May 2018 - Truckee-Tahoe Market Update

The first tangible proof of an apparent trend for the Tahoe Truckee real estate market became apparent in April, 2018. Due to an exceptional shortage of inventory, the volume of transactions dropped significantly when compared to the same month in previous years. Conversely, what property did transact showed an extreme bias toward the premium end of the market driving average price up substantially.

While the inventory shortage has been apparent going back to the 4^th quarter of 2017, momentum in the market drove the total number of transactions to numbers slightly ahead through Q1, 2018. As inventory tightened, it became evident that 2018 would focus on quality over quantity as the market delivered fewer transactions but at larger prices. 

Driving figures through the roof in April 2018 was a lone $40 million transaction of a rare and compelling $40 million estate on Tahoe’s West Shore. Including this transaction, the number of sales dropped by 17% year over year while transaction volume leapt by 77% and average price by 212%. Adjusting for this market anomaly, volume was up 22% and average price 48%. Even the steadier median price metric grew by 36% indicative of a higher class of purchases as well as some market appreciation.

Beyond this remarkable lakefront transaction, other premium sales were distributed across multiple communities.  Martis Camp continues on the forefront of marquee acquisitions with three transactions between $4.5 - $5.5 million. Four other lakeside properties got a jump on the summer waterfront season with sales greater than $2 million. Winter closed with strong activity in Northstar’s Mountainside community with a $3 million transaction.  Gray’s Crossing, Schaffer’s Mill and Lahontan all saw strong demand for luxury property as well.

Ideally, supply will begin to catch up to demand as spring yields the largest crop of new listings.  While 181 properties have been newly listed in the past 30 days, total inventory stands at just over 3 month’s supply, a further reduction from recent months. A typically quiet month for tourist activity combined with the common Memorial Day listing surge, should provide greater balance to the market heading into summer.

Including the aforementioned transaction for $40 million, momentum is clearly building for Tahoe’s most iconic properties. The California side has already matched the number of sales above $8,000,000 for all of 2017 while Incline Village recently transacted a home at $36 million. With but a handful of truly epic lakefront estates available, the coming summer promises to be active.

Katie Tyler

Realtor®

BRE 01442453

c 530 277 1012 

Truckee-Donner Land Trust - 2018 Summer Hiking Series

The Truckee-Donner Land Trust has been protecting and preserving scenic and historic land in the greater Truckee area for more than 25 years. Past and current projects are targeted based on their high natural resource value with the goal of encouraging sustainable public use on these properties. Their success stories are too many to name, but anyone who recreates in the Truckee/Donner area on trails is likely enjoying the great outdoors on a parcel of land that the Land Trust helped to protect or bring into public use.

The Land Trust is very proactive in encouraging community involvement whether it be through donations, trail work or other outdoor events. Recently the 2018 Summer Hiking Series was announced which will include over 40 hikes at 11 different properties this summer. Some highlights include The Royal Gorge Rim Trail, Perazzo Meadows, Mt. Lola and Castle Valley just to name a few. There are hikes suitable for people of all ages and a variety of options for different distances and difficulty. Hikes are guided by a docent and there are detailed descriptions on the TDLT website for all of the hiking options.

Registration is open now for the upcoming summer season. This is an amazing opportunity to see some of the most beautiful and unspoiled land in the region. Get out there and enjoy.

Learn more about the Truckee-Donner Land Trust.

Katie Tyler

Realtor®

BRE 01442453

c 530 277 1012 

Earth Day – Green Initiatives in Tahoe

Living in and visiting a beautiful area like Lake Tahoe magnifies the importance of environmental awareness and proactive measures to keep this place we love healthy and sustainable. Many local businesses and organizations are very active in working towards keeping the Tahoe area clean, beautiful and environmentally responsible, and have been for years.  Tahoe is an area where the population can swell to 5 times its usual size on busy summer and winter periods, so every little local initiative stands to have a big impact regionally.

In 2014, Truckee banned the use of plastic bags at retail shops and grocery stores with the aim to eliminate plastic bag pollution in the area. Three and a half years later, this is just the norm in the area and people are used to bringing reusable bags around with them. The Town of Truckee is currently implementing a program that provides residents with recycling and yard waste carts instead of plastic bags which will prevent an estimated 3 million bags from going to landfills in the next 10 years.  

The next hot topic is single use plastics and polystyrene. South Lake Tahoe has recently banned the use of polystyrene which  is the most frequently found trash found along Tahoe’s shoreline. Polystyrene is not biodegradable is used in items like foam coolers, plates, clamshell containers, and plastic silverware. The ordinance will take effect in October, and local food providers and business need to stop distribution and sale of these items. There is the hope that the rest of the towns in the Tahoe region will follow suit shortly.

Drink Tahoe Tap has been active in promoting the use of reusable drinking containers and raising awareness around the quality of the local water in an effort to stop the wasteful use and disposal of plastic water bottles. Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows have banned plastic water bottles at their resorts through their Drink Mountain Tap campaign which will keep 28,000 plastic bottles out of landfills annually. Squaw/Alpine have a much bigger vision moving forward with their goal to run solely on renewable energy by the end of 2018.

The Tahoe Fund was formed specifically to preserve the beauty in the Tahoe region and encourage responsible use of natural resources in addition to improving and funding outdoor recreations areas and programs. Ongoing programs such as the Take Care Campaign informs visitors of issues related to the area and reminds them to be responsible stewards while they are here. Bear awareness, appropriate litter disposal and fire prevention are just a few recurring themes. The Take Care Campaign also offers ways for people to get involved  in various projects while they are here such as Earth Day events and community cleanup days.

There is a lot going on in Tahoe to keep this place amazing, and this is just scratching the surface. As a simple start, if every resident and visitor would simply use reusable drinking containers and dispose of trash properly the positive impacts to the area would be monumental.

Come by the Tahoe Truckee Earth Day 2018 event at Squaw Valley this weekend to learn more about how to preserve and protect our local resources. 

Photos courtesy of Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows, The Tahoe Fund and the Town of Truckee. 

Katie Tyler

Realtor®

BRE 01442453

c 530 277 1012