More Buyers Than Sellers

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The real estate market today, quite simply, has more buyers than sellers.

Let’s be clear, this is not the heated market of 2021 and 2022.

However, the market is undersupplied in most price ranges and most locations.

The National Association of Realtors just reported that the number of new listings hitting the market each week has been lower than the same time the previous year for 40 weeks in a row.

There are roughly 20% fewer new listings hitting the market each week versus last year.

The result of low inventory is homes selling quickly in many cases.

Altos Research reports that of the 73,000 listings that have come on the market so far this week Nationally, 25% of those are already under contract- selling within days, if not hours.

Bottom line, the market needs more listings.

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Dropping Inventory

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Breaking News – months of inventory has dropped significantly signifying an uptick in real estate activity along the Front Range.‘Months of inventory’ is an important statistic and something we commonly talk about in this blog. It simply measures how long it would take to sell all of the homes currently for sale at the current pace of sales.As a reminder, a market is ‘balanced’ when there is four to six months of inventory on the market.During the fast-paced market of June 2020 to June 2022, this statistic dropped to less than one month.During the market cooling of last Winter, it increased to over two months.Now, it is back to nearly one month of supply signaling a clear seller’s market.Of course, all markets are hyper-local and this number can vary based on specific price point and specific location.However, looking at ‘months of inventory’ from a big picture view, offers a good understanding of overall market conditions.Here is what months of inventory is for each Front Range market:Larimer County = 1.3 MonthsWeld County = 1.2 Months Metro Denver = 1.1 Months

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Dropping Inventory

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Breaking News – months of inventory has dropped significantly signifying an uptick in real estate activity along the Front Range.‘Months of inventory’ is an important statistic and something we commonly talk about in this blog. It simply measures how long it would take to sell all of the homes currently for sale at the current pace of sales.As a reminder, a market is ‘balanced’ when there is four to six months of inventory on the market.During the fast-paced market of June 2020 to June 2022, this statistic dropped to less than one month.During the market cooling of last Winter, it increased to over two months.Now, it is back to nearly one month of supply signaling a clear seller’s market.Of course, all markets are hyper-local and this number can vary based on specific price point and specific location.However, looking at ‘months of inventory’ from a big picture view, offers a good understanding of overall market conditions.Here is what months of inventory is for each Front Range market:Larimer County = 1.3 MonthsWeld County = 1.2 Months Metro Denver = 1.1 Months

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Picking up Steam

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In a market that seems abnormal to a lot of people we notice a very normal trend right now.  As we head into Spring, activity is picking up.

This happens pretty much every Spring and it is happening again.

When we measure the number of properties under contract, which are set to close in the next 30 to 45 days, we see that it is significantly higher than just one month ago.

Bottom line, many more properties went under contract in March than in February.  Specifically:

Larimer County is up 27% month over month.

Weld County is up 16%.

Metro Denver is up 18%.

This increase is noteworthy especially considering interest rates dropped only slightly during the month.

We expect this trend of increased sales activity to continue, as it normally does, through the Spring and into the early Summer.

The post Picking up Steam appeared first on Fort Collins Real Estate | Fort Collins Homes for Sale & Property Search.

Picking up Steam

/in , , , , , /by

In a market that seems abnormal to a lot of people we notice a very normal trend right now.  As we head into Spring, activity is picking up.

This happens pretty much every Spring and it is happening again.

When we measure the number of properties under contract, which are set to close in the next 30 to 45 days, we see that it is significantly higher than just one month ago.

Bottom line, many more properties went under contract in March than in February.  Specifically:

Larimer County is up 27% month over month.

Weld County is up 16%.

Metro Denver is up 18%.

This increase is noteworthy especially considering interest rates dropped only slightly during the month.

We expect this trend of increased sales activity to continue, as it normally does, through the Spring and into the early Summer.

The post Picking up Steam appeared first on Fort Collins Real Estate | Fort Collins Homes for Sale & Property Search.

No Middle Class

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“The middle class is going away” is an often-used adage when talking about society. It is also a good way to describe today’s real estate market.  When it comes to properties for sale, the middle class has gone away.There is a class of listings which are priced to the market, in great condition, with world-class marketing.Then, there are those that are overpriced, not in good condition, with sub-par marketing.Properties in the first class are selling quickly, sometimes with multiple offers and sometimes even over list price.Properties in the second class are sitting on the market.Sellers, who want a successful result, must be in the first class.Buyers, who want a bargain or who want to ‘wheel and deal,’ can typically only find those opportunities in the second class.Here’s the thing.  Rising interest rates have caused buyers to be more picky.  Yet, low inventory has caused competition for the best properties.Both sellers and buyers need to know there is no middle class when it comes to listings.

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March Madness

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When things get crazy on Wall Street, it’s often good for real estate.

Uncertainty in the stock market attracts investors to the stability offered by Treasury Bonds.

Higher demand for bonds means lower interest rates which is obviously good for real estate buyers.

“Turbulence in the financial markets is putting significant downward pressure on rates” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.

After peaking at just over 7% at the end of October, rates have been trending down.

The current rate on a 30-year loan is 6.6%.  A year ago it was 4.16%.

The post March Madness appeared first on Fort Collins Real Estate | Fort Collins Homes for Sale & Property Search.

March Madness

/in , , , , , /by

When things get crazy on Wall Street, it’s often good for real estate.

Uncertainty in the stock market attracts investors to the stability offered by Treasury Bonds.

Higher demand for bonds means lower interest rates which is obviously good for real estate buyers.

“Turbulence in the financial markets is putting significant downward pressure on rates” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.

After peaking at just over 7% at the end of October, rates have been trending down.

The current rate on a 30-year loan is 6.6%.  A year ago it was 4.16%.

The post March Madness appeared first on Fort Collins Real Estate | Fort Collins Homes for Sale & Property Search.

Equity Cushion

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You may remember the term “Home ATM” from the mid 2000’s. This term stemmed from the abundance of homeowners who pulled significant amounts of equity from their homes in the form of Home Equity Loans and Lines of Credit. Home values dropping in 2008, 2009 and 2010 caused many homeowners to be ‘underwater’ meaning that, all at once, their home was worth less than they owed.

Today, there are two big differences compared to the Home ATM years.

First, homeowners today have a lot of equity and very few homeowners are underwater. Of all the properties in the U.S. with mortgages, only 2.1% have negative equity. At the end of 2009, 24% of properties were underwater.

Second, homeowners are not pulling cash out of their homes like they were in the mid 2000’s. Net Equity Extraction is only 1.6% of disposable income compared to 8% during the housing bubble years.

The post Equity Cushion appeared first on Fort Collins Real Estate | Fort Collins Homes for Sale & Property Search.

Equity Cushion

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You may remember the term “Home ATM” from the mid 2000’s. This term stemmed from the abundance of homeowners who pulled significant amounts of equity from their homes in the form of Home Equity Loans and Lines of Credit. Home values dropping in 2008, 2009 and 2010 caused many homeowners to be ‘underwater’ meaning that, all at once, their home was worth less than they owed.

Today, there are two big differences compared to the Home ATM years.

First, homeowners today have a lot of equity and very few homeowners are underwater. Of all the properties in the U.S. with mortgages, only 2.1% have negative equity. At the end of 2009, 24% of properties were underwater.

Second, homeowners are not pulling cash out of their homes like they were in the mid 2000’s. Net Equity Extraction is only 1.6% of disposable income compared to 8% during the housing bubble years.

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