Editor's Note: Colorado and Boulder real estate expert Catherine Burgess or Burgess Group Realty looks back on how the market performed in 2020 during a global pandemic and makes her predictions about 2021.
Looking back at Boulder Real Estate in 2020, January and February performed very similarly to how they did in 2019, 2018, and previous years. March began in quarantine which lasted into May. During that time, the volume of our transactions decreased by 50% but remained fairly robust compared to the rest of the nation. We had 50% fewer new listings that came to market and 50% fewer under contracts. However, incredibly, our under contracts and new listings met each other and our sell-through rate remained consistent with what we have seen in previous years. This demonstrates the immense stability of the Boulder County market.
Looking forward into 2021, we know that a huge quantity of buyers that have been on the sidelines waiting for inventory will hit the ground running as soon as inventory increases in January. Sellers are trying to get to market much earlier than we have seen in previous years, and it is anticipated that the quantity of demand will still outstrip the quantity of supply and prices will accelerate in response.
However, we expect that around mid-year prices will ease as more and more sellers continue to come to market. Additionally, we'll see housing starts that began last summer get finished and come to market which will also aid in the easing of strong price acceleration come the second half of 2021.
Buyers, keep in mind that while it can be challenging to find a property, The Burgess Group has been getting 1 or 2 buyers PER WEEK for years and we have yet to see this change even in times of great inventory shortage. In fact, it is still possible to find great deals.
Oftentimes there are properties that the market has overlooked and pockets of inventory in little corners of town that are, for whatever reason, in oversupply. As a result, these areas may function like a buyer's market in this overall broader sellers market. Don't lose hope. It's a good time to be a seller, but under the right conditions, it can also be a great time to be a buyer.
We are anticipating that the migration we saw begin in 2020 will continue into 2021 as people move from densely populated areas into the smaller cities, such as Boulder, that have a perceived terrific quality of life with more space and room to breathe.
Overall, the general anticipation is that sales volume will continue to rise, just as it did in 2020, another 7% to 10% in 2021. We look forward to seeing sellers bring their inventory to meet that demand. If you’re interested in exploring more data, you can read our newsletter here.
If any of us at Burgess Group | Compass can answer your real estate questions or be a resource in any way, please reach out. We’d love to help you meet your financial and real estate goals in the new year.
For more information, please contact Catherine Burgess at 303.506.5669 or catherine@burgessgrouprealty.com
Catherine Burgess is the exclusive agent representing the Boulder, CO real estate market as a member of the Haute Residence Real Estate Network. View all of her listings here.
Catherine Burgess
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Burgess Group Reatly
