Highlights:
- RealtyTrac releases national report.
- Colorado, Denver lag nation.
- Growing inventory bodes well for spring season.
The housing sales markets in Colorado and the Denver area lagged the overall U.S. market in March, according to a national report released today.
The report by RealtyTrac showed all home sales in the U.S. rose by 8 percent in last month from March 2013 and were basically flat from February, rising only 0.4 percent on a month-to-month basis.
“Closed transactions in the Denver metro area were down by about 8 percent year over year in March 2014,” Chad Ochsner, owner/broker of RE/MAX Alliance told RealtyTrac.
“I believe this is a direct reflection of the historically low inventory levels we experienced in the Front Range during the first months of 2014,” Ochsner continued.
“Thankfully, we are seeing a big increase in the number of homes coming onto the market, which means spring is going to be very, very busy.”
Last week, Metrolist reported a 21 percent increase in the number of homes placed on the market in the Denver area from March 2013.
In Colorado, sales rose by 4 percent in March from March 2013, while the median sales price rose 7 percent to $217,880, according to RealtyTrac.
The national median sales price, meanwhile, rose 10 percent to $164,500, RealtyTrac reported.
“The housing market showed signs of coming out of hibernation in March after a sluggish fall and winter,” said Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. “Median home prices increased on a monthly basis following six consecutive months where they were flat or declining, and increased on an annual basis by the biggest percentage since hitting bottom in March 2012.
“Sales volume also increased slightly from March to February following four consecutive monthly decreases, but both annual sales volume and median prices are still below their recent peaks in October and August respectively,” Blomquist continued.
“Meanwhile, the distressed share of sales increased from the fourth quarter to the first quarter nationwide and in 38 states, which — along with many non-distressed homeowners regaining enough equity to list their homes for sale — is helping to ease low inventory conditions in some markets.”
Have a story idea or real estate tip? Contact John Rebchook at JRCHOOK@gmail.com. InsideRealEstateNews.com is sponsored by Universal Lending, Land Title Guarantee and 8z Real Estate. To read more articles by John Rebchook, subscribe to the Colorado Real Estate Journal.
