The higher-end Denver real estate market, encompassing properties often requiring jumbo loans, was one of the hardest hit segments during the recent slowdown.  This is an unusual occurrence that wasn’t present in past slowdowns, since homes selling for around $500,000 traditionally attract fairly stable buyers with permanent jobs.  As a result of the crazy loan market and cheap interest rates, combined with a souring job market, the upscale Washington Park real estate market finally experienced one of its first major slowdowns in history. 

According to the Denver Metrolist, two years ago, there were 144 detached single-family Washington Park homes listed above $500,000. I used $500,000 as a sales price, since jumbo loans start at $417,000. As a result, you start seeing homes with jumbo loans when the sale price goes above $500,000. A year later, 127 Washington Park homes were sold under the same parameters.  This was a bit of a slowdown but nothing like what the market experienced during the first three months of this year.  From January to March, only 15 Washington Park homes sold that were listed above $500,000. This number puts Washington Park’s sales activity at around 60 homes for the year – under half of what sold all of last year.  This lack of activity was a big scare to Washington Park homeowners.  Listing agents were seeing only 0-1 showings per month, and it appeared that Washington Park real estate was experiencing a slowdown in demand, which typically leads to a decrease in home value.

There is good news for Washington Park homeowners! Washington Park sales activity has picked up in the past three months with 43 Washington Park homes selling.  This is a nearly 300% increase from the first three months, putting the market back on pace to close nearly the same number of homes as it did a year ago.  With buying activity and jobs finally starting to come back to Denver and the surrounding areas, there is hope that the first three months of 2011 will put the Washington Park Real Estate on track for one of its best years ever.  Please see my post, “Colorado Cities Named Among Money’s “Best Small Cities”  to read more about the Denver area’s job market outlook.

For more information regarding Washington Park homes, or regarding any of the other Denver neighborhoods, please don’t hesitate to contact Drew Armbruster at 720-842-1182.

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