Vacation home sales jumped to a record high in 2014, according to the National Association of Realtors’ 2015 Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey. Vacation home sales climbed to an estimated 1.13 million last year, the highest since NAR began its survey in 2003. At the same time, the median sales price of vacation and investment homes dropped last year. The median vacation home price in 2014 was $150,000, an 11 percent drop from $168,700 in 2013.
Summertime, when the beaches are full of vacationers, is the ideal time to sell and usually that’s when there’s the most stock. The typical vacation home buyer tends to buy a property that’s a median distance of 200 miles away, and plans to own their property for a median of six years. Last year forty percent of vacation buyers bought a home in a beach area, 19 percent purchased in the country, and 17 percent purchased a vacation home in the mountains, according to the NAR study.
Buying during the off-season
Vacation-home owners often squeeze out one more season of rental income before putting their properties on the market. Many vacation homes come onto the market in the off-season because owners don’t want to pay the maintenance costs through the fall and winter when it is not used and can’t be rented out.
Depending on location, you may not find as many listings for vacation homes in the off-season, but you’re more likely to find bargains. If you are planning to rent out your property or if you expect it to appreciate as an investment, be careful. Location is critical. A block or two too far from the beach could lower your rent or appreciation.
If you’re in the market for a vacation home, here are some contingencies to think about.
- About one fourth of vacation homes are rented to other people for part of the year, and the appeal of different kinds of properties varies with the seasons. If you live far away, you’re going to need a good property management company to handle rentals for you. Before you buy, get educated about the rental market and interview management firms that will be able to do the job for you. They are local experts and can guide to the best locations and properties that for sale at a good price.
- More and more couples are buying big vacation properties with plans to retire in them eventually. If that’s an option for you, look for communities with transportation, health care, and other services important to safe senior living.
- Airbnb is revolutionizing the way many people take vacations. By becoming a host, you can stay in your vacation place all summer or rent it out through their site.
