Denver Home Loan & Real Estate Spotlight
It’s no secret that the Denver metroplex is one of the most desirable places to live in the entire nation. So, then it should be no shock to Denver homeowners and Colorado home buyers that the greatness of the Mile High City made news. On a recent podcast episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, Bill Simmons and Ryen Russillo discussed who so many are moving to Denver. Bill Simmons and Ryen Russillo are media personalities on The Ringer, a website dedicated to sports and pop culture. Both achieved fame as prominent personalities for ESPN. While known for discussing sports, their conversation about the Denver Nuggets turned to real estate. Simmons and Russillo agreed that Denver is a great place to live and that people are flocking there from all over. Are these sports experts right about Denver real estate? What does this mean for homeowners, home buyers, and home loans?
Denver Real Estate for Home Buyers and Homeowners
While known for their sports takes, Russillo and Simmons are spot on about the Denver real estate market. Colorado homeowners have known forever how amazing it is to live in Denver and any other city in the state, like Colorado Springs or Boulder. What is unique about right now is that it seems like the rest of the country has finally caught up to what we’ve always known. During the pandemic, Colorado was one of the top destinations for people moving states. What is it about Colorado that attracted so many home buyers who were willing to take out a mortgage to live in the Rocky Mountains?
The pandemic changed home buyer needs and Colorado houses offered exactly what many were looking for. Home buyers were looking for houses with more outdoor space, more rooms to accommodate work-from-home and homeschooling, and access to nature. Combine this with historically low mortgage rates, Colorado automatically seems like a great place for home buyers. Especially for home buyers that are moving from congested metropolitan areas with high home prices, like New York, Los Angeles or the Bay. Soon, the Rocky Mountain’s best kept secret was out and home prices started to skyrocket throughout the state. So, while home prices might still be below markets known for being expensive, like Boston, they have still risen considerably.
Future of Home Loans and Home Buying in Denver
Denver sems to be like many real estate markets where home buyer demand is stalling out. Record-low mortgage rates are gone and home buyers are not as excited about today’s mortgage rates. Colorado is also seeing a downturn in the number of people moving from out of state. On top of all this, the outrageous demand and low inventory that was commonplace over the last two years has caused all-time high housing prices. It appears as if we have officially gone past peak-demand.
If home buyer demand is dropping in Denver and throughout Colorado, is it possible that we will start to see home prices tumble? Should home buyers be holding out for a discount? Should homeowners fear that their equity will disappear? The answer to all of these questions is that it is incredibly unlikely. Regardless of what happens to home buyer demand, inventory is so limited that home prices will likely remain where they are at, if not go higher. Simply put, there are way too many home buyers for the number of houses for sale. Even if the number of buyers drops, there is still a huge shortage of homes for sale. Prices are what prices are. This is great news for homeowners who can feel confident in their home values. For home buyers, this should generate some urgency to get a house as soon as possible.
Final Thoughts
Demand has slowed recently in Denver, where we are seeing home sales decline and home loan applications decline. However, this is not an indication that people are souring on the Denver real estate market, or anywhere in Colorado for that matter. This is just what is happening in real estate markets across the country. Prices have risen to the point that many first-time home buyers have been priced out. At the same time, mortgage rates have risen, which is discouraging the rush to apply for a home loan. The big takeaway is that the low inventory of houses and desirability of Colorado means home prices will not drop anytime soon. So, if you want to buy a house in Denver or anywhere in Colorado, act now and contact us. Delaying your decision can risk mortgage rates or home prices going even higher, costing you even more.
