Boulder Real Estate - Market Update

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by Osman Parvez
Much to the dismay of buyers, Boulder has become a seller's market. 

Want to know what's happening in the market?   Here are two opportunities to educate yourself.

This morning, I sent out the Silver Fern Report (data pack) to my clients.   It covers market conditions in Boulder, Broomfield, Erie, Superior, Lafayette, Louisville, and Longmont.   You can get a copy HERE.  We'll also be discussing market conditions and strategies in some detail at Thursday's Boulder Real Estate Meetup. 

It's nice when everyone's done their homework, so to bring you up to speed, here's a quick look at real estate conditions in Boulder.

INVENTORY  

Real Estate Inventory in Boulder

The chart above shows inventory in the City of Boulder for traditional single family, detached houses.   The shaded area is the average inventory from 2004-2010 on a monthly basis.    The blue line was last year (2011) and the red line is this year (2012). 


 As you can see, inventory is seasonal and typically peaks June.     As of this writing, there are 403 houses on the market - compared with 401 for May.     Odds are, this is the peak selection for the year.   Last year (blue line), began fairly typically but beginning in June dipped below the long term average.    Since the start of the year, it's remained well below average, and trended lower (currently +20% below average). 


SALES VOLUME 

Homes sold in the City of Boulder

This chart shows sold houses in the City of Boulder.   The shaded area is again, the monthly average from 2004 to 2010.    The blue line is 2011 and the red line is 2012.  

As you can see , last year had a few monthly spikes which brought volume close to the long term average.    The rest of the year, sales were substantially lower.  This year, volume has been tracking very closely to the average.      In other words, sales activity has reverted to the mean. 

  ABSORPTION

Inventory Absorption in Boulder

What happens when inventory is low and sales activity is relatively normal?     Absorption is high.    The result is that bidding wars for desirable, well priced property are breaking out commonly.    Remember, real estate is sticky on the downside of the cycle and bubbly on the upside.    Prices are quick to rise and slow to drop.

And they're starting to rise, particularly for homes priced below $600,000. 

---Note: Our goal is to provide exceptional service to our clients. The ideas and strategies in this blog post are the opinion of the writer at the time of publication. Silver Fern Homes recommends careful and complete due diligence before buying or selling real estate or other investments. Consult with your professional advisers before making financial decisions. This article is not intended as legal, tax, or investment advice. Silver Fern Homes will not be held liable for investment choices derived from this article.