Market Report

Waterfront sales set new high-water mark in March

The lake level is not the only thing rising this March. Real estate sales levels for the 12 months ending March 31, 2021, have also increased dramatically over the same period the previous year. A quick review of the numbers confirms that owning Lake Martin property is more attractive than ever.

The total number of residential waterfront sales for Lake Martin has never exceeded 500 units sold annually, until now.* The total sales for the last 12 months ending in March was 503 units. The number of sales for the same period the previous year (one of the highest on record) was 364 units. That’s an increase of 38.2%!

The average sales price for a single-family home increased 19.1% year-over-year to $830,246. This is the highest level since we began tracking average sales in September of 2011, when the average price was $506,575. The average price at this same time last year was $697,043. That means the average price increased $133,203 over last year.

The sales levels above are remarkable, since the available for-sale inventory levels are at historic lows. Residential, for instance, is at just a 1.41-month supply. This low inventory level has driven the sales for waterfront homesites to the highest level on record as well at 162 sales. This unanticipated sales result has reduced the inventory for developed lots to a 2.59-month supply.

Looking forward

For those wondering where the market is likely to go next, we think that sales levels might go down, but not for lack of demand. In fact, we have been worried about how lack of available property would affect total unit sales for more than a year. Surprisingly, sales volume continues upward without growing inventory. When appropriately priced property comes on the market, it sells virtually overnight at or above list price.

The market has a strong fundamental foundation currently. With low, fixed interest rates (averaging 3.19% for 30-year Jumbo loans according to Wall Street Journal on 4-13-21), low inventory levels, lack of significant speculative construction due to limited lot inventory, constrained developer pipeline, and an improving economy are strong fundamentals that support higher values and continued growth in the lake market.

Inventory additions coming

With the limited amount of existing “for-sale” residential homes and diminishing lot inventory, Russell Lands is working to provide new homesites. The Willows and The Ridge are due to have newly developed lots released to the market in late spring.

Owners of existing lake homes, while they are hesitant to part with their lake place, are still listing properties for sale. In many cases, these properties come available and sell well before they go into a Multiple Listing Service or websites like Trulia or Zillow.

We recommend that if you are interested in finding a place in one of Russell Lands’ neighborhoods, give one of our Realtors^® a call at 256.215.7011 or drop us an e-mail. They will be happy to keep you informed on releases of new property by Russell Lands or newly listed property as soon as it comes available for sale.

*We have been tracking year-over-year sales numbers monthly since September of 2007. The level of sales for that period ending in September of 2007 was 196 units.