Spring bulbs have made their colorful return, and trees across Denver are in full bloom, says the Denver Metro Association of Realtors’ Market Trends Committee.
Optimism in the Denver real estate market is as strong as ever due to resilient buyers who continue to place properties under contract quickly when they find the right home, at the right price.
The most apparent change in the market last month was the rise in inventory. While buyers continue to grapple with financing pressures, they finally have more choice thanks to sellers who are back in the market listing their properties. Active listings climbed 19.51 percent month-over-month and 51.32 percent year-over-year to 6,990 listings. This is a notable year-to-date increase of 51.30 percent from 2023 and a 118.16 percent increase from 2022. New listings increased 21.22 percent month-over-month and 25.42 percent year-over-year to 5,980 listings. Pending sales increased marginally with 4,468 properties, an 8.32 percent increase month-over-month and a 5.53 percent increase year-over-year. The most significant metric was closed sale data with 3,739 properties closed, a mere 1.66 percent increase month-over-month and a 4.79 decline year-over-year. While this data point is a lagging indicator of pending sale activity from March, it showcases that buyers are not absorbing the inventory as quickly as they once were.
The increase in inventory is a very welcome turn of events for buyers who have been dealing with historically low inventory for years. Additionally, it's a nice surprise as many sellers have been hesitant to list their homes in favor of maintaining their low two to five percent interest rates. The increase of active listings to 19.51 percent represents a healthy increase as the historical average increase in listings from March to April is 10.32 percent.
As inventory increased, buyers eagerly purchased new properties as days in the MLS dropped 27.27 percent to eight days. The median price rose 1.27 percent to $602,550 while the average price hit a new record of $727,700.
Detached and attached properties experienced a similar increase of over 19 percent for active listings month-over-month: 19.65 for detached and 19.21 percent for attached. Of particular note, active listings for attached properties jumped 66.62 percent year-over-year. New listings in the detached market segment rose 25.46 month-over-month, while the attached segment rose a mere 11.04 percent. Pending sales for detached homes jumped 11.14 percent month-over-month, whereas the attached market saw a minimal rise of 0.37 percent. Attached property inventory is clearly outpacing the detached market, which presents further opportunities for buyers interested in attached condos and townhomes.
Saying that, detached homes are still considered a seller's market with less than three months of inventory. The months of inventory then jump to 4.32 months of inventory when we look at properties priced at $2 million and over. On the other side of the coin, attached homes priced below $750,000 remain a buyer's market. However, properties priced from $750,000 to $2 million are in more of a balanced market with three to six months of inventory. For attached properties priced at $2+ million the month's of inventory substantially increases to 7.75.
Inventory will continue to climb through May, so pricing conservatively has never been more important. Buyers on the hunt for their next property will likely choose the one priced at fair market value, with very little work needed. This is not the time to push the price or to place a home on the market to see if you can obtain the price you hope to achieve.
Read below for a price range breakdown for properties sold between $750,000 and $999,999 from Market Trends Committee Member and West + Main Homes Agent, Nick DiPasquale.
