Reflecting Back on 2020

REFLECTING BACK EMERGING BUYER AND SELLER TRENDS AS OUR COUNTRY RECOVERS REAL ESTATE 2020

Denver has become the natural fit for many longing for a city-meets-mountains lifestyle.

Since March, the coronavirus pandemic has changed nearly everything about our way of life. No surprise, it’s also changed the real estate industry. What buyers are looking for in a home and what sellers are expecting when they put their house on the market is quite different than it was a year ago.

In Colorado, we’ve seen an influx of people looking for an escape. Now that many can work from anywhere, buyers are looking for cities that afford them the lifestyle they want, a place where they have easy access to the outdoors and can meet their needs a little closer to home. They’re looking for home offices and turning to technology more than ever before to feel safe, comfortable, and entertained.

Buyer demand in Denver has led to record sales. Compared to last year, sales volume in the Denver Metro Area is up by 16%, with record highs for the number of homes sold and record lows for available inventory. Luxury homes are at the forefront of Denver’s market growth, with the sale of homes priced over $2 million increasing nearly 60% compared to last year.

How we work with each other and with our clients has changed as well. In March, as offices were shutting down across the country, SSF acted fast. Our teams collaborated to ramp up training and development programs, and to keep each other engaged and informed. We set up a remote infrastructure for our employees and clients so communications could all be handled virtually. More and more, buyers and sellers want to handle transactions this way – via email, video chat and virtual showings. Open houses, and even private showings, have occupancy caps, as well as hand sanitizer and mask requirements. We know the desire for in-person showings isn’t going anywhere but we’re equipped virtually whenever needed.

SSF continued our growth throughout the year, expanding our presence here in Denver in all new ways and hiring 24 new brokers and 17 new staff members company-wide. We created a New Development Sales Division that proved successful with its 14 active developments and the acquisition of the largest ski resort development in North America. Our Roaring Fork Valley brokers increased SSF’s market share in the first full year since joining in 2019. The communities we do business in mean the world to us and we’re grateful to have been able to give $287K to meaningful organizations through our charitable foundations.

Rounding the year out, Slifer Smith & Frampton announced a new partnership with Forbes Global Properties, becoming a partial owner in this brand new and exclusive real estate marketplace. This designation allows us to leverage our ability to connect with the world’s finest homes, the brokers that represent them, and high net worth clients. We are beyond excited to be joining an exceptional global brand, extending an elevated reputation and unsurpassed quality to our brokers and clients alike.

COMPARED TO LAST YEAR, SALES VOLUME IN THE DENVER METRO AREA IS UP BY 16%, WITH RECORD HIGHS FOR THE NUMBER OF HOMES SOLD AND RECORD LOWS FOR AVAILABLE INVENTORY.

— DMAR 2020

Source of all data contained in this report is REColorado, Multiple Listing Service. Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Consult your Slifer Smith & Frampton Broker for more information. ©2021 Slifer Smith & Frampton Real Estate