Hello From Pagosa Country!
It’s a beautiful day in Pagosa Country – blue skies, white puffy clouds, and a slight breeze keeping it from getting too hot. Maybe we’ll get a little shower later in the day. The monsoon season has arrived, right on schedule. This means we have clear skies in the morning, clouds building up around noon, a couple showers in the afternoon, and then clearing up for dinner time.
Town is crazy busy! It’s just like old times, only on steroids. The parade was on Saturday, July 3rd, this year so as not too interfere with churchgoers. The Arts & Crafts Fair was downtown along the river. The Farmer’s Market is also in full swing on the east side of town. The river is full of rafters, tubers, and fishermen. And let’s not forget the Red Ryder Rodeo. The one missing component was no carnival this year. Sunday night brought an awesome fireworks show downtown.
Now for the latest real estate news. The market continues to be strong. Overall sales are up 125%. Home sales are up 60%. Condo sales up 47%. Land sales are up a whopping 225%. Home sales below $400,000 are down due lack of inventory. Last year there were 78 homes available in this price range, and today there are only 22 to choose from. In most cases, anything that comes on the market in the lower price range goes away very quickly. I recently listed an efficiency condo which I had sold 20 years ago for $40,000 dollars. It just went under contract for $177,000.
The most eye-catching numbers are in the higher price ranges. Home sales above $750,000 are up 550% compared to last year with 52 sales so far in 2021 compared to just 8 last year at this time. With all of these higher-value properties selling, the dollar volume is way up as well. The combined value of all properties sold in Pagosa so far this year is $444 million, compared to $211 million last year at this time.
Some good news for buyers is that there’s been an increase in inventory. Two months ago, there were 63 homes available on the market, and today there are 125. There were also two condos available then, and today there are 11. It is normal to see a seasonal increase like this, but we are still far below typical inventory numbers for this time of year. In 2020, there were 232 homes on the market and 35 condos.
We’re also seeing a change in the time on the market for new listings. Pricing has gone up so much that we are starting to see buyers who are a little more reluctant to pull the trigger. I believe between sellers shooting for the moon and Realtors not wanting to leave money on the table, a lot of our current inventory is overpriced. If your home is on the market for over two weeks without having a contract, you’re probably overpriced. We will start seeing price reductions here shortly for sellers who really want to sell. For those who don’t adjust their pricing, they may miss the boat.
Interest rates are still great, with a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at 3.0% and a 15-year at 2.25%. With signs of possible inflation on the horizon, those rates should start to creep up.
My prediction for the future of the real estate market is that things will start to slow down in the second half of the year. The increase in prices will flatten, but I expect prices will stay strong.
So long for now, I hope you and your family have a fun-filled summer. Take lots of vacations, and smell the roses. Enjoy your new-found freedom, but don’t take it for granted!
GRI, CRS
2011 & 2014 Realtor of the Year
Phone (970) 731-4065
Fax (970) 731-4068
Cell (970) 946-3856
Email: [email protected]
