The Current State of Denver Real Estate - March 14, 2024
Where to begin? In February of 2024, the Greater Metro Denver real estate market saw a slight decrease in properties going under contract, year over year. Most of the decrease was due to a 6.2% decrease in attached homes (condos and townhomes). Single family properties actually ticked up by 2.1% from a year ago, which is a good sign. The number of new listings on the market also increased substantially in the metro area for both single family and attached homes. More inventory, should relate to more closings for the month of March. However, the median sales price is barely keeping up with today’s inflation. While single family units are holding their own, it is a little concerning to see prices staying flat for attached homes, year over year. Normally price decreases start with the lower end of the market and work their way up. Again, there are so many unknowns, due to interest rates, home affordability and the economy in general, it is simply too hard to predict what will happen in the current real estate market. Don’t we all wish we had a crystal ball?
With March typically being the snowiest month of the year, as well as the Easter holiday (Spring break) coming early this year, I would expect that March will be a little slower than is typical. However, if rates stay where they are and with inventory being up, hopefully, the number of sales will begin to increase as we head into the month of April. Right now, it still appears to be a buyer’s market in most instances, but only slightly, as well maintained properties, priced right, are still going under contract quickly, sometimes with multiple offers.
The good news is that interest rates have ticked down a little and are back hovering around 6.5% for a 30 year Conventional loan. FHA loans are below that at 6.25%. Of course the actual rate all depends on your credit scores and the percentage of your down payment. Unfortunately though, the economy is still struggling. The jobs numbers continue to be adjusted down every month from the month before and if you delve into them, you will see most of the new jobs created are part-time jobs. The fact that inflation continues to remain stubbornly high, is also contributing to higher rates. With the Federal government continuing to borrow money in order to pay the interest on the debt and the debt increasing by one trillion dollars every 100 days, the chances of the Federal Reserve reducing rates further is unlikely. They can only rob Peter to pay Paul for so long, before things begin to implode. That’s why hard assets, such as real estate, is the best way to go and if you are on the fence, now is the time to jump!
Feel free to reach out to any of us on The Tucker Team, for any questions or help if you, or anyone you know, is in the market to buy or sell. We can help.