This graph shows the average sale price by month for homes, condos and vacant land in Park City. Keep in mind the “average” price is impacted by a few high or low sale prices. Nevertheless, one can see that while some months the price bumped up or down, the March 2011 average single family home price of $667,000 is only slightly higher than the April, 2010 single family price of $660,000.
The problem with looking at these statistics is that one very high priced home or one very low priced home can skew the data, obscurring real trends. I have been selling about 4 properties/month this year and I can tell you that it doesn’t “feel” like property prices are rebounding. Our market is unusual because inventory is decreasing, almost to the levels where it could become a seller’s market. On the other hand, a buyer will make a low ball offer or wait it out before “overpaying” for a home. So we are seeing part of our inventory (that part that is overpriced) sitting on the market for months or even years. Then we have the properties that look nice and are priced right receiving multiple offers and selling at or above list price. That is the paradox of Park City’s real estate market.
With prices already down about 30% from the peak, little inventory and steady demand, intuitively you would think prices should be coming back up. But the reality is, the prices are not going back up. The buyers are determining a property’s value and at least for right now, we are definitely “bumping along the bottom.” What is your impression of Park City’s real estate market?