Latest trends in the Denver real estate market, new listings, stats, homes for sale, what to look for in a Realtor

“Well-informed and educated sellers know interest rates have ticked up again; however, they also know that many buyers are experiencing spring fever and are sick of sitting on the fence watching home prices increase. So, savvy sellers got their property on the market and knew how to stand out. In fact, new listings increased 29.12 percent month-over-month and 22.63 percent year-over-year. But these sellers also knew they had more to compete with as active listings at month’s end rose 13.14 percent to 5,511 homes, an astounding 45.87 percent gain year-over-year.
The spring season is heating up, and the best way to find your treasure is through thoughtful strategy. Prepared sellers can curb a second round of negotiations with buyers at inspection, while strategic buyers know what they want before shopping and the options available to them.”
Libby Levinson-Katz
Chair of the DMAR Market Trends Committee | Denver REALTOR®
  • LUXURY MARKET ($1,000,000+): “The days when sellers waited for their spring gardens to bloom before listing their homes for sale are now long gone. The February weather may have said “winter,” but the market said “spring!” In the segment priced $1 million and above, sellers jumped in early, listing 689 new homes in February, resulting in the largest month-over-month increase in inventory of any segment of the market. The number of new attached homes priced at $1 million and above essentially doubled from January, up a whopping 96.77 percent, while new detached homes were up 58.99 percent.” Colleen Covell, DMAR Market Trends Committee Member & Denver REALTOR®
  • SIGNATURE MARKET ($750,000 – $999,999): “Barring a huge and unexpected influx of new listings, expect days in MLS for homes in this price segment to drop quickly and steadily through June, creating more favorable seller conditions in spring and summer. That said, ‘more favorable’ in no way means dominant. While sellers can (and should) be encouraged by improving market conditions, they should also proceed cautiously in 2024. Today’s buyers are highly educated, a little nervous, have options, and are eager to exercise them.” Michelle Schwinghammer, DMAR Market Trends Committee Member & Denver REALTOR®.
  • PREMIER MARKET ($500,000 – $749,999) “The real estate data looks like a field of shamrocks with new listings sprouting like fresh green clovers. There’s been a surge of new listings, showcasing a 22.78 percent increase compared to last month and up 22.96 percent from last year, providing a dose of optimism and signaling a promising season for both buyers and sellers. Despite the increase in listings, the close-price-to-list-price ratio remained strong at 99.65 percent, like a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.” Keri Duffy, DMAR Market Trends Committee Member & Denver REALTOR®.
*Remarks from Pages 14-15 of the February 2024 Market Trends Report from DMAR

 

New Year. New Opportunity!

What opportunities will you have to buy or sell a home this year? Don’t think you’ll have one? Think again!

Let’s start by looking waayyy back to December 2023, and then we’ll look forward.  Aside from the seasonal slowdown, higher interest rates and low inventory, have had the most impact on the market.  You can dive deeper by clicking the full Denver Real Estate Market Trends  report, and know I’m always here for you with home values and neighborhood trends catered to your specific needs. Now, back to the future.

In my experience…

Winter is the best time to buy a home. Fewer buyers are willing to face the cold, postponing their shopping for early spring, giving you an opportunity to make an offer with less (or no) competition. And sellers who sell in the winter generally have good reason to. This means their motivation is driven by their needs rather than their wants. Another opportunity!

Waiting for the rates to fall?  Don’t. While nobody knows for sure what will happen in 2024, we are anticipating multiple rate drops as the economy stabilizes, but the “waiters” often lose. Think about it. If you buy early, you’ll be gaining equity as prices rise with demand. Buyers who wait to time the market will face a different set of challenges. Lower rates bring more buyers, bidding wars and higher prices which increase the gains for those willing to buy now and refinance once all that rate dropping happens.  Today’s rates from my lending partner, Select Lending Services, look a lot better overall than where we were last year.

 

 

Let’s talk about how 2024 can open a real estate opportunity for you!

