As our PorchLight agents have seen, home sellers continue to hold all the cards in the city of Boulder, so if you're waiting to sell until the "busy" season, don't. You're in a good position to get started right away. Looking at the numbers, active listings in December 2020 stood at 157 detached single-family homes (DSF), down 49.5% year-over-year, leading to a drop in days to contract and a 20.7% jump in the average sales price. In fact, December prices jumped over $150k just from November. Again, when demand outweighs supply, the numbers go up.
However, with current historically low interest rates, buying rather than renting still makes more financial sense right now. With less interest tacked on to your monthly mortgage payment, you can get more house for your budget. Let's say your budget is $4,216 in monthly principal and interest payments. At an interest rate of 3%, that monthly budget will get you into a home for $1M. However, if your interest rate jumps to 6%, you can only buy a $703,500 home for the same payment. That's why interest rates = buying power!
In Boulder County, the trends are quite similar. In 2020 as a whole, a total of 4,228 DSF listings were sold, which is up 9.2% over 2019. Meanwhile, active listings were down 62.3% year-over-year, driving prices up by 15.7%. Low inventory will likely continue in 2021, so if you’re aiming to buy, the best idea is to get pre-approved (not just pre-qualified) and start looking now. If you have your financial ducks in a row and are keeping an eye on what's going on the market each day, you'll be ready to pounce when the right listing comes along. Don't forget to contact a PorchLight agent who can set you up with a home search targeting your specific wish list items. You'll receive an email, even text alerts as soon as a listing hits the market.
That's a lot of numbers and info to unpack, so feel free to get in touch with a PorchLight agent to talk more about how you can successfully buy or sell right now!
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