Our Denver Housing Market

I’m likely not telling you anything you haven’t already heard. Great housing market if you are a seller. Not so ideal if you are a buyer. Considering every Denver housing market transaction has both a home buyer and a home seller, probably a lot of emotion at home closings this year.

Imagine, Seller, “Holy cow we got Fifty Grand over list price – woo hoo!” Buyer, “It only took six offers to finally get under contract. We waived everything. We had to spend extra to cover the appraisal shortfall. We’re just thankful to be closing on our new home. But we can’t move in for a few weeks because the Seller gets a rent back first, sigh.”

So I honestly don’t think everyone loves this market equally. My buyer clients have run into eight, fifteen, twenty other competing offers. We’ve won some of those battles, lost others. It is not an easy housing marketplace in Denver to purchase your home.

Here are the statistics behind the broad strokes. I think it really tells the tale. Kudos to Jordan Chomko with Move Mile High mortgage team who really helps keep me informed with timely articles (one of which is the basis for this Boulder real estate news blog post today)!

Record Setting Active Inventory In Today’s Denver Housing Market

Not sure home buyers want to see these sorts of records being set. Because moments like this in the housing market mean hundreds or thousands of disappointed would be home buyers. Let’s start with a record smashing one set in 2015.

Active Single Family Residential Homes For Sale

2,594.

2,594 homes for sale in April. Down in every way possible. Smashing a 2015 record of 5,025 homes. Folks – That’s like half as many houses for sale as the previous low. Leaves me wondering, what are all the denied home buyers doing? Are they renting? Staying put and not putting their current places up for sale? Moving away?

America is opening back up. What will home buyers moving into this area do? One option might be to pursue new construction homes. That’s a trick my clients Dylan and Rachel used to overcome this insane Denver housing market.

Not To Be Undone Detached Active Listings Set New Record As Well

One thousand six hundred and forty active attached dwellings were available in the Denver housing market for April. New record folks. Breaks the one last set in 2018 when we had 3,851 condos, town houses and such for sale.

BTW, did you notice that in April of 2021 we smashed two records from two different years!?! This year is shaping up to be like no other in Denver’s home market.

Your Home Is Worth More

Anecdotally I know home values are up because everyone on my Facebook chat group for the neighborhood I live in is bemoaning the tax increases for their homes. That’s because the Boulder county tax assessor has said our houses are up in value.

But there is also statistical evidence of this. The records for value gains set in March 2021 were broken in April 2021.

What is really fascinating here is that I’m comparing March of this year with April of this year. Usually, it’s your home last April was worth this and today, 12 months later, it is now worth that.

Median Numbers Are Up Month Over Month

This is looking at the total number of houses and then finding the middle numerically. Not on value, just numbers-wise. There are as many less expensive places as there are more expensive. Telling number: median attached dwelling price was up twenty five grand. March was a median value of $350,000. April hit $376,360. Pretty good jump for thirty days time.

Average Denver Housing Market Numbers Stun

• Residential: April $623,825 average home price versus March (30 days prior) at $587,484. That’s a six point two percent gain in thirty days.
• Attached: April $444,252 average closed price is up 7.3% over March at $413,990.

Bad news for would-be home buyers. For instance, those that waited for Spring, traditionally the best time to purchase a home, so closed prices jump over last month’s record highs. Also, Sellers reading this might say to themselves, “If I’m up 6% for my house since last month, maybe I should wait another day/week/month/year before selling.

Median Days In MLS

Try this on for size. You are an independent do it yourself-er and watching a bunch of websites for a home. Today you see a new place hit the market. Looks good. Next day you call to see it. Oddly, the listing agent is really slow getting back to you. Reason is, twenty other people – buyers, real estate agents, whatever, are all calling too. Day after that you call someone and ask to set a showing. No go you hear back. Showings are booked for the next three days you discover. And offers are due by 5 pm tonight. Bring your highest and best. WTH – what the heck – is going on. Well, statistically, the median number of days a home was Active in the MLS for April was four days.

Four days broke a record set in previous months.

Four days means some buyers are absolutely submitting sight-unseen offers on homes as quickly as they come onto the Denver housing market!

Heard around the water cooler at work. An agent, Sally, was saying she had received a request for a home showing from a buyer. She showed her listing and the buyer wrote a low offer. The buyer wanted a fast response and suggested it was a good offer, because the listing agent (Sally) and the seller could reduce the commission. Problem is, Sally was receiving more offers everyday and more interest everyday. The winning offer in this Denver housing market is not one that requires the seller to make concessions, but one where the seller nets the most. Saw Sally by the water cooler again today. She says the home is under contract, but not with the buyer she personally showed it too. The home went under contract for higher than full price in a bidding war.

Absorption Rate – Months of Inventory

Last stat is another record setter. If we were talking the Guinness Book of World Records here, we would have published a new version last month that is already decidedly out of date this month. Let’s see…Detached homes for sale has .46 months supply. If all the houses were to be listed on the first of the month, there would be no options to buy after the 15th. That’s awfully fast. Breaks a record set in 2018 when we had 1.08 months inventory.

Four to six months is considered a balance market btw.

Attached dwellings had more – .64 months supply. I didn’t say a lot more. C’mon now. This also set a record last set in 2015 with .69 month’s inventory.

Big takeaway? Mr & Mrs Home Buyer, when a house you like comes up for sale, be ready to act aggressively and competitively to win the inevitable bidding war. Mr and Mrs Seller? Give me a shout at 303-443-3334 (no text) to discuss getting your property up for sale in this incredible market. This is the ideal moment to sell your Denver home!