Homebuyers in metro Denver are getting some relief from the relentless climb in housing prices.
The median price for a single-family home fell 3.1 percent in September compared to August, according to a report from the Denver Metro Association of Realtors. That marks a decline of 1.5 percent from the same time last year.
Still, that slight dip is cold comfort for many working families and first-time homebuyers struggling to get a toehold in the housing market.
At $630,000, the median price is about 24 percent higher than it was four years ago, the data shows. Shoppers are more likely to find a relative bargain on an attached home like a duplex. The median price for those kinds of properties is $403,500.
Denver’s housing market has been slowing for a while as high mortgage rates make homes less affordable. Prices haven’t declined much. But now more homes are hitting the market and inventory is piling up.
“Homes are simply spending more time on the market and experiencing more price reductions before finding a buyer,” said Libby Levinson-Katz, chair of the DMAR Market Trends Committee, in the report. “This is a direct result of buyer demand waning due to higher interest rates, and to some degree anticipation for the upcoming presidential election. Many buyers who I am working with are simply waiting for truly the perfect fit, before submitting an offer.”
The number of homes available for sale in and around Denver has been rising steadily for the past year, according to the report.
There’s now more than three months of inventory sitting on the market, which means it will take more than three months, on average, to sell a home. During the height of the pandemic-fueled housing frenzy of a few years ago, all the homes on the market would be gone in a matter of weeks.
Mortgage rates are finally starting to fall now that U.S. regulators are lowering interest rates. So far, that hasn’t drawn Denver buyers off the sidelines.
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