The Denver housing market put the squeeze on buyers in September, as it logged record lows in inventory and prompted at least one expert to speak in eye-catching terms.
“This translates into the toughest market to buy a house in Denver metro’s history,” Andrew Abrams, chair of the Denver Metro Association of Realtors (DMAR) Market Trends Committee, told the Denver Business Journal.
According to the DMAR’s monthly report, three records were broken in September:
- The number of detached single-family homes for sale dropped to a record low of 3,041. The previous low was 5,693.
- “There were more closed and pending transactions for both attached and detached properties than ever before,” notes the DMAR report.
- Homes spent a median of six days in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). The previous record was nine.
Active listings for all residential homes (both condos and detached single family homes) stood at 5,301 at the end of September. The marks a 42.91% drop over last year at the same time and a nearly 11,000 decrease in the historical average number of active listings for September, 16,294. The previous September low was logged in 2017, at 7,516.
“You may be asking, ‘What do these records translate to in the real world?” Abrams wrote in the DMAR report. “Basically, buyers and REALTORS have to set up showings immediately to ensure a time for viewing houses that have recently hit the market. It also means the average buyer purchasing a property is going to buy it for more than it was listed for and they will have a short amount of time to decide if they want to write an offer if it is priced appropriately.”
Abrams cites two factors for the low inventory: Potential sellers are hesitating to put their homes on the market, he noted, due to the more complicated logistics of moving during a pandemic. Also, “the majority of sellers have enough equity to not feel pressured about what will happen with the market if there is a shift in the near future.”
Meanwhile, buyers have increased incentive to shop for homes. Many are looking for more space as they spend an increasing amount of time at home due to Covid-19. And record low interest rates are adding to their motivation.