Carson's home supply keeping up with demand

The supply of homes for people moving to Carson Country has been able to meet the demand and will probably continue to, a local Board of Realtors officer said Thursday.

Charles Kitchen, chairman of the Carson-Douglas-Fallon-Lyon-Tahoe Board of Realtors, said the local situation is not like that in Las Vegas, where home builders have fallen behind demand created by two decades of booming growth.

"I think we've been able to keep up with demand in the Dayton, Carson City and Carson Valley markets," Kitchen said. "There's a demand for both new and resale homes."

He said there is a slight buyer's market here, but demand is almost balanced with supply. New homes that are not pre-sold only remain on the market 60-90 days, Kitchen said. And resale homes, if they are priced properly, are usually sold within 90 days, he said.

'When I talk about the Carson City market, I'm including Lyon and Douglas counties," he said. "Carson City itself is nearly built out . I think we'll continue to see more residential projects spilling over into Douglas and Lyon."

Carson's growth in turn is tied to Reno, which is expanding at 3-4 percent a year, he said.

"But we're doing a better job than in Vegas because were more diversified," Kitchen said. "It's good to see something besides just new casinos."

Kitchen said he believes the area can sustain the current growth rate for years.