Denver Metro Area, Colorado, and National Real Estate news and updates for homeowners and future homebuyers.



Mortgage rates dipped slightly to a nearly three-year low because of concern about a potential global economic slowdown and some weak home sale news.

According to the latest data released Thursday by Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate average fell to 3.75 percent with an average 0.5 point. (Points are fees paid to a lender equal to 1 percent of the loan amount and are in addition to the interest rate.) It was 3.81 percent a week ago and 4.54 percent a year ago.

The 15-year fixed-rate average declined to 3.18 percent with an average 0.5 point. It was 3.23 percent a week ago and 4.02 percent a year ago. The five-year adjustable rate average dropped to 3.47 percent with an average 0.4 point. It was 3.48 percent a week ago and 3.87 percent a year ago.

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The latest report from the Denver Metro Association of Realtors confirms what we already know:

There is no shortage of luxury condos in the Mile High City.

Denver is building its way out of the housing crisis—at least for those who can afford luxury condos. The latest Denver Metro Association of Realtors report shows there is now 5.6 months of inventory of attached units worth between $750,000 and $1 million, meaning with Denver’s supply and the current rate of purchasing, it would take that long for every luxury condo on the market now to sell. 

This is significant—if you’re wealthy and don’t need a yard—because it means the tables have turned in this subset of Denver housing. At long last, buyers of condos in the urban core have…

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Sales of existing homes fell for a second straight month in April, but the market should rev up soon, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) said on Tuesday.

Home sales dipped 0.4% from March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.19 million . Sales were down 4.4% from a year ago.

Student debt is still holding back many millennial buyers, says Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist. And prices for the entry-level homes that age group targets have risen sharply because of low supplies.

Meanwhile, a big drop in mortgage rates didn’t boost home sales. The average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage dropped to 4.14% in April from 4.27% in March, according to Freddie Mac, the mortgage loan company. The average rate in 2018 was 4.54%.

Yun…

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Denver Westsiders can now get a city-funded boost to build wee homes next to their big homes.

The City Council OK’d half-a-million dollars to help people build ADUs.

The Denver City Council signed off on an agreement Monday that provides $500,000 for westside residents to build guest homes on their property.

Accessory dwelling units, also known as granny flats, are smaller homes built next to bigger ones. Owners can lease them out (or live inside while renting out the main house). ADUs give people a new way to make money and can temper displacement wrought by gentrification, city staffers say. They also encourage multigenerational living.

City planners want to see more accessory dwelling units, but they’re expensive — more than $200,000 on…

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A growing number of Americans who lost their homes to foreclosure or a short sale during the housing crisis are re-emerging in the housing market and buying a home again, USA Today reports. 

“Boomerang buyers,” as they’re nicknamed, are coming back, and some economists contend they are a critical component to driving a big uptick in the housing market over the next few years.

“I think the next phase of the housing recovery will be partly driven by people in the primary age group” of 35 to 64 who have been hesitant to buy again after losing their home during the housing crisis, Kwame Donaldson, an economist with Moody’s Analytics, told USA Today.

Lately, first-time home buyers and millennials have been driving the bulk of sales. First-time home…

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Metro Denver’s apartment market got off to a strong start this year, as tenants absorbed all the units that hit the market and then some, pushing up rents and driving down vacancies.

According to the Denver Post, Developers delivered a robust 3,959 new units in the first quarter and tenants absorbed an “impressive” 5,552 net units, according to the Denver Metro Apartment Vacancy and Rent from the University of Denver and the Apartment Association of Metro Denver.

That strong demand pushed the vacancy rate down to 5.4 percent from 5.8 percent in the fourth quarter. It also pushed the average rent up to $1,480.74 a month, which is $24.65 higher than the average in the fourth quarter and $60.44 higher a month than the average rent a year ago.

“I am…

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Celebrate the opening of the G Line with a party and lots of deals

Olde Town Arvada is hosting a grand opening party Saturday. Many restaurants and retailers are also offering freebies and discounts.
Following years of delays, the G Line will finally open later this week with a lot of fun and fanfare planned.

The G Line, which runs between Denver and Wheat Ridge, is scheduled to open Friday morning after more than two years of delays. To celebrate the milestone, Olde Town Arvada is hosting a party and businesses are offering deals and discounts. 

The G Line Grand Opening Party kicks off at 10 a.m. and runs through 6 p.m. It will feature live music performances throughout Olde Town, kids' activities in Olde…

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It turns out Americans weren’t ready to become a nation of renters. Homeownership is back in.

As reported by The Washington Post, new data indicate that in 2016, in defiance of myriad prognostications, the decade-long decline in the homeownership rate abruptly reversed. Once-rapid growth in renter households stalled, and the long-stagnant number of owner-led households began rising.

The most recent Housing Vacancies and Homeownership survey shows homeownership rates rose from a low of 63 percent in the second quarter of 2016 to 64.6 in the fourth quarter of 2018, adjusted for seasonality. This move reflects changes in the status of millions of households. The homeownership rate has regained all the…

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Concerns of a 2019 downturn in housing are overblown, with housing starts likely to show steady growth in the intermediate term.

A new report from Wells Fargo and L.E.K. Consulting says there is pent-up demand from a new generation of first-time home buyers and a low supply of single-family housing, which should drive long-term residential new construction growth.

As interest rates climbed higher over the course of 2018, declines in housing affordability combined with economic cycle concerns sparked worries for the residential new construction sector. However, as the expected pace of rate hikes has slowed in early 2019, affordability and homebuyer sentiment is improving. These factors coupled with historically low levels of inventory should…

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