Denver Real Estate Update!

Overall, we're extremely pleased with what we've experienced in the past 12 months in 2019 and remain bullish going into 2020. (I'm already seeing activity similar to the beginning of 2018 where homes were flying off the shelves.) 

We expect the economy to continue to improve and our metro Denver housing market to stay strong but, critically, not overheat in the foreseeable future. I just sat in on an economic update here in Denver where two economists offered their input about a few key trends. Overall, the consensus was the same - consumer confidence remains high, the west is winning, and the Denver metro continues to be an attractive place for businesses and people.

(*Be on the lookout for a future event I'm hosting focusing on industry/economic trends for the Denver metro area and Colorado. Details coming soon )

Here are two visuals for a quick update on our Denver real estate market:

This one offers some historical perspective:

New listings increased and prices slowed down! That's exactly what we needed to see to have continued health in our real estate market. I'm going to shift gears to notes for home buyers and sellers in our Denver area market, but let me know if I can answer any questions on the data front.

Home Sellers

You’ve heard it before but it bears repeating: the most important thing you can do to prepare your home for sale is to get rid of clutter and make it look show-ready. Don't be fooled by the market conditions. Buyers are still discerning and will go all in on only the best presented homes. One of the major contributors to a cluttered look is having too much furniture. When professional stagers descend on a home being prepped for market, they often whisk away as much as half of the owner’s furnishings to make the house looks much bigger. You don’t have to whittle down that drastically, but take a hard look at what you have and ask yourself what you can live without.

Other jobs, such as repainting rooms, more than pay for themselves in an increased sales price and reduced time on the market. One of the leading home staging firms found that houses that have been staged spend about a month less on the market than homes that haven’t been staged. This is the best return on investment you can make when selling a home. It's all about that first impression to make top dollar and maximize your proft.

Home Buyers

The single most important number for a homebuyer is their credit FICO score. For the good or the bad of it your FICO plays a major role in your ability to finance your home purchase. Therefore, it’s critical you understand what it is and what you can do to improve it. In a nutshell, your credit score is a snapshot taken by the three leading credit bureaus, TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian, to help lenders determine what sort of credit risk you are. The higher the number, the lower the risk, and the better the terms you’ll have for your loan.

Your FICO is a number between 300 and 850 and is calculated by a complex algorithm assessing your past credit history. Most home lenders will consider a score over 700 to be excellent while scores below 600 are considered poor. The better the score the more credit will be extended, at better terms, with a lower interest rate. The best credit terms are extended to consumers with scores above 740. Therefore, it’s critical to understand what your FICO is and what you can do to improve your score. I always recommend connecting with my preferred lender so you can evaluate your credit score and determine if there's a way to improve it. We can’t think of a better investment in your future than to spend a little time working on your FICO score. Here are a few tips we give our clients.

1. Don’t max out your cards; even running high balances can severely impact your FICO.
2. Continue paying your bills on time.
3. Don’t apply for new credit or cancel an old card because length of credit helps.
4. Pay down high balances.
5. Dispute and resolve any inaccurate items in your credit report.

If you'd like to chat more about your real estate goals here in the Denver metro area and Front Range, reach out to me today! I'd love to be a part of your journey and ensure you are educated, ready, and confident going forward.

Drew Morris, Realtor

303-929-7844

Moving Forward Together