Many people think of Lake Havasu City in two ways, either as the small town where you take a few weeks each year to enjoy the tranquility and boating activities that we have to offer, or as their permanent home where they enjoy the ability to find lucrative work providing goods and services to the residents and visitors of our community. Make no mistake, the majority of our residents fit into one of these two categories, but few realize that there is a third type of property owner in Lake Havasu that is doing quite well for themselves. Real estate in Lake Havasu as a business is booming, and has been for the last 20 years. We are not talking about being a real estate broker here, but instead are referring to the business of owning real estate for investment within our community. Real estate investors purchase property in order to either rent it out or to resell it after improvements or market value increases. Either way, Lake Havasu is fertile grounds for real estate investing.
All real estate investors are looking at homes which they believe are being sold for less than the market value and which can be leveraged into a profit by either fixing them up or simply waiting for the ability to sell at more of a fair market value. They can find these types of homes in nearly any city or town in America, but they are also targeting certain areas as being better for real estate investing than others. Lake Havasu is one such area, which was proven recently when the real estate market became more difficult after 2006. While other areas suffered greatly, Lake Havasu experienced only minor setbacks with regards to home values. This is one of the speculative aspects of investing in real estate, trying to identify the areas that will provide the least amount of risk during market downturns. The reason Lake Havasu faired so well during the times when other cities suffered so much was due to the fact that we are more than just a residential community, we are also a tourist destination for those seeking both long term and short term vacations.
When you look at the dynamic of the Lake Havasu real estate market, you must consider the rental market. This means that you must look at the fact that we have two distinct tourist seasons that shrink our vacancy rates to nearly nothing. The "snow bird" season from December to March of each year attracts long-term tourists and part-time residents to our community as they escape the snow and cold weather of eastern states. These people are generally regulars who return each year and are of retirement age. They view Lake Havasu as a second home, and will generally come back to the same locations each year where they have developed "winter families" and groups of friends that they spend time with each year. The other season is "spring break" which directly follows snow bird season in March. During this time, thousands of college students seeking boating fun and escape from schoolwork come to Lake Havasu as a more affordable alternative to destinations outside of the country. Lake Havasu is actually the number one spring break destination in America, which is seen each year in the amounts of revenue that are generated by local businesses catering to these people. Both of these seasons dramatically improve the rental markets from an ownership standpoint, allowing owners to increase rents significantly during these times due to a lack of available inventory.
The tourist seasons provide a distinct edge in Lake Havasu over other cities with regards to real estate investment, due to the fact that you can almost guarantee renters being interested in your property for at least three months out of every year at an increased rental price which will generally cover upwards of six to eight months of mortgage. The ongoing growth in the population of our community also contributes to continually rising real estate prices, making Lake Havasu not only a safe investment but also a very smart one. Contact us directly to discuss investing in real estate in Lake Havasu.