October core Denver neighborhood market report
This report analyzes the real estate activity in a few of my core central Denver neighborhoods, where I do a bunch of my business, and where I experience market changes first hand, daily.
As I covered in my metro market post this month, the Denver real estate market is blazing. Metro wide, inventory is up, which is giving buyers a bit more options and relief in bidding wars. Central Denver neighborhoods, however, remain just as in-demand.
Stand-out price appreciation
Home prices have appreciated in every area of the Denver metro market, and at all price points, somewhat against assumptions.
During a recent negotiation, another agent questioned the 2021 appreciation in East Wash Park vs. the average home price appreciation for Denver Metro.
The Denver Association of Realtors notes that the average sales price of single-family Denver metro homes rose 15.2 percent from September 2020 to September 2021. Of course, all of Denver Metro includes homes that are in all price ranges.
In this scenario, the broker on the other side of the transaction was making a case that the Denver Metro appreciation is higher than our core Denver Neighborhood appreciation, with the thought that homes in a lower price range appreciate at a faster rate than homes in a higher price range, which does happen more frequently in many markets.
Based on what I’ve seen happen in the last year in our core neighborhoods, I felt that although the core Denver Neighborhoods (Wash Park, Bonnie Brae, Cory Merrill, Cherry Creek and Congress Park) all have average home values over $1 million, they are still appreciating at a similar rate, so I did some quick research.
Turns out, homes in these higher priced neighborhoods are appreciating at a similar rate as the larger metro market! A few are listed below (average home price appreciation September 2020 to September 2021):
- East Wash Park: 14.4 percent
- Cory-Merrill: $952,759 to $1,053,545 = 10.6 percent
- Congress Park: $946,377 to $1,128,929 = 19.3 percent WOW!!!!
October Denver neighborhood market report
Because so much of my business centers on this area, I wanted to dive in to provide readers a better understanding of what’s happening in this extremely popular, unique aspect of the Denver real estate market.
Interested in learning more about these great Denver neighborhoods? Reach out to me at kharris@milehimodern.com
This report covers East Washington Park, West Washington Park, Cory-Merrill (where my family and me live! :)), Bonnie Brae and Congress Park. (This report leaves out Cherry Creek for now).
East Washington Park
East Wash Park, perhaps the most in-demand of Denver’s central neighborhoods, saw listings drop 40.0 percent and 34.7 percent month-over-month and year-over-year, respectively. While the closed median price dropped from a year ago and month ago, this can be attributed to a variety in the homes sold; the median price per square foot is up 12.4 percent in September from September 2020.
| Stat | September | % Change (M/M) | % Change (Y/Y) |
| New Listings | 9 | -40.0% | -35.7% |
| Closed Sales | 14 | -30.0% | -12.5% |
| Closed Median Price | $1,282,500 | -2.2% | -11.1% |
| Sale / List (Median) | 102% | 2.0% | 2.0% |
| Median Price Per Square Foot | $506 | -5.4% | 12.4% |
West Washington Park
In West Wash Park, where lots tend to be a bit smaller, but demand still high, saw closed median prices jump by 11.3 percent in September from a year ago. However, that represents a 7.6 drop in price per square foot that neighborhood properties fetched.
| Stat | September | % Change (M/M) | % Change (Y/Y) |
| New Listings | 18 | 63.6% | 100.0% |
| Closed Sales | 8 | -52.9% | 14.3% |
| Closed Median Price | $875,000 | 9.9% | 11.3% |
| Sale / List (Median) | 102% | 0.0% | -1.0% |
| Median Price Per Square Foot | $399 | -6.3% | -7.6% |
Cory-Merrill
Cory-Merrill remains in demand. The closed median price dropped a bunch in September, but that’s mainly due to the mix of homes for sale. The median price per square foot, which shows property values irrespective of size, jumped 4.4 percent from a year ago.
| Stat | September | % Change (M/M) | % Change (Y/Y) |
| New Listings | 7 | -12.5% | 16.7% |
| Closed Sales | 9 | -18.2% | -25.0% |
| Closed Median Price | $675,000 | -56.0% | -3.9% |
| Sale / List (Median) | 104% | 3.0% | 6.1% |
| Median Price Per Square Foot | $335 | -16.0% | 4.4% |
Bonnie Brae
Bonnie Brae, the smallest neighborhood in this bunch, only had one sale in September, so these stats are hard to draw conclusions from. However, the 4.8-percent jump in year-over-year price per square foot shows how demand has grown.
| Stat | September | % Change (M/M) | % Change (Y/Y) |
| New Listings | 7 | 133.3% | 600.0% |
| Closed Sales | 1 | -75.0% | -75.0% |
| Closed Median Price | $890,000 | -11.0% | -35.5% |
| Sale / List (Median) | 113% | 9.7% | 15.3% |
| Median Price Per Square Foot | $417 | 20.0% | 4.8% |
Congress Park
Congress Park, the large, wonderful neighborhood just to the north of Cherry Creek, saw median close prices jump 46.6 percent in September from a year ago at $950,000 on 11 transactions. Price per square foot is also up. Check out my recent blog post feature on the neighborhood here.
| Stat | September | % Change (M/M) | % Change (Y/Y) |
| New Listings | 14 | 100.0% | 7.7% |
| Closed Sales | 11 | -35.3% | -54.2% |
| Closed Median Price | $950,000 | 0.3% | 46.6% |
| Sale / List (Median) | 104% | 3.0% | 5.1% |
| Median Price Per Square Foot | $450 | 17.8% | 32.0% |