The Denver MLS trends data for October 2021 is now out. The average home sale price went down from the previous month, from $618K in September to $612K in October. However, the median home price still went up. Listings are also down from the previous month, from 6100 to 5300. In October of 2020, listings were at 6300. The average rent price has gone up from $1505 last October to $1725. This makes sense because vacancy rates are so low at 3.8%.

The market is cooling off a little bit, but it’s still appreciating and still a seller’s market. There are no price or rent drops on the horizon, so if you’re looking for long-term wealth building, now is a good time to buy. Interest rates will probably start ticking up in the near future, so don’t sit on the sidelines.

October 2021 Denver Market Stats with Ideas and Observations

Number of Listings:

• Still in free fall; down 30% from prior year and -15% from last month
• Ended month at 3376 vs 3971 last month and 4821 last year
• We normally would expect some seasonal decline from prior month but not usually this much
• The big change from last year is due to COVID timing issues and it is not really that relevant to look at

Number of Closed Units:

• Also down from last year
• Down 8% from last month – seasonality would suggest it should decline, but that’s more than usual
• Likely driven by lack of inventory; demand side is still quite strong
• Off 21% from Oct ‘20
• No surprise, this is driven by COVID timing issues last year.

Average price:

• Roughly the same as last month, down 1%.  Great to see it stabilizing (particularly with inventory so low)
• Up 10% from last October year
• As expected, the rate of change (price increase) is slowing down; hopefully, we’ll see that continue

Days on Market:

• 14 days, up a little from last month (13)
• Down a lot from last year (24 DOM)

Pending:

• Looks good; 5790 UC now vs. 5636 last month.  Pretty stable.
• Down, of course, from last year – again, COVID timing.

Showing traffic

• Stronger than the usual historical trend
• Looks like good showing momentum going into winter

Source: The above executive summary is from Lon Welsh of Your Castle Real Estate.

Summary of the Q3 Denver Rent and Vacancy Report:

• Vacancy rate is 3.8%, about the same as last quarter.  It’s been steadily dropping for a few years.
• Average rent $1725, up a lot in the last two quarters.  Great time to be a landlord.  This quarter in 2019: $1505!  Big increase!  +13%
• Discounts and concessions are up somewhat; this is usually a method for new buildings to get full.
• There are a significant number of new buildings that should be delivered in 4Q, so that new supply will likely be a short term assist to the renters; the rents shouldn’t go up as fast.
• In 3Q21, we delivered 2,400 new units.  We filled almost all of them (1,860) – this why the vacancy rate when up slightly.  It likely also explains why the concessions are up some.
• Also, with historical seasonality, vacancy is higher in 4Q and 1Q than it is in the warm months.

Denver Housing Trends October 2021

Showing per Active Listing Trends for Denver

Usually, historical seasonality would lead you to see a small reduction in activity.  Instead, the Denver market saw a small increase.  The market continues to be stronger than you’d historically expect.

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Denver Real Estate MLS Market Stats – October 2021

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