The surprises keep coming

Denver real estate has officially moved into eye-popping territory. Each month it seems, I see something that only happens rarely or that I have never seen.

Earlier this month, I wrote an offer for a client on an Arvada home, listed for $420,000. The home had some structural issues and we included a $50,000 appraisal gap guarantee, which is very high for a home at this price point. The winning offer had waived the appraisal gap contingency!

In East Wash Park, where I do a lot of business, the price-per-square-foot of neighborhood homes has skyrocketed from $500 per square foot at the beginning of the year to over $600 per square foot in early May (which translates into over $1,000 per above-ground square foot), a 20 percent jump in less than half a year!

Prices reflect this. April’s median Denver metro home price of $526,000, represents a 19.5 percent jump from a year ago, according to Denver Metro Association of Realtors stats. That’s huge.

Source: Denver Metro Association of Realtors

The all-time price highs tell just part of the story. Homes are flying off the market, faster than I’ve ever seen them, and nearly as fast as they possibly could. Median days on market for Denver metro homes in the first four months of 2021 was just four days, down from nine days over the same period in 2020 and 12 days in 2019.

The aggressive buyers are not just showing up at lower-priced properties. A recent $2 million listing of a fellow milehimodern agent saw five offers with one offer that presented earnest money going hard upon offer acceptance. Other offers waived inspection, appraisal and title.

What this means?

Now’s the time to sell

Now is perhaps the best time for homeowners considering whether to sell to jump into the market. With interest rates predicted to hover in the 4 percent range for the foreseeable future.

Also, the Biden Administration is considering revising capital gains regulations around home sales, which could kick in in 2022 and force sellers to pay much more of their equity gains in taxes than they would now.

Want some expert advice on selling? Reach out to me at kharris@milehimodern.com

I would love to answer any questions you have about the market. Email.