It’s another nice sunny week for the Incline Village real estate market. The unseasonably dry and warm weather has made it easy for buyers to make the journey up to Lake Tahoe to look at property. Sales continue along at a nice steady pace even though we are in the dead of winter.
There are currently only 49 single-family homes, condos and freestanding condos for sale on the Incline Village MLS. Inventory levels have remained extraordinarily low for nearly 2 years. The supply/demand equation continues to remain in favor of sellers. Which is why this week’s topic is about the need for buyers to be set up on MLS auto search.
Prior to the pandemic when the inventory was generally in balance with demand, agents could screen each new listing before emailing the information to prospective buyers. But the sharp decline in available properties for sale necessitates that buyers be set up with auto search.
With so few listings coming on the market each week buyers won’t get overwhelmed with the number of new listings coming their way. And with the most desirable properties getting snapped up quickly auto search is the only way to stay fully informed in a timely manner.
Way back during the Great Recession, there were dozens of new listings every week. The inventory ballooned up to more than 500 properties for sale. Being on auto search meant you were on sensory overload trying to sift through new listings. As we worked through the excessive inventory between 2012 and 2015 it became reasonable for agents to screen properties before sending out the info to their clients.
But the panic buying that took place at the start of the pandemic changed all that. The pace of sales in 2020 set historical records. With many longtime property owners uninterested in selling, the inventory rapidly declined to historical lows. Another part of the equation is that we now have far more full-time residents in Incline Village and Crystal Bay. This helps to keep a damper on the number of properties being listed for sale at any given time.
So, if you are a buyer looking for Incline Village real estate we recommend that you are on auto search. It’s the only way to ensure you will see new properties as soon as they hit the market and have a chance to purchase the house or condo you’ve been seeking before someone else grabs it.
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