Boulder Real Estate News Headlines: “I’ve never seen anything like this!”
“I’ve never seen anything like this!” This is what I’m hearing from my contemporaries around town and the most recent Boulder county market stats confirm it. We have moved into an extreme version of a Seller’s Market.
Boulder County Market Stats Summed Up: LOW Inventory
There just isn’t any meaningful inventory for sale at this moment. Now, I have friends who say, “oh I hear the market is great Bob.” I smile when I hear this. Sure, if you are a home seller and not looking to stay a home owner in the area, yes, this is a great market.
But for everyone else (like, 95% of the people out there), this is not a great market.
For instance, after you sell your house, what then? Buying up will be just as crazy and competitive as selling your house – unless you are fortunate enough to be in the ultra-luxury category. Moving over – from say Boulder to Lafayette (similar to those leaving California and coming to Boulder) is very competitive. Yes, you have more resources, but you are running into hoards of competition and just not enough homes for sale.
Let’s look past the rhetoric I’m sharing. Here are the most recent county market stats in Boulder.
Boulder County Inventory of Homes For Sale
In January there were 222 single family homes for sale. This was three hundred seventy six fewer properties than January 2020. That’s close to one in three as many houses for sale. Numbers like that have a big impact.
Consider all the wanna-be home buyers who saw a great house, made an offer, and lost in multiple bids. Those buyers are still out there seeking a home. There just are no homes for sale.
Hint: if you own a home and are thinking about selling, the Boulder county market stats make clear now is the ideal time to give Bob Gordon a call and get your house sold!
Days On Market – Plummets
Homes are selling in about two weeks faster time versus January a year ago. That’s a leap of a change. Days on Market (DOM) is generally a statistic that changes a little here, a little there creating a trend over time.
Two weeks less time is a big change. What’s driving that change? Likely cash offers – these can close faster. And I imagine buyers agreeing to cover appraisal shortfalls during the contract phase. This keeps homes from coming out of contract and going back on the market (in turn lengthening DOM).
Boulder County Average Sales Price +209,721
C’mon – that can’t possibly be correct. An improvement of $209,721 dollars might be a gain over decades living in your home, not one January to the next. And yet. It. Is. Accurate.
Average home prices in January 2021 for Boulder county were a whopping $947,553, up more than $200K over the prior year.
Median home gains were more modest. When inventory comes back into line with what a regular Seller’s market reflects are even a balanced market, expect those crazy average price numbers to come back in line with the median value changes.
Boulder Median Home Prices Year Over Year
- Single Family Homes – UP $64,900 to $674,900
- Attached Dwellings – UP $54,500 to $432,000
# of Closings Falls Year Over Year
This is a direct result of inventory being so depressed. Sales statistics would be higher if only there were more homes for sale.
Boulder County Market Stats: New Listings Fall
Currently 340 housing units for sale in January. This was comprised of 217 single family homes (a decrease of 109 new listings from January a year ago) and one hundred and twenty three attached dwellings. That’s forty four fewer condos and town homes than a year prior.
January saw record low numbers of homes for sale and then adding insult to injury less new inventory coming into the market. What this means for local home buyers? Either fierce competition for new houses hitting the market (that’s how you get a $200,000 gain in average prices in one month), OR Boulder county buyers moving a little further away to find more affordable or available options.