Lake Tahoe Vacation Home for Sale

Often while working with clients looking to purchase property in the Lake Tahoe or Truckee areas, I hear the following comments spoken with hesitation and concern:

“This ‘cabin’ will cost significantly more than our primary residence!”

“This home is bigger than the home we live in full time.”

“I just don’t know if we will use the cabin enough for it to make sense to purchase.”

“We are concerned that if we purchase a vacation home in Tahoe, we will be locked into only coming to Tahoe because we will feel obligated.”

Recently, while sitting on the spinning bike at Asante’ Lakeside Fitness in Tahoe City, a friend of mine hopped on the bike right next to me. I noticed how relaxed and chatty she was, all the while sporting a tan that made me look like I had just finished a year-long prison sentence. Knowing full well due to her bronze coloring  that she had not spent the last few weeks in Lake Tahoe, I asked her where she had been. Well, that started the music flowin’… she and her family had just spent 3 months in Tahiti, one month in Hawaii, had been to Saint Barts in the Caribbean, Hong Kong and was soon on her way to Del Mar, CA.

Of course, I wanted to know how she made all of this possible since I was impressed that I had actually taken two one-week vacations this year already! She proceeded to elaborate on her success with home exchanges. What a fantastic way to experience the world! (more…)

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Great opportunity to rent a property in Alpine Meadows!

Alpine Meadows Property Location: 2010 Big John, Alpine Meadows, California

Alpine Meadows Property Description:

Spacious cabin in an ideal location for skiing in the winter and hiking, swimming in the summer.  This vacation home sleeps 11 with 4 bedrooms (3 kings, 1 full and 3 twins) and 2 ½ baths.  The first floor includes a living room with a wood burning fireplace and widescreen TV, dining room, kitchen, master bedroom (with king and ½ bath), second bedroom (with king), and full bathroom.  French doors from the living room lead to a deck with a hot tub with seats for six adults and views of the beautiful surrounding trees and mountain ridges.  On the second floor, you’ll find a second master bedroom (with memory foam king), a bedroom with a bunk bed (double + twin) and two additional twin beds, and a full bathroom.  Large windows offer views of the surrounding woods and mountains. (more…)

The 2011 first quarter Lake Tahoe and Truckee real estate stats are here! According to the graphs real estate numbers in 2011 show an increase from 2010.

Lake Tahoe Real Estate

The first set of graphs shows numbers for Lake Tahoe real estate in 2011 compared to last year. Almost all numbers increased this year compared to 2010. Sales volume for single family homes increased by 23% and condos increased by 7%. The number of units sold also increased for both single family homes (6%) and condos (12%). The median price of single family homes increased by 11% and the average price of single family homes increased by 29%. The median price of condos increased by 15% and the average price decreased by 6%.

Lake Tahoe Real Estate Sales by Area & Price

The next set of graphs show Lake Tahoe real estate sales by areas and price. The areas include Incline Village, East Shore, Tahoe City, South Lake Tahoe, Sparks, Reno and Truckee.

Positive Upswing in Tahoe Real Estate

Most of the numbers show some positive turns in the Lake Tahoe real estate market! Click on the images below for enlarged versions and more details for these real estate numbers. Contact Linda Granger or call 530.624.0008 for a tour of Lake Tahoe homes for sale.

2011 Compared to 2010

Price Banding & Areas

Here is the press release in connection with the 1st quarter stats:

LAKE TAHOE SEES JUMP IN AVERAGE HOME PRICE

LAKE TAHOE, Nev. (Apr. 6, 2011) – Homes around Lake Tahoe experienced a 29 percent jump in average price, according to a quarterly report released by Chase International real estate. The figures compare sales and home prices from first quarter 2011 to first quarter 2010.

The average price of a home in Lake Tahoe rose to $937,501 and the median is $564,500 (an 11 percent drop). Sales volume is up 23 percent and units sold is up six percent.

“The Lake Tahoe market is showing definite signs of stabilization,” said Sue Lowe, corporate vice president for Chase International. “Our last two quarterly reports have shown vast improvement in sales volume and units sold in the Tahoe Basin”

The National Association of Realtors® reported a 2.1 percent increase in pending home sales last week. “Pending home sales have trended up very nicely since bottoming out last June, even with periodic monthly declines,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for NAR. “Contract activity is now 20 percent above the low point immediately following expiration of the home buyer tax credit.”

Tahoe City saw an increase in sales volume and units sold (31 and nine percent, respectively). South Lake Tahoe experienced an 11 percent jump in units sold and 12 percent in sales volume. The East Shore had a 25 percent increase in sales volume and a 5 percent drop in units sold. Incline Village saw a 28 percent increase in sales volume and a 10 percent decrease in units sold.

The average price of a home in Truckee fell 19 percent to $504,337 while the median dropped 14 percent to $439,000. Sales volume is down 11 percent and units sold are up 11 percent.  Condos in Truckee were down across the board with a 45% decrease in sales volume and a 44% decrease in units sold.

The average price of a condo in Lake Tahoe is $356,451 (down six percent), while the median price is up 15 percent. Sales volume is up seven percent with a 12 percent increase in units sold.