With much of Colorado shut down in March due to COVID-19, you would expect the real estate market to have slowed to a halt as well. However, that is not quite the case based on the data from March.
| DENVER METRO | March 2018 | March 2019 | Feb 2020 | March 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales Price | $401K | $410K | $425K | $440K |
| Sales Price/ Original Price | 100% | 99.3% | 99.3% | 100% |
| # Sales | 4,340 | 4,215 | 3,561 | 3,912 |
| # Active Listings | 5,000 | 6,665 | 5,104 | 5,466 |
| Months of Inventory | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Days on Market | 5 | 10 | 11 | 6 |
Sales Price and Number of Sales both increased in March from February. Keep in mind that sold homes data is a bit of a delayed metric, because a vast majority of those properties went under contract in February before any Stay at Home Orders were issued. Number of Active Listings, on the other hand, is a leading indicator, and Denver actually saw an increase in listings from February to March. Over 100 homes are still going Under Contract in Denver every day, and we actually saw a decrease in Days on Market. Based on these numbers, it appears the hot Denver housing market was almost unchanged by COVID-19, but let’s take a look at one more metric not as often looked at – Number of Showings.
ShowingTime is the primary showing scheduling system used by real estate agents in the Denver area, and they have been keeping track of the number of showings scheduled over the past few weeks. The graph below shows the data for all of Colorado, and you can see the significant decrease in showings around the time Governor Polis declared a State of Emergency in Colorado. The number of showings dropped by 60% but the market has continued to move at about the same pace SO WHAT GIVES?
I believe only the most motivated are out buying and selling homes right now. Buyers know exactly what they are looking for and are ready to move when they see it (i.e. they do not need to go to a bunch of showings to decide). Sellers know exactly what their bottom line is. It is my hunch that the current active buyers do have a healthy down payment. Many of the buyers that were actively looking with a 0-5% down payment have paused their search to see how the virus impacts the economy, their jobs, finances, etc.
So what does it all mean?
The Denver market is still going strong, and it remains a Sellers market with strong buyer demand even with all the uncertainty. Real estate decisions are a long term decisions, and people still want to be in Denver for the long term. Showings may change over time with more virtual 3D tours, but that is probably a good thing. It isn’t totally clear what economic recovery will look like once Stay at Home orders are lifted, but many buyers will still be on solid financial standing to buy and many homeowners may want to sell or right size to cash in on some of the equity built over the past decade. We will keep you updated with the most current data and trends!
