Boulder Real Estate Analysis for the Last 3 Months
Is it just me or is the market still pretty tight?
My July, August and September were all pretty busy. Listings came and went quickly… Often before the color brochures were even ready!
Buyers had a regular but thin stream of new stuff to peruse, but often left showings a bit disappointed. Despite shiny pictures of homes filled with “natural” light and expansive front yards, Buyers often found real life listings were… a bit different. Homes showed well for the age and condition (most did, anyway) but older is still older and layout, actual natural light and location were often a bit different than expected. Front lawns that were oh so green in listing pictures, turned out to be a bit less green and bit more patchy, not to mention about half the size they appeared to be on the MLS. Yet, with inventory levels as they are and no shortage of qualified buyers to compete with, my clients did feel the pressure to spend large amounts of hard earned money to capture a small piece of earth and a house that still needed improving, in Boulder. The alternative… Renting (and that’s not a bargain either) or moving outside of Boulder – to another city that is experiencing the same Front Range appreciation! I love my job and my clients too. I just feel for them, while simultaneously recognizing they are the lucky ones, who have indeed qualified to buy in Boulder to start with.
I digress. Let’s talk about what is going on in the price range below Boulder median house price. The $500,000 – $750,000 range is where the middle-income folks are shopping.
This Boulder Real Estate Analysis is only from MLS data beginning July 27th, 2015.
AVERAGE PRICE SOLD IN THE LAST 3 MONTHS: $630,000
AVERAGE LIST PRICE OF THE HOMES UNDER CONTRACT TODAY: $635,000
AVERAGE LIST PRICE OF THOSE STILL FOR SALE $670,000
It raises a few questions for sure, and without using this small-ish data set to read the market absolutely, it’s still easy to draw some useful conclusions.
There were 101 homes sold in the City of Boulder in this price range since July 27th. They sold at an average of 100% of list price. With no reason to suspect this will change drastically in the next month, lets assume that those under contract will also sell at close to list price: Average $635,000. There are currently 24 homes under contract and most if not all, will close in the next 6 weeks. Is it safe to predict those not under contract are priced well enough to sell close to asking price too?
Price/Square Foot shows us that the homes still for sale, as well as those currently under contract, are not drastically different from the sold properties. (Price per square foot is not my favorite way to price a house and we need to keep in mind here that individual properties will be priced more or less aggressively depending on location, condition, features etc)
However, if I had looked at this chart and seen all the For Sale properties with significantly higher $/SF I’d be less willing to draw the conclusion that the For Sale homes will (likely) sell for close to asking price, on average, too. But I’d take that bet right now… Right up until Thanksgiving or a huge downswing in the weather.
Conclusion:
- It’s still a great time to sell. It will remain a sellers market for a while longer.
- Buyers still need to act quickly and bring their best offers because they are still competing for Boulder real estate.