The median single-family housing price in the seven-county Denver area dropped for a fourth straight month, now at $620,000, according to the August Market Trends Housing report from the Colorado Association of Realtors (CAR).

That median sales price is still 10% higher than a year ago, but well off from spring of 2020 when appreciation on that type of home was running closer to 20%.

The report shows condo and townhome prices in the area were coming in last month at a median price of $405,000, still up 8% over the previous year.

Those prices are giving buyers some breathing room, but leaving them with a great deal of uncertainty, according to area real estate agents.

“Some buyers basically gave up in the spring, and now is a good time for them to jump back in,” said Deviree Vallejo, top-selling agent with LIV Sotheby’s International in Denver. “They won’t likely end up in a multiple bidder situation, plus prices have cooled off.”

But Vallejo notes that both buyers and sellers are coming into fall feeling uncertain. Sellers, who are typically locked into 30-year loans at 3% or 4%, aren’t anxious to make a move to a comparably priced house that will have a 6% mortgage, she said.

And buyers have their own jitters about the economy.

“You see a good sign, and then there’s a thousand-point drop in the stock market,” Vallejo said, noting that agents are struggling to get their feet planted in the shifting scene. “It’s an abrupt change from wild, intense market to ‘What are we going to do to get showings?’”

Rising interest rates, coupled with a typical fall slowdown, were factors helping slow the market, analysts at CAR said. They noted that although houses are hanging on the market longer, around two months for single-family homes statewide, that’s still decidedly in seller’s market territory.

CAR’s Housing Affordability Index, a measure of how affordable a region’s housing is, is currently running at a score of 58, meaning that 58 out of 100 buyers could afford to buy a median-priced house last month. That’s an improvement over the top of the market in April, when only 55 of 100 buyers could purchase.

That index never reaches 100, notes Matt Leprino, who compiles stats for CAR.

Meanwhile, agents around the state were reporting increases in inventory of homes for sale, up 40% over the month in Aurora, Centennial, Adams County and Arapahoe County, with one zip code in southeast Aurora up 128%.

Agents in the resort market of Steamboat Springs were reporting their sellers are now receiving from 97% to 99% of asking price, down from last year when multiple offers were driving some sales to as high as 102% of asking price. In mountain markets of Summit, Park and Lake Counties, agents reported skyrocketing inventory, with sellers getting 97% of list price.

CAR’s Monthly Market Statistical Reports are based on data from Colorado Multiple Listing Services. Metrics don’t include for-sale-by-owner transactions or all new home construction. CAR represents 29,000 realtors statewide.

The median single-family housing price in the seven-county Denver area dropped for a fourth straight month, now at $620,000, according to the August Market Trends Housing report from the Colorado Association of Realtors.

That median sales price is still 10% higher than a year ago, but well off from spring of 2020 when appreciation on that type of home was running closer to 20%.

The report shows condo and townhome prices in the area were coming in last month at a median price of $405,000, still up 8% over the previous year.

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Those prices are giving buyers some breathing room, but leaving them with a great deal of uncertainty, according to area real estate agents.

“Some buyers basically gave up in the spring, and now is a good time for them to jump back in,” said Deviree Vallejo, top-selling agent with LIV Sotheby’s International in Denver. “They won’t likely end up in a multiple bidder situation, plus prices have cooled off.”

But Vallejo notes that both buyers and sellers are coming into fall feeling uncertain. Sellers, who are typically locked into 30-year loans at 3% or 4%, aren’t anxious to make a move to a comparably priced house that will have a 6% mortgage, she said.

And buyers have their own jitters about the economy.

“You see a good sign, and then there’s a thousand-point drop in the stock market,” Vallejo said, noting that agents are struggling to get their feet planted in the shifting scene. “It’s an abrupt change from wild, intense market to ‘What are we going to do to get showings?’”

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Rising interest rates, coupled with a typical fall slowdown, were factors helping slow the market, analysts at CAR said. They noted that although houses are hanging on the market longer, around two months for single-family homes statewide, that’s still decidedly in seller’s market territory.

CAR’s Housing Affordability Index, a measure of how affordable a region’s housing is, is currently running at a score of 58, meaning that 58 out of 100 buyers could afford to buy a median-priced house last month. That’s an improvement over the top of the market in April, when only 55 of 100 buyers could purchase.

That index never reaches 100, notes Matt Leprino, who compiles stats for CAR.

Meanwhile, agents around the state were reporting increases in inventory of homes for sale, up 40% over the month in Aurora, Centennial, Adams County and Arapahoe County, with one zip code in southeast Aurora up 128%.

Denver home sales prices continue slide in August

Agents in the resort market of Steamboat Springs were reporting their sellers are now receiving from 97% to 99% of asking price, down from last year when multiple offers were driving some sales to as high as 102% of asking price. In mountain markets of Summit, Park and Lake Counties, agents reported skyrocketing inventory, with sellers getting 97% of list price.

CAR’s Monthly Market Statistical Reports are based on data from Colorado Multiple Listing Services. Metrics don’t include for-sale-by-owner transactions or all new home construction. CAR represents 29,000 realtors statewide.