“With the holidays upon us, we are focusing on the gift of homeownership this season. Owning a home provides stability and security for many families. It is also the single largest investment most people make in their lifetime, which serves as the single best vehicle to attain individual and generational wealth. Speaking of gifts, this is my absolute favorite time for buyers to get out and shop for homes. Sellers whose properties are on the market typically need to sell and are more willing to negotiate than in March or April when the market is at its peak. Additionally, the competition from other buyers drops considerably. As such, buyers who can see the beauty of buying a home right now have their choice of home and can negotiate their way into their dream home.
Additionally, interest rates are starting a downward trend, and we as REALTORS® know that if rates continue to drop then demand will increase. In fact, many agents saw a flurry of activity last month when rates dropped buying end-of-year activity. Depend­ing on where rates trend, we may see bidding wars back before we know it.”
Libby Levinson-Katz
Chair of the DMAR Market Trends Committee | Denver REALTOR®
  • LUXURY MARKET ($1,000,000+): “Zig Ziglar once said, “Every sale has five obstacles: no need, no money, no hurry, no desire, no trust.” Today, all five of those obstacles present themselves clearly to home buyers and sellers in the $1 million and over price segment. Despite it all, 2023 has proven to be quite a strong year for this segment. Removing the pandemic years and comparing to 2019, sales volume year-to-date has more than doubled, closed volume has nearly doubled, new listings are up over 66%, and price per square foot is up over 14%. I predict this segment will continue to see growth as more people spend more money to experience the gift of living in Colorado.” Susan Thayer, DMAR Market Trends Committee Member & Denver REALTOR®.
  • SIGNATURE MARKET ($750,000 – $999,999): “Black Friday may only last one day in November, but for buyers in the $750,000 to $999,999 price range, the deals lasted all month. The deceleration in the market, however, should not cause any alarm. It is seasonal and expected. Historically, the holidays in November and December take precedence over home buying and selling goals, so we typically experience a decline in market activity. November and December showcase prime opportunities for serious buyers: far less competition, declining prices, expected seller concessions, and recently, declining interest rates. It’s the perfect time for them to give themselves the gift of home ownership.” Colleen Covell, DMAR Market Trends Committee Member & Denver REALTOR®.
  • PREMIER MARKET ($500,000 – $749,999) “There are few things greater than the gift of homeownership. A home can offer financial security, stability, tax benefits, and community. It also serves as the backdrop for so many wonderful moments in life, especially during the holiday season. Many buyers are inclined to hit the proverbial pause button on the home search and wait until spring. While that is an option, waiting to buy a new home likely means competition and concessions on the buyer side. Meanwhile, we have great homes on the market now with motivated sellers and less competition. Perhaps you can negotiate concessions on inspection, or maybe that low interest loan is assumable and can be transfered to the buyer. As REALTORS®, our gift is the ability to guide our clients with knowledge and savviness. End of the year is a busy time as I encourage buyers to look when no one else is. We find great homes and they pay less than if they had waited.” Nick DiPasquale, DMAR Market Trends Committee Member, and Denver REALTOR®.
*Remarks from Pages 15-16 of the December 2023 Market Trends Report from DMAR
Beautiful Home in Castle Rock Finds Perfect Buyer

Beautiful Home in Castle Rock Finds Perfect Buyer
I got the call that they were relocating to Denver from Indiana in a month, coming in for a long weekend to buy a house. I knew it was much more than finding a house, we needed to find them their home. “Power shopping” in 90 degree heat, we toured ten properties. With their wonderful parents and a great son in tow, these buyers were champs! At day’s end we went for tacos at North County and discussed the top contenders over delicious margaritas. The next day, loaded up with snacks and water, we set out to see another ten. End of the day, our last showing was in Castle Rock. And it was PERFECT! Our offer was accepted and yesterday our new Colorado residents (and my new friends) moved into their gorgeous home. Congratulations, Nick, Katie, and Jake!

 

The numbers are in and it’s been a wild ride! The year started with an insane first quarter, with buyers offering more than $100k over asking price, waiving inspections, covering appraisal gaps. And then, interest rates went up, showings dropped off, prices came down, and the market got… quiet.

