Single family home sales in Boulder County trending upwards into summer months.
When you hear people say that there are two sides to every transaction, you may think of the obvious (buyers & sellers). However, we know it is important to consider the two sides of each individual's thought process in that transaction, the emotional and the logical. To help your rational mind focus on what is important, we previously provided a Boulder Market Update looking at single family homes in the City of Boulder itself. We then received several inquiries about data in Boulder County as a whole. So, here is a deeper dive into what is happening in the Boulder County real estate market.
Focusing on Single Family homes, 2020 has brought a dramatic decline, followed by an equally dramatic uptick in the number of new listings coming to market. Sellers have rightfully been reluctant to come to market during the tumultuous times of Covid-19. Their uncertainty alongside restrictions previously placed on real estate happenings (now lifted) have weighed on our industry. Year-to-date we remain down-16.4% in new listings as compared to 2019. However, a market correction has already begun on the supply side, and is likely to continue.
The number of sold properties has continued to suffer through the month of May (-11.5% YTD), indicating that buyers may not be following suit, as sellers make more homes available. Yet, in order to truly understand this relationship it is important to dig deeper into current market activity. To account for the lag time in real estate sales, we can overlay pending/under contract listings to get a better picture of what buyers are doing now. When we do this we see that the trend lines for under contract listings almost mimics that of new listings in Boulder County. Understanding this more accurate depiction of buyer activity, we have confidence in the fact that our market is relatively balanced- both supply and demand is trending upwards. (See below)
As for market values, we have seen much more moderate shifts throughout the year. Prices remain relatively stable, all things considered. The median sale price of single family homes in Boulder County has risen since January by +9.31% while average sale price has fallen -3.01% since the start of the year.
Median Sale Price as of May 2020 = $600,000 (-1.7% vs. 2019)
Median Sale Price as of January 2020 = $548,903 (+2.6% vs. 2019)
Average Sale Price as of May 2020 = $691,782 (-1.9% vs. 2019)
Average Sale Price as of January 2020 = $713,294 (+3.2% vs. 2019)
Another sign that buyer activity is strong heading into the heat of summer, buyers are paying 99.3% of list price for single family homes in Boulder County. This is relatively consistent with 2019 and slightly higher than in January and February, prior to the effects of the pandemic shutdown.
Percent of list price received for single family homes, by month in 2020:
January 98%
February 98.8%
March 99.6%
April 99.8%
May 99.3% (-0.2% vs. 2019)
To stack it up for you...
... the real estate market in Boulder County has seen a bit of turbulence this spring in parallel with the turbulence seen by the U.S. and global economies, caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Among single family homes, New listings and sold properties were significantly down during mid-March to mid-May as activity slowed all around. The market is performing a balanced rebound, in which both buyers and sellers are generating more transactions during the month of May and into June. Sale price has been less affected by the complexities of Coronavirus, remaining slightly down - stable in relation to 2019 prices. We expect these trends to continue as social and economic conditions continue to improve throughout the county.
Stay tuned for more market updates from The Baldwin Bain Group! If you would like to discuss your real estate purchase or sales options now or in the future, please reach out to us anytime (Contact Us). We'd love to hear from you!
*Data listed includes activity from the following cities: Boulder, Broomfield, Louisville, Lafayette, Superior, Lyons, Niwot, Frederick, Firestone, Eire, Mead, Nederland and Jamestown