Metro Denver buyers favored homes over condos, townhomes last year

As 2024 came to a close, Metro Denver saw a significant increase in the number of homes and condos listed for sale compared to the previous year. Despite a similar number of closings, these listings took longer to sell, according to a monthly update from the Denver Metro Association of Realtors.

Steve Danyliw, a member of the DMAR Market Trends Committee and local Realtor, noted that the housing market in 2024 faced challenges similar to those in 2023, with elevated mortgage rates influencing buyer and seller behavior.

A noticeable trend in 2024 was the widening gap between sales of condos and townhomes versus detached homes. Condo sales dropped by 15.5%, while detached home sales rose by 7.84%, snapping a three-year decline trend. Overall, sales increased by 0.9%.

The median price of detached homes rose by 2.28% in 2024, while attached home prices decreased by 1.9%. This gap continued to widen throughout the year, with detached homes reaching a median sales price of $639,700 and attached homes at $394,000 in December.

New listings for detached homes increased by 15.8% in 2024, compared to a more modest 5.2% increase for townhomes and condos.

The rise in active listings in the 11-county region tracked by DMAR went from 4,971 at the end of 2023 to 6,888 at the end of 2024, representing a 38.6% increase. Despite this rise, the inventory remains below the historical average.

Buyers had more options at the end of 2024, with active listings being more than four times the record low inventory reached in December 2021.

Listings took longer to sell in 2024, with detached homes spending a median of 39 days on the market in December, compared to 29 days in December 2023. Attached homes were on the market for 44 days versus 31 days.

As the year came to a close, sellers experienced a drop in active listings between November and December, a common seasonal pattern according to Amanda Snitker, chairwoman of DMAR’s Market Trends Committee.