Lake Home Listings Have Surged $5.9 Billion as Temps Heat Up

Looking for the dream lake home or lot to build? You have more choices as summer approaches. Lake Homes Realty’s new Summer 2023 Lake Real Estate Market Report shows 73,925 lake properties are on the market, up from 70,805 in spring. All 34 states that Lake Homes Realty operates in showed increases except three: Massachusetts and Montana showed a slight decrease, and Florida was virtually unchanged. Texas lake home and lot listings spiked by 2,000 to 14,669, nearly 6,000 more than Florida – the second state for most lake property listings. 

The new report revealed lake home and lot listings were $39.781 billion, as of May 15, within the 34 states covered by Lake Homes Realty. This inventory total increased by $5.9 billion since the spring report in February. The average listing price for homes and lots combined increased to $538,131 each – up from $479,586 in spring. The quarterly report is generated by Lake Homes Realty, the nation’s largest lake-focused brokerage, and pulls data from 126 MLS areas. For a complete listing of available homes and lots across 6,767 lakes, visit www.LakeHomes.com. Of those lakes, 4,321 have at least one listing. 

Glenn S. Phillips, CEO and Chief Economic Analyst at Lake Homes Realty, sees multiple reasons for increases in inventory and listing prices. “We are rebounding from historic lows of available lake homes for sale in 2021 and 2022 across virtually every lake market,” said Phillips. “While better, the selection of appropriately priced lake homes still needs to be improved,” he said. “While softened compared to the last three years, it remains a seller’s market for lake real estate.”  

“At Lake Homes Realty, our position as the nation’s leader in lake real estate allows us to collect the best data about lake real estate markets across the country,” said Phillips. “From our millions of visitors to LakeHomes.com, we have access to a wealth of data that reveals consumer and market trends, patterns, and surprises,” he adds. “For example, in the red-hot Texas lake real estate market, 1,344 homes are listed for more than a million dollars. Forty-five percent of those searching for Texas lake property are between the ages of 45 and 64 and 62% of them are searching on their smartphones. Fifty-five percent of searchers for Texas lake homes and lots are male. Chicago, Oklahoma City, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles and the top Metro areas searching for Texas lake property from outside of the state,” Phillips adds. The Lake Real Estate Market Report has similar data for more than 30 states covered by Lake Homes Realty. 

“Lake home buyers, and home buyers in general, are more informed than ever,” said Phillips. “They know the market, trends, and transactions, plus they detest inappropriately overpriced listings,” he said. “I still expect the 2023 transaction count to exceed 2022 by 10 to 15%. Increasing inventories of lake properties for sale across the country make this possible. However, below-normal inventories will prevent an explosion in the number of lake homes sold in 2023 or 2024,” said Phillips. 

Phillips predicts changes in interest rates will not be a significant issue for lake real estate in 2022. “Lake home buyers often pay cash, particularly if it is a second home, so mortgage availability has little impact,” said Phillips. “I encourage lake homeowners to view their property with an investment mindset. The peak market will not last forever, and we will only see the peak after we have passed it.”