Different people, in good faith, can look at the same fact and interpret it differently. But that’s where an interesting conversation begins.
Eric SchlosserThis quote is appropriate for this article as we review the housing market for the first quarter. On the one hand, a person can claim there is very little difference in the market from last year, and in fact, the number of homes sold in La Plata County is even with last year. We could simply say it is a flat market, and not very interesting.
The numbers support this view with 186 homes sold in the first quarter of 2016 versus 186 sold in last year’s first quarter. The same is true for Durango in-town, showing a difference of two homes sold in comparison.
But wait, there are markets within markets, and was everything the same as last year? The quick answer is no. First, there is an increase in median price to $353,450 for the county versus $342,500 last year, which is a modest 3.4 percent gain in value.
Secondly, and more importantly the mix has really changed. When we look at the Durango in-town market, the number of condominiums and townhomes sold is significantly higher in the first quarter this year, while the number of single family homes has decreased. Condominium sales were up from 13 sold last year to 20 sold this year, a 54 percent increase. Townhome sales were up from 14 sold last year to 21 sold this year, a 50 percent increase. In both of these examples, the median price was up significantly. Unfortunately, the number of single-family homes sold was down 15 sales from 37 sold last year to 22 sold this year. Most real estate agents will claim the availability of homes restricted the number of home sales, and this is certainly partially true. Other factors may be affordability as single-family homes carry higher price points.
More telling is the current inventory of single-family homes, with the lowest price of $380,000 and the median price of $749,900. Today, there are only eight homes available under $500,000 in Durango and between the ridges, but not including the Three Springs area.
The Durango rural market is similar to last year with 70 homes sold this year and 67 homes sold last year. The number of single family homes sold was within two of last year, but the big change in the median price was up to $438,000 versus $399,900 last year, a 9.5 percent increase.
Bayfield in-town residential sales were the same as last year, and the median price was up 6.5 percent to $285,000. The number of sales in Forest Lakes was down a couple of homes this year, but the median price is up to $291,000 from $275,000 last year, a 5.8 percent increase.
The price range of all homes sold in the county (first quarter) is still dominated by homes under $500,000, with 82.3 percent of all sales. The price range from $500,000 to $1,000,000 is 15.6 percent of sales, and over $1 million is 2.1 percent of all sales.
Our current inventory (excluding homes under contract) does not match this breakdown, with 52.1 percent of homes under $500,000, 32.9 percent between $500,000 and $1 million and 15 percent over $1 million. The key point is we need homes for buyers to choose from, and if most of the buyers are in a price range of under $500,000, we need additional inventory. This is one of the reasons the median price is increasing, because we are not meeting the demand in this key price range.
Don Ricedorff is a Realtor at The Wells Group in Durango, and a past president of the Durango Area Association of Realtors. He can be reached at don@durangorealproperty.com.
