In most U.S. markets, spring triggers the annual inventory surge. In mountain resort communities like the Adirondacks, New York, that pattern is inverted. Buyers or sellers who do not understand the local rhythm risk mispricing their homes or misjudging competition entirely.
Chase Jermano, broker and owner of Tina Leonard Real Estate, LLC, says the most common misconception from buyers outside the market is that winter is the busiest season. It is not, and the confusion has real consequences for anyone trying to time a purchase or sale.
Summer Drives Adirondack Listings
“The busiest time is always the summer, which people seem to get mixed up,” Jermano says. The Adirondacks draw year-round visitors for Ironman competitions, horse shows, lacrosse and rugby tournaments, and marathons, but summer is when the region peaks. Winter, by contrast, is weather-dependent and can go quiet when temperatures drop to extremes.
This dynamic shapes when local sellers choose to list. Many Adirondack residents work through the summer season, accumulate income, and then list their properties in the fall before winter sets in. “In the fall, they’ll leave,” Jermano says. The buyer pool reflects a similarly wide geography. Jermano estimates that roughly 25 percent of his transactions involve first-time buyers, with a significant share of the remainder coming from investors and second-home seekers relocating from New York City, Boston, Connecticut, and as far as Virginia.
Short Season, Uneven Competition
The result is a market with a compressed, tourism-aligned selling season rather than the extended spring-to-fall window common in suburban and urban markets. Inventory has been constrained for some time, a structural reality shaped in part by the Adirondack Park itself. As the largest park in the country, and one that is both privately and state owned, much of the surrounding land is permanently off the table for development. What exists is largely what will continue to exist. Jermano notes that multiple-offer situations still occur, though no longer as intense as during the post-COVID peak. Competitive pressure remains real in desirable price ranges.
The seasonal pattern also creates distinct submarket behaviors. Peru, a town on the outer edge of the Adirondack region, has seen strong buyer interest in the $400,000 to $500,000 range, according to Jermano. Upper Lake offers more affordable entry points, and Lake Placid remains the most active core resort market.
“The further you get out, depending on which direction you go, there’s not a lot of job opportunities,” Jermano says. For buyers drawn to lower prices in remote areas, seasonal isolation and limited employment represent trade-offs that do not appear in listing data.
First-time buyers face a particular challenge across the broader market. Most qualify in the mid-$200,000 range, but available homes at that price point in communities like Lake Placid, Wilmington, and Saranac Lake typically require significant repairs or updates. “It scares me for young people,” Jermano says.
Hidden Costs of Adirondack Winters
Beyond timing, Jermano argues that the true financial weight of Adirondack seasonality is routinely underestimated by buyers relocating from warmer climates. Heating costs have surged, tripling monthly in some cases, and cold-weather infrastructure adds recurring expenses with no equivalent in year-round warm markets. Property taxes continue rising as municipalities balance budgets. The practical demands of winter — quality tires, snow removal, and heating upkeep — compound ownership costs in ways that do not surface in price-per-square-foot analysis.
Jermano contrasts this with warmer markets where cooling costs stay relatively consistent year-round. In the Adirondacks, seasonal expenses concentrate in a winter that can stretch well beyond what the calendar suggests. “It was 72 days ago, and we might get snow this weekend, and it’s going to be May,” he said in April 2026.
Short-term rental investors face an additional layer of cost complexity. The short-term rental market has grown more competitive as it has matured, and operators who have not reinvested in their properties are feeling it. “You can’t just have used furniture you found on the side of the road,” Jermano says. Competitive operators now invest in professional photography, video, active marketing, and responsive pricing to stay ahead of both other rentals and hotels that have caught up on pricing strategy. Successfully managing a short-term rental also functions as a part-time job. Owners who do not account for that time — or the cost of hiring someone to handle it — tend to underestimate their true operating expenses.
Short-Term Rental Regulations Vary by Town
Investors evaluating short-term rental opportunities in the Adirondacks must also navigate a patchwork of local regulations that vary significantly from one municipality to the next. Lake Placid maintains a relatively straightforward permit system. Wilmington has capped the total number of permits, with wait times of four to six months depending on turnover. Saranac Lake has adopted one of the more restrictive frameworks in the region, requiring that permits in the village be held either by a local resident or by an LLC with at least 25 percent local ownership, and limiting the number of permits per defined neighborhood.
For investors modeling occupancy and returns, these regulatory differences matter as much as location and price. Properties in markets like Wilmington and Jay draw winter visitors to Whiteface Mountain, which Jermano describes as the largest ski mountain east of the Mississippi, but permit availability there is now constrained. More remote properties may experience extended vacancy windows that further narrow annual returns.
Seasonal Timing Shapes Market Strategy
For brokers and investors in other mountain resort markets, the Adirondack pattern offers a concrete reference point. When local economic rhythms diverge sharply from national seasonality norms, the standard playbook — list in spring, close in summer — can lead to missed opportunities or poorly timed decisions. Agents and investors who build operations around local timing rather than national assumptions are better positioned to capture the market’s concentrated activity.
For investors specifically, Jermano points to Lake Placid as the strongest entry point. Its event calendar — spanning the Ironman, horse shows, rugby, lacrosse, and multiple marathons — generates demand across more of the year than other parts of the region. Jermano estimates that well-positioned short-term rentals in the area can generate between $20,000 and $60,000 or more annually, though location and active management are the primary drivers of where a property falls in that range. Outside of Lake Placid, buyers are competing for a more niche audience, whether that means hikers in Keene or skiers in Wilmington and Jay. Understanding that distinction before deploying capital, Jermano argues, is the difference between a productive investment and one that sits vacant through a long Adirondack winter.
As heating costs rise, remote work patterns stabilize, and buyer expectations continue adjusting to post-pandemic realities, understanding these localized rhythms will only become more critical.
About the Article: Chase Jermano is the broker and owner of Tina Leonard Real Estate, LLC, based in the Adirondacks, New York. He works across residential, investment, and second-home segments of the market, with coverage spanning communities including Lake Placid, Wilmington, Saranac Lake, and surrounding areas.
This article is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or investment advice. The views and opinions expressed herein reflect those of the individuals quoted and do not represent an endorsement of any company, product, or service mentioned. Readers should conduct their own due diligence and consult qualified professionals before making any investment decisions.
