The Labor Day Weekend that traditionally marks the end of summer was a spectacular weather weekend on the Flathead. Temperatures in the 80s and clear skies made for a perfect ending to a great summer on the lake.
Flathead Lake waterfront sales continue to post solid gains over previous years. There were a total of seven sales in August, including one waterfront land sale. The year to date sales totals stand at $33.5M and 34 transactions. At this time last year, total volume of waterfront sales was $32.7M and 44 transactions.
The driving factor for increased sales volume this year is directly related to a higher number of $1M plus sales earlier in the year. There have been 12 such sales posted this year; while last year saw 14 sales over the $1M mark for the entire year. There are another 9 properties currently under contract over the $1M mark.
With interest rates staying low and a national economy that continues to grow, we expect we may see another record sales year for the Flathead Lake real estate market.
August Sales:
Prices based on a per-waterfront-foot have continued to increase to around $4,000/ft for the entire lake after adjusting for improvements in the past few years. The strong sales in the northern end of the lake in June and July had pushed the average to over $5,000/ft on an adjusted basis for the year. The annual average dipped back down to $4,820 after posting the August sales numbers.
Annual Sales Data:
Active Waterfront Listings
Residential waterfront listings for this month are down compared to the inventory at this time last year (119 vs 128). The number of land listings has increased from 36 to 40. Total listings on the lake historically peak in August and bottom out between January and March.
While we continue to post record sales numbers, inventories have maintained their numbers overall. Much of this may be due to a shadow inventory that continues to come to market in response to the strong economy. Total listings are only down 3% year over year.
Median list prices for residential listings rose steadily throughout 2018. Prices peaked at $1.6M at the end of the year as inventory dropped with increased sales. The increased inventory of lower-priced properties over the first 6 months of the year combined with the sales of several higher-priced properties dropped the median line closer to $1.2M since June.
Median waterfront land prices held steady for the last half of 2018, showing a $150k spike for the past five months due to a few high priced listings and reduced inventory. The median price dropped back to just under $700k for the month.
Flathead Lake Condominium Market
With over a dozen waterfront condominium communities around Flathead Lake, there are plenty of options for buyers who want the waterfront lifestyle without having to worry about maintaining a lake home. Below is a list of all of the current condo listings for the various communities around the lake, along with a report of total sold units and average prices since the first of the year.
The waterfront condo market posted 31 sales on the lake last year. With 51 active condo listings, we have approximately 20 months of inventory currently on the market. This is an increase from last year when we carried a lower inventory.
Condo sales overall have slowed this year as the list prices and inventory of single family homes on the lake have been competitive with the condo offerings. Once single family prices begin to rise with a decrease in inventory, we can expect an increased demand for waterfront condominiums.
