The Jackson Hole real estate market saw 63 sales in the second quarter of 2020, a far cry from the 110 sales in the second quarter of 2019. While 2019 was a strong year all around, this decline of 43% is significant. Every month of the second quarter showed notably fewer sales with the largest gap happening in May, when 2020 sales were less than half of sales in May 2019. This decline suggests that the pandemic played a role (at least initially) in buyer’s collective willingness to make real estate purchases in Jackson Hole. That being said, it appears the gap may be closing, with only 10 fewer sales in June vs 2019, perhaps an early indication of increasing interest/sales as we move through the summer with the influx of out of town visitors and buyers. Despite 42% fewer sales, dollar volume was nearly identical ($145 million in Q2 2020 vs $148 million in Q2 2019). As a result, the average sale price jumped nearly $1 million from the second quarter last year to Q2 this year, outpacing 2019 in every month (twice as high in the month of May!). The median sales price followed a similar trend, exceeding 2019 median sales prices by roughly 40% in every month of the second quarter.

In looking at the breakdown by price point, the $500,000 to $1 million segment saw 20 fewer sales in Q2 2020, while only 4 sales occurred under $500,000 (vs. 28 sales in Q2 2019). On the other end of the spectrum, the luxury end remained strong with an identical number of sales over $3 million (despite overall sales being down). More than 3 out of every 4 sales in the second quarter of 2020 was for a single family home vs. 35% in Q2 2019, no doubt a contributing factor to the higher prices/values.

The number of new listings was down roughly 17% in the second quarter of 2020 with just over 200 properties hitting the market in April/May/June. Compare that to the second quarter of last year when 246 new properties entered the market. New listings in 2020 lagged 2019 in April and May, no doubt a result of sellers’ hesitation in the first few months of the COVID pandemic. Only in June of 2020 did new listings exceed 2019 with 6 more properties entering the market.

The dollar volume of new listings in Q2 2020 also declined, down 17% from Q2 2019. After seeing a similar listing dollar volume in April, both May and June under performed levels seen in 2019. The monthly average listing price fluctuated in 2020, from $3.3 million in April dropping to $2.3 million in May and jumping back up in June. The median list price followed a similar trend, but exceeded 2019 median list prices in every month of the second quarter, illustrating an overall increase in listing prices. The majority (46%) of new listings in Q2 2020 were in the $1-3 million range. Despite fewer listings, the luxury segment saw a similar number of new listings priced over $3 million (53 vs 56), while the entry level (under $500,000) dropped 50% from 16 to 8 new listings.