COLORADO SPRINGS — If you’re trying to sell and it’s been hard, or your house has been sitting on the market for a few weeks, you might be thinking things have shifted to what looks like a buyer’s market in comparison to a year ago. But that’s not the case.
I spoke with local realtors in Colorado Springs about what they are seeing.
The consensus among the realtors I spoke with is simple. They tell me the market is correcting itself to one that is more equitable for both buyers and sellers.
It’s actually becoming a more level and balanced market now. This gives buyers more options on homes. In Colorado, we’re seeing more contracts where there are seller concessions but nothing crazy and that reflects this balance. One thing is for sure. The market has changed a lot this past year.
There was limited inventory last year, with 554 homes for sale in Colorado Springs. This is what caused some houses to be sold overnight. Now, there are more homes on the market, with over 1900 homes listed as of last month.
Homes were on the market for only 16 days last year because of low inventory. Now, they’re on the market for over 40 days.
I spoke with Troy MacDonald, a realtor at Keller Williams Partners, about what he is currently seeing. He tells me interest rates are also impacting buyers. Interest rates have gone up, shying away some buyers whose budget is directly impacted by the rise in rates.
However, Troy tells me interest rates are still at a reasonable price if you’re looking to invest in a long-term property.
Interest rates were just historically low before. Two years ago, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was around 2.65%. A year ago, the average rate for the same fixed mortgage was around 3.22%. Today, the average rate is around 7.07%. This is according to research from FreddieMac.
But today’s percentage isn’t all that bad if you look at the history of interest rates in America. Especially since homes here are keeping their value in Colorado Springs. That’s why Troy says it’s always still a good time to invest
Data from the Pikes Peak Association of Realtors MLSshows the average sales price of homes sold in the month of December 2021 was $474,107. The average sales price of homes sold in the month of December 2022 was $472,402.
“Things go up. Things go down. You can watch some graphs and see that over time, real estate goes up and goes down. That’s why I said earlier that it’s actually a good time anytime. Because as you plan to hold it, the trend tends to up go continually,” said MacDonald.
And if you’re looking to sell your home but it’s been on the market for a few weeks, don’t panic.
“So, we were in such a hot market last year that everything was going so fast that right now kind of feels like a crawl, but really, this is kind of an average market, so sellers don’t have to be afraid to jump in and put their house on the market,” said MacDonald.
There are incentives you can get to buy or sell. The best thing to do is get an educated realtor to help guide you.
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