With a near-record low number of homes available in the Denver metro in July, it’s still officially a seller’s market. However, some buyers are seeing a little relief as the closed price-to-list price ratio dropped slightly below 100%.

According to the monthly report from the Denver Metro Association of Realtors, July’s housing market continued to be sluggish, with only 6,299 active listings at month’s end, a 4% increase over June’s 6,071. Historically, the average number of active listings for July is 15,745. The record high of 31,989 listings fell in 2006, while the record low of 4,056 listings hit in 2021.

The median close price in July dropped about 2% from June from $599,500 to $590,000.

In the monthly report, Libby Levinson-Katz, chair of the DMAR market trends committee, said buyers are rate and budget conscious, are more confident offering under the list price and asking for seller concessions to help buy down their interest rate even for new homes hitting the market.

Levinson-Katz said that seller concessions averaged $7,295 or 48% in June, up from 29% last year. Buyers can feel more confident negotiating, especially for homes on the market for a month or more.

“Those sellers likely have dropped the list price and may be more willing to negotiate,” she said.

After multiple years of buyers essentially bowing to sellers’ demands, industry pros agree many buyers are less than thrilled about continuing that trend and are ready to exercise a more discerning eye.

If you’re interested in becoming a homeowner in 2023, there are indeed good values to be found. That is, if you know where to look. Contact one of the experienced pros at Metrowest and let’s see what’s out there!