Home sales hit 10-year high
According to the Coeur d'Alene Multiple Listing Service, there were 3,896 total home sales in the association's entire region in 2016. The number was an 11 percent increase from 2015.
LOREN BENOIT/PressWindermere realtor Tracey Tindall, left, and potential home buyer Suzy McHughes go through kitchen cabinets of a Hayden home on Thursday. Home sales in Kootenai County reached their highest mark in the past decade in 2016.
LISA JAMES/ PressA for sale sign sits outside a house for sale on 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in downtown Coeur D'Alene on Thursday. Home sales reached a 10-year high in 2016 in Kootenai County. As prices rise, inventory continues to be lower than demand.
LISA JAMES/ PressA for sale sign sits outside a combination home/office for sale on Sherman Avenue and 11th Street in downtown Coeur D'Alene on Thursday. Home sales reached a 10-year high in 2016 in Kootenai County. As prices rise, inventory continues to be lower than demand.
LISA JAMES/ PressA for sale sign sits outside a house for sale on Sherman Avenue and 11th Street in downtown Coeur D'Alene on Thursday. Home sales reached a 10-year high in 2016 in Kootenai County. As prices rise, inventory continues to be lower than demand.
LISA JAMES/ PressA sold sign is pasted over a for sale sign sits outside a combination home/office on Sherman Avenue and 10th Street in downtown Coeur D'Alene on Thursday. Home sales reached a 10-year high in 2016 in Kootenai County. As prices rise, inventory continues to be lower than demand.
By BRIAN WALKER
Staff Writer
COEUR d'ALENE — Home sales in Kootenai County in 2016 reached their highest mark in the past decade and increased 12 percent from 2015, but observers don't believe the market is nearing another unhealthy bubble.
The number of sales in the county increased from 2,914 in 2015 to 3,255 last year, according to a recent report by the Coeur d'Alene Multiple Listing Service.
"Low interest rates raised sales and we have an economy that is much healthier now," said Pat Krug, broker for Windermere Coeur d'Alene Realty.
"More people are moving into the market as first-time home buyers and people are taking advantage of the appreciation in their homes and being able to sell and buy something different."
Krug said she expects 2017 to follow suit.
"There's cautious optimism out there, which leads me to believe there will be a modest increase or even level sales," she said.
Krug said Windermere's sales for the first 16 days of 2017 are the same as what they were in 2016, but the value of the homes is 7.8 percent higher.
"That shows a lot of strength in the market when you think about the weather we've had for the past two weeks," she said.
Ray Murphy, an agent with North Idaho Real Estate, said sales in 2017 may taper because of interest rates increasing.
"I wish there was more inventory, but I don't believe that we'll see more," Murphy said. "There's more buyers than sellers, so that should make prices continue to climb. I worry that it could take a lot of first-time home buyers out of the market.
"I don't believe the market will be quite as robust as this past year, but it'll still be a good market."
Krug said she expects the type of buyers to be balanced.
"We're going to see interest rates creep up a bit, but homes will still be affordable and there are loan programs available for many buyers," she said. "The FHA (Federal Housing Administration) just lowered the mortgage insurance premium and that will make FHA loans more affordable. People can still get into a home for less out-of-pocket money than renting."
Krug said many of the recent buyers have been moving here due to the rise in the health care and construction industries.
The average sales price for homes in Kootenai County increased 5 percent in 2016 from the year before to $252,231, which reflected low inventory. The median sales price rose 9 percent to $222,000.
"I think that we'll continue to see very modest increases, but nowhere near a bubble," Krug said. "When we had the bubble our prices rose 34 percent."
The average sales price for homes in Coeur d'Alene/Dalton Gardens in 2016 was $259,276; Post Falls $225,466; Hayden $301,662; and Rathdrum/Twin Lakes/Hauser $226,837.
Sales in both Post Falls and the Rathdrum/Twin Lakes/Hauser area increased 21 percent to lead the way among cities.
"There's a lot of new construction in those areas," Krug said. "We have a new subdivision in Rathdrum — Prairie Sky Second Addition — in which building has not started but quite a few people want to have homes built there."
The total number of vacant land sales rose from 817 in 2014 to 1,133 in 2016.
"As the economy has improved and affordability is good, those sales have improved and were depressed during the recession," Krug said. "Having a home on acreage is a want as opposed to a need."