All corners of Colorado’s housing market enjoyed a robust second quarter, from the Denver area to the mountains, to agricultural rural pockets, according to a report released today by the Colorado Association of Realtors.
“Overall the picture for housing in Colorado is quite good with increased numbers of sales, higher median sales prices, and less time on the market – regardless of which part of the market you consider,” according to the report.
“Lender-mediated sales as a percentage of overall sales declined in every area indicating further strengthening and stabilizing of the housing market,” the report continued.
Good Times
The CAR expects the good times to continue
“With higher prices comes some decline in affordability and with small inventories in most regions, competition for the best properties will likely continue,” according to the report.
Sales of single-family homes, condominiums and townhouses increased 16 percent in Colorado in the second quarter compared with the second quarter of 2012, according to the Quarterly Market Statistical Report released today by the CAR.
Here are some of its findings:
- In total, there were 28,068 closings in the second quarter, 16 percent more than in the second quarter of 2012.
- Year-to-date, sales rose almost 17 percent, compared with the first six months of 2012.
- New listings also increased about 16 percent to 42,348 with growth in new townhouse-condo listings outpacing single-family homes.
- The median sales prices statewide rose just over 8 percent to $260,000 for single-family homes and $170,000 for townhouses and condominiums compared to the first quarter 2012.
- Days on the market continued a downward trend, down 25 percent for single-family homes and down 29 percent for townhomes and condos.
- There were 33,256 active listings statewide, at the end of the second quarter, representing a 4.6-month inventory for single-family and a 4.1-month inventory for townhouses-condos.
“These figures are very encouraging, continuing trends we reported last quarter and in some instances showing even stronger improvement in our regional markets,” said CAR spokesperson, Karen Levine.
“Beginning this quarter we are able to report results separately for single-family and townhouses-condos. Drilling down even further on the statistics and market intricacies will help consumers better understand market trends and assist our Realtor members in serving both sellers and buyers successfully,” Levine continued. ‘In both categories we are seeing more sales, increased median pricing and fewer days on the market.”
Meanwhile, sales of lender-mediated properties (properties owned by banks and other mortgage lenders) declined strongly as a percent of all sales, adding to the sense of recovery. All regions of the state saw declines with the metro and mountain regions experiencing the largest drops, quarter to quarter.
The current second quarter 2013 reports represent approximately 91 percent of all MLS-listed residential real estate transactions in the state. The metrics do not include “For Sale by Owner” transactions or all new construction.
http://www.jres.com/articles/email/Colorado-Foreclosures-Decline-Again/17067