Front Range Real Estate Market Update, April 20, 2023

Today, the National Association of REALTORS released a report that says existing home sales decreased by 2.4% in March nationwide and were down 22% from a year before.

NAR’s Chief economist, Lawrence Yun says, “Home sales are trying to recover and are highly sensitive to changes in mortgage rates. Yet, at the same time, multiple offers on starter homes are quite common, implying more supply is needed to fully satisfy demand. It’s a unique housing market.”

Mortgage News Daily reports that the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage is currently 6.75% nationwide, the highest rates have been since early March. So if you’re a seller, beware that demand may be softer than hoped because of high interest rates.

Colorado bucked the national trend, though. In the metro area, 32.29% more homes sold in March than during February, down about 21% from the year before. 

Nationwide, inventory was up 1% in March compared to February. Here, we had more than 19% more homes for sale in March than in February, giving buyers much more to choose from. Inventory typically peaks in our area during August and September.

Nationally, median prices were down year-over-year by about 1%. Here, the median price decreased by about 6%, most likely because of our increased inventory. 

Buyers who closed on purchases last month likely locked their interest rates in February, when rates were around 6.3%. When we see May’s numbers, we’ll understand the impact the higher rates we see today have had on the market.