According to February 2021 housing data from the Colorado Association of Realtors (CAR), the inventory of homes available for purchase dropped to all-time lows across the Denver metro area and state. Couple that with ultra-low interest rates and fierce competition from a high volume of buyers, and you’re left with increased pricing, concessions and above-asking-price offers to levels even the most seasoned real estate pros haven’t seen before.

In many cases, the current environment has pushed potential buyers to submit offers tens of thousands of dollars above asking price and driven median pricing for single-family homes to record highs — $512,000 in the Denver-metro area, up 13.8% over a year prior, and $465,000 statewide, a 13% increase over February 2020.

CAR reported inventory of active single-family listings dipped to a record low of 1,841 properties in the seven-county Denver-metro area for February, down more than 73% from a year ago. Statewide, active listings fell 65% from a year prior to just 4,910 single-family properties. With strong sales and continued demand testing each and every market across Colorado, the months supply of inventory for single-family homes fell another 25% from January to February 2021 and now sits at just 0.4 months in the Denver metro area and 0.6 months statewide. To give a little perspective, a balanced market is considered to have four to seven months of inventory.

With rising prices and limited inventory, affordability concerns are increasing as well. The Housing Affordability Index, a measure of how affordable a region’s housing is to its consumers based on interest rates, median sales price, and median income by county, fell more than 11% from a year prior and sits at near record lows.

Though the market is competitive, if you have your ducks in a row it is possible to go from house hunter to homeowner. Give Metrowest a shout today – we’d love to discuss your options!