Housing Inventory Down in Denver - Real Estate and Technology News for Agents, Broker

Housing Inventory Down in Denver

In June 2011, according to Realtor.com, Denver was the fastest selling housing market in America.

John Rebchook from Inside Real Estate News reported that the median age of inventory in June for Denver was 30 days, about a third of the national median of 93 days. This was a 23 percent drop from May which was the largest drop of any market in the US.

This might account for the lack of inventory, writes Aldo Svaldi of the Denver Post. "A lack of inventory - or, more precisely, "compelling" inventory, as some agents call it - has complicated home buying ." writes Svaldi.

In August 2011, inventory was down 23 percent, year over year, with 18, 164 homes and condos listed for sale in metro Denver.

"Many sellers are on strike," says Svaldi, "in that they don't have to sell and won't until prices improve. Other sellers might prefer to sell but owe more than their homes are worth and can't afford to bring money to the closing table."

Foreclosures are down in Denver, making it difficult to find fix and flips for investors. Colorado's foreclosure rate is at 1.8 percent compared to 4.11 percent nationally.

Even though inventory is tighter, housing prices have not started to rise. "The median home price in metro Denver fell to $235,000 in August from $239,000 a year earlier." reports Svaldi.

Denver are home sales were up 11.6% in July 2011 with a total of 4,250 homes placed under contract, reported Rebchook. With the volitility of the stock market today, it's possible that people will decide that the housing market is a less risky investment with low mortgage rates and low prices.

Read the full story at DenverPost.com.

photo credit: penguincakes