Denver Real Estate Market Review | July 2023

This summary reviews activity from July 2023

It turns out that not even rain and hail storms could put a damper on Denver's real estate scene this June. Even though things were a bit slower compared to last year, both buyers and sellers managed to work their way through the changes in the market. The intense bidding wars took a backseat, and the average price buyers paid in relation to the listed price was about 100.23% throughout the entire market.

Although some lucky houses still got snatched up within a weekend with multiple offers fighting for them, many others sat around for a couple of weeks, maybe with a price cut or two, before finally finding someone interested. It seems like the days of throwing a house on the market and immediately having a bunch of people competing to buy it are over for most properties.

The number of houses up for grabs at the end of the month increased steadily throughout the year, except for a tiny dip in February, and it reached a peak of 6,070 houses. That's like a 16.11 percent increase from May, and it's the most the market has seen since 2020. A chunk of this increase comes from deals falling apart after inspections. Sellers are starting to be more open to working things out with buyers who want to bail if there are issues with inspections or appraisals.

Buyers are being more cautious. They're looking to negotiate and make sure they're getting a good deal, especially since interest rates are hanging around seven percent and building costs are skyrocketing. Basically, people want to be sure they're making a smart move. But the key thing here is that there are plenty of potential buyers who are just waiting for interest rates to go down a bit before diving in.

With more homes available and things slowing down a bit, it seems like the market is getting back to a more normal state. That's great for buyers because they have more control, but maybe not as thrilling for sellers who need to be more patient. Right now, sellers are taking cues from the buyers, and everyone's taking a bit more time to make decisions.

Luxury home buyers have the opportunity for a good deal. People buying homes over a million aren't exactly paying the full price, but they're coming pretty close. The average price they're actually paying compared to the listing price is about 99.78 percent. But here's the catch – the market's a bit slower because interest rates are up, which means homes are hanging around on the market a bit longer. And even though you'd think high prices would scare people off, the average price for homes listed above a million actually went up by $80,000 compared to last year.

So, to sum it up, the market feels more "balanced" than it has in the past - but by no means is it a buyers market. Buyers have the opportunity for more negotiating power than they have in the past, but by no means is it balanced.

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