by Calculated Risk on 7/11/2022 02:02:00 PM

With the pandemic, there was a surge in 2nd home buying.

I'm looking at data for some second home markets - and I'm tracking those markets to see if there is an impact from lending changes, rising mortgage rates or the easing of the pandemic.

This graph is for South Lake Tahoe since 2004 through June 2022, and shows inventory (blue), and the year-over-year (YoY) change in the median price (12-month average).

Note: The median price is distorted by the mix, but this is the available data.

Click on graph for larger image.

Following the housing bubble, prices declined for several years in South Lake Tahoe, with the median price falling about 50% from the bubble peak.

Currently inventory is still very low, but up 5-fold from the record low set in February 2022, and up 54% year-over-year.  Prices are up 14.0% YoY (but the YoY change has been trending down).   

The second graph is from Eric Finnigan at John Burns Real Estate Consulting "the Second-Home Rush of 2020, in hindsight".

The graph shows weekly 2nd home mortgage count.

The pandemic boom is obvious, and it now appears that 2nd home buying has declined to 2019 levels.