REAL ESTATE MILLIONS BRIEFS

Bill Walters house to be sold at auction

Sports betting icon Bill Walters will roll the dice for the third time with industry leader Concierge Auctions, this time on the sale of his Henderson property overlooking downtown Las Vegas, which will sell to the highest bidder without reserve on April 30.

The main residence and two guest homes are nestled along the mountain ranges within the gated Terracina Estates, the most affluent development in Seven Hills community. The property boasts panoramic views of Las Vegas and the Rio Secco Golf Course, the 18-hole championship course where Tiger Woods holds the record score.

Previously offered for $4.9 million, the auction will be held in cooperation with Donna Ruthe of Today’s Realty Inc.

This is the third time Walters has teamed with Concierge Auctions. In 2014, he sold his 9-acre estate in Rancho Santa Fe, California, alongside the firm for $14.3 million, and just last week Walters placed another California property under contract.

Reno real estate carried by big sales

The Reno/Sparks real estate market saw a 9 percent rise in volume sold during the first quarter, a result of a 24 percent jump in homes selling for more than $1 million. Homes selling for less than a million remained steady.

The numbers are part of a report released by Chase International Real Estate, comparing all Multiple Listing Service sales from Jan. 1 through March 31 to the same timeframe of 2015. Both the average and median price of a home in the Reno/Sparks area rose 9 percent ($331,151 and $290,000, respectively).

The sale of million-dollar homes made great strides in Reno, while homes selling for less than a million were down 3 percent. Inversely, there was a 6 percent rise in Sparks’ homes sold for less than $1 million.

“The rest of the nation is on track to reach pre-recession sales and values,” said Sue Lowe, senior vice president of Chase International. “The Reno area has been evolving and establishing itself for several years now, so it’s already exceeded those numbers and we expect this market to continue climbing and creating new records for itself.”

The National Association of Realtors reported that mortgage giant Freddie Mac is predicting 2016 to be a banner year. “Housing markets are poised for their best year in a decade,” said Sean Becketti, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “In our latest forecast, total home sales, housing starts and home prices will reach their highest levels since 2006.”

The sales of condos in Reno-Sparks also saw significant increases, with a 57 and 26 percent jump in volume and units sold, respectively.

Home sales in Carson Valley were up slightly compared to the same period last year, with a 6 percent increase in volume sold and 1 percent uptick in units sold. The median price of a home there rose 11 percent to $315,000.

Tahoe’s high-end homes bump first quarter real estate sales

Lake Tahoe real estate saw an 8 percent jump in total homes sold during the first quarter of 2016, the result of an 11 percent increase in homes sold for more than $1 million. Homes selling for under 1 million were down 9 percent.

The numbers are part of a report released by Chase International Real Estate, comparing all MLS sales from January 1, 2016, through March 31 to the same timeframe of 2015.

Providing the most comprehensive lake-wide assessment of how the real estate market is faring at Lake Tahoe, Chase International combines sales stats from four regions, broken out into East Shore, South Shore, West Shore and North Shore neighborhoods. From those tallies, average Lake Tahoe numbers are compiled. Chase’s first-quarter report shows the average and median prices of a home at Lake Tahoe were up 1 percent from this time last year ($804,517 and $508,500, respectively).

Incline Village saw the biggest jump in sales with a 98 percent increase in volume sold and 38 percent rise in units sold. Homes selling for more than 1 million was up 100 percent while homes selling for less than 1 million rose 10 percent.

Tahoe City experienced decreases across the board, with a 28 percent drop in volume and a 17 percent fall in units sold. The median price of a home in Tahoe City fell 3 percent to $529,950 while Incline’s jumped 19 percent to $949,000.

“Overall sales around the lake are strong,” said Sue Lowe, senior vice president of Chase International. “If we had more homes and endless room to build, we’d see huge increases everywhere, but we’re limited with what we have to offer, and that’s actually part of the appeal for Tahoe homebuyers.”

The most affordable place to buy a home is South Lake Tahoe, with a median home price of $393,000 (up 5 percent) and average price of $453,830 (up 2 percent).

Condo sales around the lake were also strong, with a 30 percent rise in volume and 37 percent jump in units sold.

There was significant movement in Truckee, with a 110 percent leap in homes selling for more than 1 million and 25 percent increase in homes selling for under 1 million. The median price of a home rose 13 percent over last year’s numbers at this time, to $655,000.