August 2013 Real Estate Market Update

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Hello. I know many of you like quick summaries via charts so I have broken this month’s report into two separate categories.

First a quick summary of the market via charts. You will see a comparison of current available inventory, year to date sales volume and time on the market.

Second a line by line report of more in depth analysis.

In general available inventory is down and prices have rebounded. Here are the statistics for several municipalities in the Metro area.

These are comparisons of 2013 versus 2012 as of the end of July for the following areas.

 

 

 

 

Now for the in detail analysis with some important comments at the end

Castle Rock

Inventory is down by 24%

Sales are up 36.6%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 95 days to 66 days

The median sales price is up from $272,350 to $310,000

Denver

Inventory is down by 6.5%

Sales are up 16%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 77 days to 48 days

The median sales price is up from $233,000 to $263,950

Elizabeth

Inventory is down by 1%

Sales are up 28%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 95 days to 81 days

The median sales price is up from $285,000 to $337,900

Greenwood Village

Inventory is down by 6.5%

Sales are up 16%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 77 days to 48 days

The median sales price is up from $233,000 to $263,950

Highlands Ranch

Inventory is down by 22%

Sales are up 23%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 65 days to 32 days

The median sales price is up from $302,750 to $325,000

Lakewood

Inventory is down by 17%

Sales are up 21%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 81 days to 46 days

The median sales price is up from $211,334 to $234,000

Littleton

Inventory is down by 19%

Sales are up 18%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 81 days to 48 days

The median sales price is up from $246,000 to $262,500

Lone Tree

Inventory is down by 34%

Sales are up 83%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 112 days to just 58 days

The median sales price has dropped from $439,000 to $406,300

Parker

Inventory is down by 18%

Sales are up 40%

The time it takes to get a contract has gone from 83 days to 46 days

The median sales price is up from $284,000 to $313,000

 

 

A couple of interesting notes:

On average, the sold price to list price has only risen about 1% in all areas. Some of the underlying causes for this might be:

Prices rose so dramatically sellers were pricing high and willing to concede a small amount.

After the long difficult market, some sellers are wisely placing a lot of value on the quality of the offer and are willing to concede the highest offer for the one most likely to actually close. I have seen an increase in the number of houses coming back on the market after going under contract. As you can imagine that creates a lot of problems for a seller and can often lead to them accepting a lower offer later because of desperation. It is critical to analyze offers thoroughly before picking one. I am happy to share my methods for helping you do that any time. I should share that none of the contracts I have seen fall through have been mine.

Buyers still have the mindset of making an offer below asking price if they know there is not another offer on the table; although their offers are much closer to asking price than when the market was struggling.

In some areas median sales price has actually dropped. Areas like Lone Tree have seen an influx of homes priced below the median sales price for the last few years so there is more activity at the lower end which brings the median down. I don’t think it is a sign of weakness in that market as the sales activity is up 83% from last year.

Inventory has actually improved statistically in the last 60 or so days. However the quality of a fair portion of the standing inventory is average to below average and that is not moving quickly. In the majority of cases, a buyer’s first choice will always be for a “move-in ready” home so those will move quickly and the others will either need price corrections or improvements to sell.

A final note on a concerning trend I am seeing; poor marketing and promotion of many homes on the market. It is tempting to have a mentality of “it’s a seller’s market so why worry about improving the house or fancy marketing?” There is considerable value in both preparing a house to show its best and in high quality marketing. You will get more interest and likely more competition (meaning more money in your pocket); better quality offers (meaning an increase in the likelihood it closes); increased appraisals (meaning a greater chance it appraises at the contract price or better. Aren’t these three areas of major importance to you?

While the market has improved, the value of following sound practices has not diminished.  Good preparation, market knowledge, quality marketing, strong negotiation skills and detailed follow up from offer to closing are just as important and produce better results just as they always have.