNeva Realty publishes monthly. The full report contains easy to read charts and more supporting data than this summary and can be found here.

• Reno - During May, home sales were up 8% from May, 2010 - 322 homes sold. May's median sold home price was $144,450 - a 23% drop from May, 2010 and a new low in this market cycle. Reno Months of Inventory for June is at 7.5 months - up 5% from June, 2010 and continuing to creep up. The Reno median price at 144,450 sets the new low water mark after just being set in March, 2011 at $160,000. These price drops are occurring after the median price stayed in the mid 170K range for the prior 12 months AND sales volume for Reno is actually up a slight 2% year to date over 2010 Reno homes sales for the same period. A "technical" analysis would suggest prices remaining stable, however, unemployment, large numbers of motivated home sellers (the short sale and foreclosure sellers), and many potential buyers who are not able to qualify for mid to upper priced homes looks to be taking its toll in pricing.


• Sparks - Sparks homes sold in May totaled 179 (up 23% from one year ago May sales); median home price equals $153,000 - 7% lower than the Sparks median home price one year ago. Months of Inventory for Sparks is at 6.2 months. If the Reno pricing of the last 2-3 months stabilizes, I would expect Sparks to settle in $5,000 to $10,000 below the Reno median price number.


• Carson City - There were 38 homes sold during May which represents a 2% decrease from May, 2010. Carson City's median home price was $137,450 in May - down 21% from prices a year ago and inching down to a new low median price (the prior low was April, 2011 at $139,000). At 9.3 Months of Inventory, Carson City's key metric of buy/seller market is up 5% from one year ago but still above the 5-7 months range. Expect Carson City to see more price decreases as compared to Reno, Sparks, Dayton, and Fernley - all of which have a lower Months of Inventory.


• Carson Valley - Homes sold in May 2011 totaled 52 - a 5% decrease over May, 2010. Carson Valley median home price at $195,500 is 14% below May, 2010. At 8.9 Months of Inventory (down 8% from the same time one year ago), this market, like Carson City, will remain in 'buyer market' territory for a while longer than other local markets.


• Lake Tahoe - With 5 homes sold in May, the Tahoe market (Douglas county only) was equal to the May, 2010 sales volume. Months of Inventory, at 14.4 months is 26% lower than June, 2010. The median home price was $865,000. Due to the small sampling size of homes sold and the wide range of home prices at Lake Tahoe, the median price shows wide fluctuation on a monthly basis.


• Dayton - Dayton home sales in May, 2011 totaled 22 homes - the same number of homes that sold in May, 2010. Months of Inventory is 7.6 months - up 9% from one year ago. Median home price, at $120,000, is down 9% from one year ago.


• Fernley - The median home price for Fernley in May, 2011 was $86,000 - a 20% decrease over the median Fernley home price in May, 2010. Fernley saw 42 homes sold representing a 20% increase over May, 2010. Months of Inventory is at 5.9 months which continues to be the lowest in the region and puts Fernley "technically" into a price netrual market, however Fernley's Months of Inventory has been steadily climbing this year on a year-over-year basis which directly supports the lower median prices.

To see the charts and tables behind this summary, subscribe to The Greater Reno-Tahoe Real Estate Report, sign up here to see a lot more detail and get a notice each month when the report is updated.

Mitch Argon
CalNeva Realty
800-305-3015