Editor's Note: Santa Fe and New Mexico real estate expert Darlene Streit weighs in on her expectations for the area's real estate market for 2021.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Santa Fe Real Estate Property
Haute Residence: What is your take on what to expect for the Santa Fe area (and New Mexico) overall real estate in 2021?
Darlene Streit: As we saw, the real estate market in Santa Fe and the rest of the country took some surprising turns in 2020. First, coming to a near standstill at the beginning of the pandemic, and then roaring back after the shutdowns loosened up. People across the country are on the move, rethinking larger urban areas and being drawn to places that offer more space, more nature, and a healthy lifestyle.
Santa Fe has always been a very desirable small town to call home. We typically average more than 2 million overnight visitors each year, and a lot of people come to visit, fall in love with all that Santa Fe has to offer, and start making plans. Either to move here, to retire here, or purchase a second home to get away to.
I'm seeing that the pandemic has created more urgency for people to push up their timeline to relocate here. Santa Fe is viewed as a safe haven – a small community with big city cultural amenities. Plus, we have tons of hiking and nature all around us, 300 days of sunshine, and a wide variety of homes with beautiful indoor/outdoor spaces. Right now, people are reassessing their lives...and spending so much time at home has made them consider how much space they need. Maybe they're working from home and need a real office, or a separate area for their kids to do schoolwork. Or more outdoor living space, or maybe just room in the house to have a little privacy at times.
Photo Credit: Daniel Nadelbach
So, for 2021 I believe we'll be seeing this influx of serious buyers continue to increase. Many people have been holding off moving because of the pandemic, but once the vaccines are out, I think there will be an even bigger flood of people looking here. Our market has been strong – in November alone we saw the number of home sales increase 39% over this month last year. Price per square foot went up almost 14% for this same period of comparison.
But the challenge for 2021 will be inventory. Due to a severe lack of homes on the market here, the demand is high and we'll see prices increasing. Year over year, we saw a decrease in inventory of almost 54% in November. So, the market will be strong but will have its limitations.
All in all though, with housing starts and low interest rates as positives, the vaccines allowing people to feel safe again, the economy growing as people get back to work, and with the appeal of Santa Fe as a wonderful place to live, I feel quite optimistic for 2021.
For more information, please contact Darlene Streit at 505.920.8001 or dstreit@dstreit.com
Darlene Streit is the exclusive agent representing the New Mexico real estate market as a member of the Haute Residence Real Estate Network. View all of her listings here.
