DMAR Real Estate Market Trends Report | OCT. '17
REALTORS® report showings of homes on the market are slowing and home sellers are beginning to reduce prices.
Active listings in the residential market (single-family homes and condos) was at 7,586 total units in September, while the number of sold listings decreased by 21.58 percent compared to the previous month. The decrease in sold listings is greater than the 10-year seasonal average decrease of 10.1 percent.
Notably, even with the number of homes sold dropping, the market is still ahead of last year as year-to-date closings are up 3.22 percent over 2016.
“We’re starting to see a slowdown in overall housing market traffic even in the lower price ranges,” said Steve Danyliw, Chairman of the DMAR Market Trends Committee and Denver REALTOR®. “Inventory continues to be in short supply and nothing that we can see will change that in the immediate future.”
According to a sampling of DMAR REALTOR® members, showings are slowing down and home sellers are reducing home prices in order to get more traction. The report shares insights that escalating buyer demands during inspection are causing more homes to fall out of contract and come back onto the market. Furthermore, “back on market” and “price reductions” seem to be more common than “new listings” in MLS searches as of late.
In September, the average home price decreased by 0.52 percent to $429,597 and the median home price decreased by 1.06 percent to $375,000 compared to the month prior. Year over year, the average and median home prices in the residential market are still up 8.84 and 8.07 percent respectively.
“Even as things cool we remain robust as low inventory continues to move home prices higher,” adds Danyliw. “The question on my mind is how much more room is left for prices to push higher?”
Our monthly report also includes statistics and analyses in its supplemental “Luxury Market Report” (properties sold for $1 million or greater), “Signature Market Report” (properties sold between $750,000 and $999,999) and “Premier Market Report” (properties sold between $500,000 and $749,999). In September, 112 homes sold and closed for $1 million or greater, down 22.22 percent month over month and up 9.8 percent year over year. The closed dollar volume in September for all luxury residential was $174,880,832, down 22.09 percent month over month and up 9.8 percent year over year.
The highest priced single-family home sold in September was $4,300,000 representing five bedrooms, seven bathrooms and 7,947 above ground square feet in Cherry Hills. The listing and selling agents for this transaction are DMAR members. The highest priced condo sold was $2,769,000 representing four bedrooms, seven bathrooms and 3,710 above ground square feet in Denver. The listing agent for this transaction is a DMAR member.
“September activity in the single-family Luxury Market fell like the autumn temperatures resulting in a buildup of inventory,” stated Jill Schafer, DMAR Market Trends Committee member and metro Denver REALTOR®.
There was a more than 25 percent drop in sales in the number of homes priced over $1 million in September compared to August. The month ended with 10.22 months of inventory.
“For context, months of inventory less than five is considered a seller’s market and over six is a buyer’s market,” Schafer adds. “Things have been cooling down for a few months after June registered a two-year low with 5.6 months of inventory. Keep that in mind when taking the Luxury Market’s temperature because when you look at the year-to-date statistics, you see that this is still an amazing year for luxury home sales.”
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