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A Record-Breaking Housing Market in the Centennial State

Denver’s housing market closed 2020 with new records highs for average closing prices and closing volume and new record lows for active listings and inventory.

According to data [1] released by the Denver Metro Association of Realtors (DMAR), the average closed price for this market during 2020 was the new record peak of $525,185, a 7.95 year-over-year increase and the ninth consecutive year of price gains. The Denver market also closed last year with 62,985 closed transactions, a 6.9% year-over-year upswing—the previous record was 2017’s level of 59,253 closings. This also marked the sixth straight year that the Denver area recorded more than 56,000 closed transactions.

At the other end of the record-breaking spectrum, Denver also saw a historic low of 2,541 active listings, which marked the first time that the market had fewer than 3,000 active listings during a year. Another historic low was made with the 0.51 months of inventory (MOI), which shattered the previous 1.17 MOI record set in 2017.

“The increased influence of the pandemic should not be underestimated, as active listings are a product of two factors: new listings entering the market and listings exiting the market,” said Steve Danyliw, Past Chairman of the DMAR Market Trends Committee and owner of the real estate brokerage Danilyw & Associates. “New listings dropped in 2020 by 1.8% from 2019 and closed listings increased 7% from 2019. Some of the key factors influencing low inventories are record-low mortgage rates fueling buyer demand, combined with insufficient new housing creation.”

Danilyw added the “pandemic did the most damage during the second quarter” in his market, when there were 4,444 fewer closings compared to the same period one year earlier—but the third quarter saw a rebound with 4,042 more closed properties versus the same period in 2019.

“The bottom line: buyers who were unable or unwilling to buy during the lockdowns just waited a few months,” he said.