Waterfront sales brisk

Single family rising to new highs

The air temperature so far this spring has been a bit warmer than usual, and weather prognosticators are predicting a warmer-than-usual summer in Alabama. But, as warm as it is or might become, the sales of Lake Martin waterfront homes is sizzling by comparison.

We consider the months of January to April the preseason to the summer sales season. Now that those four months are in the books, we are able to take stock of the sales volume reported through our local Multiple Listing Service of the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors (MLS).

According to the MLS, the total sales volume for single-family homes on Lake Martin for 2017 is $95,507,795. For the same period of 2016, the sales volume was $68,397,000. The number of house sales was 157 for 2017 and 116 for 2016. That is an increase in sales volume of 39.64% with the number of transactions increasing by 35.34%. The average sales price increased by 4.05% to $608,330.

While those results are hot year over year, we took the time to look back to 2015 — the second-best year for waterfront home sales on Lake Martin. The results were almost as impressive. The sales volume for the first four months of 2015 was $71,455,214 with 126 houses sold and an average sales price of $567,105. That is an increase of 33.66% in total sales volume, 24.6% in the number of sales, and 7.27% in average price. By any definition, that is HOT!

Market Predictions

We are beginning to think that the sales volume might eclipse the sales level of 2006 — the best year on record for Lake Martin property. There is just one problem; the amount of available inventory continues to drop with 11.9% fewer properties than the same time last year. While there is sufficient supply on the market currently to carry us through the summer months, there are fewer homes to consider in a purchase situation.

What that usually means is that the better properties, that are properly priced, will have interest from more than one purchaser. That will likely result in simultaneous offers on a particular property. We recommend that purchasers work with their Realtor® to make the best offer possible with the fewest contingencies (financing, repairs, etc.). This will allow a seller to consider the property only on values without risking a lapse in sales time waiting on inspections and loan approvals.

We also expect that more waterfront homesites will sell. Given the national trend of housing starts lagging behind sales pace, it is likely that more custom homes will be built to fill the expected demand for the actual sales season from May 1 through September 30.

For those looking for a lake home, this appears to be a busy year. For those who have purchased over the last several years, congratulations! Your property values are on the rise — like the temperature.