It is common for the Denver real estate market to expect a seasonal slow down after July 4th, but this year’s cooling happened early. With the rise in inflation, the Feds pushed hard on rates and buyers pulled back. Many were exhausted by the Q1 rush, some felt the effects of the stock market, while others feared the increased interest rates. When rates rise 1 point, that’s a 10% reduction in buying power.  A reduction in the loan amount often moves a buyer into a lower, more competitive, price point. Home prices have adjusted to these changes, leveling off a bit and shifting toward more balance, between home buyers and sellers.

“Every indicator points to the market shifting closer to a buyer’s market. The month-end active listing increased 21.53 percent last month, pending and closed deals decreased and days in the MLS increased by 30 percent. We are still a long way from what many experts would consider a buyer’s market.” -Andrew Abrams, DMAR Trends Committee Chair

With the number of residential homes on the rise, buyers have more options, but sellers see themselves with more competition than they did earlier in the year. The average close price saw a minor dip from the prior month but year over year, there was a 11.04% increase. As for days on market, there was both an increase from last month and from the same time in 2021.

With all the changes in the economy, we are not surprised to see movement in the real estate market too. However, don’t let the numbers keep you from your end goal. Whether that’s buying, selling, or investing one thing I know is that its your life that moves you, not the market. NOW is always the right time if it fits your personal situation.

Looking for more explanation on all of this? Comment, call/text/email and let’s have a conversation. Or if you’re shy like me, check out the Market Report for Q2 . If you want to see where we are today, click on the Denver Metro Association of Realtors Market Trends Report for August.

 

 

It’s March and home prices are rising annually, outpacing inflation. Real estate data group, CoreLogic recently released their January 2017 Home Price Index (HPI), showing prices increased 0.7 percent month-over-month and 6.9 percent year-over-year.“A combination of factors is driving momentum ahead of the curve,

says Dr. Frank Nothaft, chief economist of CoreLogic.

“With lean for-sale inventories and low rental vacancy rates, many markets have seen housing prices outpace inflation. Over the 12 months through January of this year, the CoreLogic Home Price Index recorded a 6.9 percent rise in home prices nationally and the CoreLogic Single-Family Rental Index was up 2.7 percent—both rising faster than inflation.”

Accounting for limited available inventory, CoreLogic’s HPI Forecast expects home prices to rise 0.1 percent month-over-month from January to February, and 4.8 percent year-over-year from January 2017 to January 2018.

“Home prices continue to climb across the nation, and the spring home-buying season is shaping up to be one of the strongest in recent memory. A potent mix of progressive economic recovery, demographics, tight housing stocks and continued low mortgage rates are expected to support this robust market outlook for the foreseeable future. We expect the CoreLogic [HPI] to rise 4.8 percent nationally over the next 12 months, buoyed by lack of supply and continued high demand”

adds Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic.

And according to Realtor.com, spring home-buying season got an early jump this year, indicating record-high home prices and record-low days on market for February. This is especially true for Denver where you’ll see in the chart that showings for February are up over this time last year. Time to move!

 

 

“I honestly believe that without Tracy, we would not be living in our dream house today. Tracy’s knowledge, intuition, skill and personality put her at the top. She really cares about people and fairness to both sides. She negotiated a win-win situation where both parties came away happy.” -Jeanne Ellis

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Tracy is the best!! She sold our 1 bedroom condo in a Historic Register building in Capitol Hill in Denver. Unlike many realtors who are just looking to make a sale and move on to the next, Tracy really cares about her clients and their financial situation. She actually convinced us not to sell the first time we contacted her because the market was in the pits and our condo was worth less than 1/2 what we paid for it. By following her advice and waiting a few years, we ended up making money on the condo when it sold for OVER the asking price. She was incredibly patient with all of our concerns and questions, and knows more about the market than anyone. Also worth mentioning that we were out of state for the whole process, so she handled EVERYTHING; renovations, cleaning, staging, pricing, showing, you name it! She made this very stressful situation much less so, and we can’t imagine using anyone else.” – Keith Orell

“Tracy Shaffer is the best! She is the best! We have bought and sold 4-5 times with her. She is professional, kind, super sharp, and on top of every detail. I trust her professionally and personally. No regrets ever. If you have a property to sell or are looking for one to buy, call her. She is an unbelievabye hard worker, absolutely professional, ethical, and fun to boot. We love her!”  -Kelly Perez