Inland Northwest waterfront real estate markets have retained a sense of stability the last few years, say real estate agents who market such properties. 

Century 21 Beutler-Waterfront broker Bill Fanning says data on waterfront properties can be challenging to analyze because each body of water has its own micro-market. 

 “The three multiple listing services for this area cover Spokane, Coeur d’Alene, and Sandpoint,” he says. “That includes two states, five counties, and some 60 different lakes.” 

Sales data reported to two of those multiple listing services, one affiliated with the Spokane Association of Realtors and one with the Coeur d’Alene Association of Realtors, show a combined total of 333 closed waterfront home sales this year through early November, compared with 264 reported to the two organizations in the year-earlier period. 

For vacant waterfront lots and land, the total number of closed sales reported through the two MLS organizations was 124, compared with 90 reported for the year-earlier period. 

The inventory of available waterfront property shows a slight decrease this year. As of early November, the two MLS organizations together had a total of 2,085 active listings for both waterfront homes and land, a 3 percent decrease compared with last year’s total of 2,156. 

Median sale prices in both markets, however, are down from last year. Waterfront home sales in the Spokane area have had a median sale price of $252,840 so far this year, down 16 percent from $299,900 during the year-earlier period. The Coeur d’Alene area median price is $510,000, down 11 percent from $575,000. 

For vacant waterfront-land sales, median sales prices also have decreased. The Spokane median price so far this year of $93,500 was 29 percent lower than last year’s $131,500. The Coeur d’Alene median price was 24 percent lower, $187,000 this year compared with $245,000 last year.

Spokane MLS data include lakefront and waterfront properties in Spokane, Pend Oreille, and Stevens counties. The Coeur d’Alene MLS figures include lakefront and waterfront properties in Kootenai, Shoshone, Bonner, and Benewah counties. 

Despite the trending decrease in median sale prices, Fanning says overall the data point to a stable market.

“This year’s data shows a rise in the number of sales in both North Idaho and Eastern Washington,” he says. “It’s interesting that median sales prices are down in almost every sector, which I wouldn’t have predicted, but I still feel it’s a neutral market.” 

Fanning points out that waterfront is unlike traditional residential markets because the number of sales is comparatively small, which can skew median price data. 

“Different areas are influenced by the inventory in that particular market,” he says. “When examining the median price point, you have to take into account the micro-markets built into every lake, looking at them individually, and analyze based on that.”

Fanning cites Hayden Lake as an example, saying, “The median sale price for Hayden waterfront property is down from last year by 20 percent, but sales are up 94 percent. If you look at those individual sales closely, they’re in less expensive areas. Selling those lower-priced homes has skewed the median prices downward a bit. It’s a trend that is unique to each specific area,” he says.

While median waterfront home sale prices may be down, Fanning says one thing that is up this year is the sale of vacant lots and land.

 “The market for vacant lots has been resurrected in a way,” says Fanning. “Part of it is activity, not necessarily sales, but activity is usually a prelude of good things to come.”

Fanning also says he’s noticed an increase in website traffic.

“Website traffic is up 30 or 40 percent this year, and that’s consistent with the calls we’re getting,” he says. 

Fanning says increased Web traffic also is a good sign, as it shows that buyers are doing more research and making smarter purchasing decisions. 

“People start with this idea in their mind of the perfect gingerbread log cabin on a sandy beach. They have to adjust to the reality that those white sandy beaches are both rare and expensive,” he says. 

“It’s a bit of a learning curve, but people are beginning to make decisions based more on needs rather than wants. I think we’re starting to see a nice, stable market that’s driven by sound decisions and principles,” says Fanning. 

Jennifer Smock, managing broker for Windermere Coeur d’Alene Realty, agrees, saying overall the waterfront market in Kootenai County has made a strong recovery in the last two years.

“Waterfront and acreage took the two biggest hits in our market as far as depreciation and slow down of sales. But in the last two years we’ve started to see a turnaround,” she says. 

Smock says she believes that given the high rise and subsequent fall in price of waterfront property, a steady annual increase can be expected. 

“Waterfront properties are a want, not a need, so when the market was bad, higher listings didn’t sell,” she says. “But overall, I think there has been an increased interest in both higher priced waterfront homes and vacant land, as buyers have more money and many have the desire to build their own lakeside home on a vacant space.” 

Fanning says he recently has sold vacant waterfront lots in both the Coeur d’Alene and Spokane areas. 

“We sold 11 lots in 15 months as part of Rock Creek Ridge at Sunup Bay on Lake Coeur d’Alene, those being $200,000 to $500,000 lots,” he says. “Another area that’s seen some activity is Coyote Rock on the Spokane River. There’s a new neighborhood there called River Crest that’s been doing well.”