Price of homes continues to grow in region as sales hit record numbers

Home sales hit a record number in June, exceeded only by June 2005 during the real estate bubble.

According to the monthly report by Reno/Sparks Association of REALTORS, 622 existing single family homes were sold in Washoe County in June; an increase of 10 percent from June 2014 and an 8 percent increase from May 2015.

The report listed the median sales price for an existing single-family residence in Washoe County at $278,500; an 11 percent increase from last year and a decline of 2 percent compared to a month ago.

“We continue to see a steady increase in the median sales price since the bottom of the market in January 2012,” Dave Hansen, 2015 RSAR president and a REALTOR(r) with Coldwell Banker Select Real Estate, said in a written statement. “Although the price curve rose rapidly in 2012, it has flattened out. This is a good sign and indicates the market may be stabilizing.”

Reno, including North Valleys, had 422 existing single-family homes sold in June; an increase of 9 percent from last year and a 14 percent increase from May. The median sales price was $296,500 for the month; an increase of 16 percent from June 2014 and a 3 percent increase from the previous month.

Sparks, including Spanish Springs, had 186 homes sold for the month, an increase of 9 percent from a year ago and a 1 percent increase from the previous month. The Sparks’ median sales price in June was $258,450; a 9 percent increase from last year and a 6 percent decrease from the previous month.

RSAR also released figures for the second quarter of 2015.

Washoe County had 1,764 sales of existing single-family homes during the first quarter; an increase of 7 percent from the second quarter 2014 and a 35 percent increase over the first quarter of 2015.

The median sales price for homes in Washoe County was $278,000 for the quarter; an increase of 16 percent from last year and an increase of 5 percent from the previous quarter.

During the 2015 second quarter, 1,182 homes sold in Reno and North Valleys; a 9 percent increase from last year and a 43 percent increase from the first quarter of 2015. The median sales price in Reno for the quarter was $287,250; an increase of 17 percent from last year and a 4 percent increase from the previous quarter.

Sparks and Spanish Springs had 534 homes sold the second quarter; an increase of 3 percent from last year and a 22 percent increase from the previous quarter. The Sparks’ median sales price at $262,000 was an increase of 12 percent from last year and a 4 percent increase from the first quarter of 2015.

Nationally and locally, the price of single-family homes is outpacing wage increases, which may price many people out of the market.

“Housing affordability remains a pressing issue with home price growth increasing around four times the pace of wages,” said Lawrence Yun, National Association of REALTORS Chief Economist, of national trends that hold true in northern Nevada. “Without meaningful gains in new and existing supply, there’s no question the goalpost will move further away for many renters wanting to become homeowners.“

Contributing the increase in the price of homes is a decrease of inventory.

At the end of June, there was 2.8 months of unsold inventory in the county, down from 3.2 from the previous month and from 4.1 a year ago. A balanced market is between 5 and 7 months supply.

The allocation of new listings by special conditions, such as short sales or foreclosures, decreased in June. They represented 4 percent of the market in June 2015, down from 5 percent in May 2015 and down from 8 percent in June 2014.

Other data from the quarterly and monthly RSAR reports include:

Fernley, which is in Lyon County, had 43 existing single family homes sell in the month of June; an increase of 10 percent from last year and a 2 percent decrease from the previous month. The median sales price at $168,900 was an increase of 30 percent from June 2014 and a 2 percent increase from last month.

In Fernley in the second quarter, 143 homes sold. That’s an increase of 5 percent from last year and a 22 percent increase from 2015’s first quarter. The median sales price in Fernley was $168,000 for the quarter; an increase of 20 percent from last year and a 10 percent increase from the previous quarter.