LifeStyle Denver | A Tale of Two Markets

A Tale of Two Markets - Denver Real Estate’s Opposite Ends of the Spectrum

May 3rd, 2009 Categories: Market Trends, Real Estate News, Relocation Tips, Selling Strategies

I was a busy Realtor today. Showing houses in the morning, an open house in the afternoon. Typical Sunday.

Morning Glory

It was an interesting dichotomy. My morning clients are an adorable couple with their baby looking for their first home together. They can spend around $160,000 for a single family house. That’s a tough price range in Denver Metro Real Estate. The houses that fit their criteria are either trashed foreclosures or they already have multiple offers. The best house today had three offers pending bank approval when I called to tell the broker we had some interest.

In the lower price range, we’ll need to be ready to move fast when we find that perfect house. Buyers must be pre-approved, should think hard before they ask a seller for concessions, and shouldn’t expect sellers to accept an offer contingent on the sale of another property.

Afternoon Delight

This afternoon, I held my Park Hill listing open. This is a new home built in 2007 and is priced at $1,749,000. The house is absolutely gorgeous, but this price range is struggling in Denver. We’ve marketed the house like crazy, held it open many weeks in a row, even reduced the price a couple of times. Sellers in this price range must understand that the only real weapons we have are price reductions until the house sells or time. Time may take longer than most sellers would like. Thankfully, these sellers are very supportive and patient and they understand the market. Many Realtors I know are receiving tremendous pressure from their clients, and it’s a big burden when you have little control over market dynamics.

I firmly believe that our burgeoning lower end real estate market will soon be trickling up into higher and higher price points. Jumbo mortgage rates are more affordable and comparable with conventional loans. Pent-up demand is seen in the numbers of people going through open houses every weekend - even with the Nuggets in the playoffs this afternoon!

Buyers - Prepare by contacting your lender first. Get a pre-approval, keep on top of new inventory through a real estate broker, and don’t assume you can lowball anymore.

Sellers - Respond to what else is selling in your neighborhood. If similar houses are selling at 10-20% less than yours is listed for, then you are overpriced. Appraisals are tough right now, you need to be able to see what the market is telling you about the value of your house. Give it time, there’s an ass for every saddle - someone will love your house - listen to the wise counsel of your broker and the buyers’ feedback and in time you’ll have your name off that title.

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