Here's a strong hint about the strength
of the residential real estate market in
northern Nevada this year:
While final figures aren't in, the volume
of sales crossing the Multiple Listing
Service of the Reno/Sparks Association of
Realtors in 2002 almost certainly will top
$1 billion.
As recently as the year 2000, by comparison,
the yearly total was $850 million,
and the 2001 total barely cleared $900 million.
Here's another hint that the market is
hot: The number of licensed real estate
agents in the market this month is about
1,900 compared to the 1,400 or so who
usually are work in the region.
And there's little indication that the residential
market will cool significantly during
2003.
Two oft-reported factors the lowest
interest rates in 45 years and heavy migration
of people from other states into northern
Nevada probably will continue to
drive the residential market next year.
The number of existing homes sold in
the Reno-Sparks market this year is
expected to be about 4,830. That's 5.7 percent
higher than 2001's number.
"The interest rates are going to stay low
for a while. The demand is there," said
Penny Mayer, president of the Reno/Sparks
Association of Realtors.
The lower interest rates continue to offset
some of the effects of the higher prices
that result from the demand for Reno-area
housing.
In October, the Realtors association
reported, the median price of a home in the
market was about $179,900 compared with
$161,000 a year earlier.
But the sales price isn't as important as
the amount of the monthly payment for most buyers.
"You can only buy what you can afford,"
said Mayer.
The continued low interest rates that
she expects to see in 2003 means that more
people can afford home ownership yet
another factor that keeps demand strong.
"We're seeing a lot of first-time buyers
whom we haven't seen before,"Mayer said.
"It's really gratifying."
While Realtors who sell existing homes
have enjoyed good business, so have the
builders who bring new houses to the market.
Prices for new homes this year were
about 8.5 percent higher than last year.
That's well above the average increases of
4.5 percent during the past 10 years.
Real estate experts and builders both
have said the upward pressure on prices is
likely to increase through 2003 because of a
shortage of lots available for building.
John Mitchell, president of the Builders
Association of Northern Nevada, recently
noted that only 44 subdivisions in the area
currently have more than 10 lots available
for construction. That's a mere one-year
supply of new homes.
But toward the end of 2003, several new
subdivisions will be coming on line, and
2004 may prove to be the first year in a
while that shopping for a new home
becomes a buyer's market.
Among major residential subdivisions
that will meet demand in 2003 and beyond
are the Somersett master-planned community
in northwest Reno with 2,650 lots and
the 3,100-lot Peek properties in the north
valleys, where Barker-Coleman will be the
first builder.
