Colorado Springs market up 11% fourth quarter 2019 from 2018

[Robin Searle]

Our market is trending hotter but we have fewer than 600 resale properties on the market right now!  A recent flip received 25 offers.  Here's a clip from the article in the Gazette:  

Colorado Springs continues to be one of the country’s hottest housing markets, a federal report released this week shows.

Local home prices spiked 11% in the fourth quarter of 2019 when compared with the same period a year earlier, an increase that ranked No. 2 among the nation’s 100 largest metro areas, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Only Boise City, Idaho, with a 12.7% gain in home prices, had a larger increase on a year-over-year basis, the agency’s report showed. Colorado Springs’ strong local economy and population growth, combined with low mortgage rates, have fueled the demand for housing and driven up prices, local real estate agents have said.

Of other Colorado metro areas in the report, Denver-Aurora-Lakewood saw a fourth-quarter increase of 5.7% compared with the same quarter in 2018. Across Colorado, prices were up 6.4%, which ranked 11th in the U.S.; nationwide, prices rose 5.1%.


In December, a National Association of Realtors study listed the Springs as one of the 10 housing markets that will outperform the rest of the nation over the next three to five years.


Also that month, a forecast by Realtor.com, the California-based online real estate service, ranked the city as No. 7 among the nation’s Top 10 housing markets for 2020.

That shortage of homes for sale — an issue many cities face — has combined with the furious demand to help propel housing costs. The Pikes Peak Association of Realtors said the median price of Springs-area homes sold last month hit a record high of $336,795.

[Josh Sellers]

I'm very happy to own property there! Here's to more growth!

[Mark Gutierrez]

It has become very difficult to find affordable housing for lots of people! Currently looking for another property but these homes are barely lasting 24 hours on the market

[Robin Searle]

@Mark Gutierrez It's very difficult for first time buyer's. I have two right now with one only being able to go FHA and it's frustrating all around. I did want to mention Oakwood Homes is finally addressing the first time homebuyer market with semi-detached homes in Banning Lewis that start at $252,000. That's the lowest price I've seen for a new build in a long, long time. I just got my son under contract on one after looking at a lot of resales in extremely bad condition.

[James Carlson]

Great post, @Robin Searle

Colorado Springs is nuts. So happy to own a few properties here. I saw a post in another thread about someone looking for a 3/2 SFH under $250k, and thought it wasn't that long ago you could do that. Now? Maybe out east as you said with the Oakwood homes, but there's not a lot. 

[Robin Searle]

@James Carlson I have a first time buyer at that $250000 max  price point and let me tell you the pickings are slim to nonexistent. Anything decent will easily be bid above appraisal so buyers need cash to bring to the table. Very tough for lower price point buyers! Kind of missing the 2010 market when I started in real estate!

[James Carlson]

@Robin Searle

Yes, I've heard "appraisal gap coverage" multiple times this month. I started in the middle of the boom, so I've lived this madness from the beginning. At least up in Denver, the last half of 2019 slowed a bit as inventory doubled from like 4,500 homes on market to more than 9,000. (I didn't see that much of a change in Colorado Springs.) But that pendulum swung back in Denver and with crazy low interest rates attracting more buyers, it's back to the throw-money-at-it season.

Not to toot our own horn, but it does speak to the necessity of having a strong agent who knows what strings to pull to put their buyer in the best position possible in this competitive market. Quicker close, appraisal gap, no-nitpick clauses around inspection, escalation clauses. They're all tools to at least discuss with buyers. And a good agent is going to be communicating clearly and often with the listing agent to argue for their client's interests.

Okay, no more soap box. 

[Mark Gutierrez]

I was looking at a price range of around 350k and the bidding wars are crazy! My realtor actually recommended Oakwood homes and we checked them out today. They have really great layouts. Never though I would be looking at a new build, but In the is market, I think it is fairly reasonable. Through Oakwood homes, I am looking at about $370k for 2800 square foot,4b/3b and unfinished basement. I figured we could save ourselves the hassle of having to go to bidding wars for a house listed for 350k and having someone come in at 370k

[Robin Searle]

@Mark Gutierrez I think you are being wise. When you can get a new build for the same price as a 1980 home is being bid up to, it just makes sense. Oakwood is a solid builder with a good local reputation. I wrote an offer on a home listed at $350,000 yesterday and we were one of 10 offers!

[Erin Spradlin]

@Robin Searle - we are seeing the same thing. I just had a client put in $25K above asking and waive all inspection items below $3K less than 24 hours after the property posted, and they still didn't get it. (Luckily, they found something else right at $425K a few days later.) As a homeowner here, I'm happy to see how competitive it's gotten, but it does make it rough for buyers in the $350-$450K range. What we saw in Denver before is now showing up in Colorado Springs.