Market Report 2021: January 2022

2021 has been nothing less than a fascinating year in real estate for Mammoth Lakes. Here are a few highlights of the year:

Condominiums: New highs were set for condominiums in 2021 with a median price of $605,000. This surpasses the highs last seen in 2006 when median prices were $550,000. 2005 still holds the high for total sales volume with 637 sales. This high in sales volume took place during a period when Intrawest was creating and filling demand for condominiums through new construction. New sale volumes would likely have been met in 2021 had greater inventories been available. As of 1/4/2022 there were only three condominiums available for purchase in all Mammoth Lakes.

Single Family Homes: New highs for single family homes were also achieved in 2021 with a new median high price of $1,190,000 for the year. In the month of April 2021, an intra-year high of $1,600,000 was reached… median prices have slowly pulled back since, resulting in a median price of $1,190,000 for 2021. As of 1/5/2022 there were 8 single family home available for purchase in Mammoth.

A few things to consider as we move forward in 2022:

• Property Tax Split Role or “Tax Cut and Housing Affordability Act of 2022” – Make no mistake this is not a tax cut and as we see it there is nothing affordable about it. In short, it’s a proposed change to Proposition 13 increasing the tax rate on properties valued over $4,000,000. It’s unclear if the property value would apply to owner’s accumulative value or it if would relate to just one property. Proposed tax rates would be increased from 1% to 1.2% and 1.4% based on the property’s value. For more details read this article from the Building Owners and Manager Association of Greater Los Angeles.
• Assembly Bill 1482 – In 2020 the Governor of California passed a statewide mandate limiting rent increases to 5% per year + CPI. His mandate also put strict limitations on evictions. Long term these changes may have a negative impact on the desirability of owners to own residential rental property and a landlord’s desire to maintain their rental properties in an adequate manner.
• California Senate Bill 9 – This Bill essentially allows single family residential properties to be split to accommodate the construction of a second home on the property. This Bill gives little consideration to the impacts caused by a blanket decision such as this. For Example, impacts on local water systems, power grids, parking etc.
• Interest Rates – Keep a close eye on interest rates in 2022 as these have a direct impact on purchasing power of buyers.

The information contained in this document is for discussion purposes only. It is not guaranteed and should be verified by the reader.

While the median price for all of 2021 was notable, many of our clients wanted to see how the increases have taken place over the course of 2021. Median home prices were up in the early part of 2021 and have gradually declined since. While declines are often a sign of diminishing demand, this does not appear to be the case in Mammoth Lakes as the inventory of single-family homes has remained very low throughout the year. The declines in median price appear to be largely attributed to the lack of higher priced new housing, as was available in early 2021.

The Year-to-Date (YTD) median price for a condominium in Mammoth Lakes is $605,000, which is 34% higher than the median price observed for all of 2020. This median price was determined through 467 sales YTD. This month’s YTD prices are 1% greater than last month’s YTD median price. As of January 3, 2022, there were only 3 condominiums available for purchase in Mammoth Lakes. That is less than one weeks’ worth of supply.

The information contained in this document is for discussion purposes only. It is not guaranteed and should be verified by the reader.

The median price for a residential lot in Mammoth Lakes is during 2021 was $375,000, which is 19% higher than the median price observed for all of 2020. This median price was determined through 49 sales, compared to 30 sales in 2020. This the median price for the year ended up higher than the YTD figures seen in November 2021. The price per foot for a vacant lot remained relative consistent around $28.

Below is a graph showing the sales activity for vacant residential lots in Mammoth Lakes. Year to date land sales activity has already surpassed sales activity for any given year over the prior 10 years.

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