The weather and the real estate market have something in common: Both are hot right now.
How hot is it?
For the state of Colorado, the median price is up 12.1 percent, the number of active listings is down 28.4 percent and sold listings are up 7.6 percent. These statewide numbers are driven by the strength of the Front Range population.
All of these statistics point to a strong real estate market that will help sellers but make it tougher for buyers as the affordability index has dropped.
The Colorado Association of Realtors has delivered the market reports for the state of Colorado, and these incredible reports allow us to compare our local market to the rest of the state. These are timely reports with year-to-date figures through May.
The real-estate market for Colorado is driven by the Metro Region (Denver and its surrounding areas). The median price is up 16.5 percent to $309,000, and the inventory level is a measly 1.5 months. The median price for single-family homes is up 15.3 percent to $340,000, while inventory is at 1.7 months supply.
This is a strong seller’s market, and in a meeting held in Durango last Wednesday, the Colorado Association of Realtors staff talked about the issues with multiple offers on properties in the metro areas.
How does La Plata County compare? The median price for single-family homes is up 7.2 percent but at a higher overall price, $369,900. Sold listings of single-family homes are down slightly, by 2.2 percent, and the inventory supply is 8.9 months. You can see this is significantly different than the metro region, and the adequate supply of homes throughout the county is keeping the median price moderate in comparison.
The Durango in-town category shows the highest median price for single-family homes, with a median price of $424,950, up 6.2 percent, while the median price for single-family homes in Durango rural is $389,000, up 1.3 percent. The inventory of homes in town is 4.5 months, while the supply in Durango rural is 8.9 months.
Bayfield in-town homes showed better affordability with a median price of $267,500, up 9.2 percent, and Bayfield rural home prices were up 14.1 percent to $269,000 (that primarily reflects sales in the Forest Lakes subdivision). Townhomes in Durango also offered affordability with a median price of $282,975, up 13.6 percent.
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.
