With Colorado’s economy continuing to show sustained economic momentum, the price of homes continues to rise and the average days on the market continues to fall. As it stands, the Colorado economy is outperforming the most of the rest of the nation. We have been asking why.
There are many contributing factors. Four-fifths of Colorado’s economy comes from service industries. Interestingly, private health care, hotels, ski resorts, engineering firms, legal services and software lead the way. Finance, insurance and real estate come in a close second. The economy is rounded out by Manufacturing and Mining. Suffice it to say that Colorado is growing at a rapid rate and we are projecting the need for more new housing starts.
There is another economic driver that could be contributing to economic upturn – marijuana sales. Distribution and grow facilities have snapped up some commercial real estate and they are also contributing to the tax base. Much of the commercial real estate that sat around for months or even years is now full and making money. It seems some are reticent to talk about the effect sales will have on our economy specifically and real estate in general.
Let’s face it, marijuana has upsides and downsides and the debates are raging on. We are not going to weigh on the propriety of the marijuana industry. Instead, we are reflecting on the state of the economy and the current real estate inventory and pricing that may have been affected by this recent change. We want our clients to be educated on the impact of various factors that affect a solid real estate decision.
Here are some facts:
Metro Denver’s economic growth outperformed the national average by one percentage point in 2013 and is expected to grow even faster in 2014;
The region’s population growth continues to remain strong;
The region continues to report higher personal income, stronger retail sales; increased real estate construction (both residential and commercial);
With a 25-mile radius of downtown Evergreen, at the end of May, 2014, there were 1688 homes on the market, with the median price over $300,000. This is the highest median prices we have seen in a long time; and,
The average days on the market in the same 25-mile radius was 7 days during the same period.
The bottom line is that we anticipate seeing real estate prices rise for the foreseeable future and marijuana sales driving our economy upward may have something to do with it.
If you are thinking that the time may be good for you to sell your home, call one of our highly trained real estate professionals to assist in gathering appropriate information. We are here to help you.
Jon P. Terry, JD, CMAS, Realtor®
Alaris Properties, LLC
