When long-time tenured Brokers in Steamboat Springs say prices are at an all-time high and it’s the most competitive market they’ve seen, you know it was a truly an unprecedented year in real estate here in the Yampa Valley. We’ve been watching over the last few years, and particularly since the start of the pandemic, dramatic increases in prices, reduction in inventory, and a challenging buyers’ market like we’ve never seen before. At the end of 2020, many thought, there’s no way 2021 could outpace 2020, yet still records were beat again.
While 2021 saw it’s first reduction in the number of residential sales as compared year-over-year since 2009, down 2% from 2020, the lack of inventory and high buyer demand drove prices higher than we’ve seen in our market. The median residential sales price for all property types in Routt County soared 28% from 2020 to $750,000. Single family homes saw a 29% increase in median price, surpassing $1,000,000, but condos had the largest increase over 2020 at a 33% increase in median price to $585,000. However, going back to 2017, single family homes have increased a whopping 81% in median price.
The competitiveness of the market is depicted in the drastic drop in median days on market. When the pandemic hit in 2020, we saw a rush to purchase in our area with properties selling in a short 25-day timeframe. In 2021, the median days on market dropped to only one week. Also with a competitive market comes multiple-offer situations – properties in 2021 sold at an average of 100% of the list price. This tells us that so many properties sold for the asking price or higher, thus averaging out to 100% of the list price.
Real estate professionals in Steamboat are not anticipating home prices to decrease in 2022, but it’s possible price accelerations could slow. Inventory will continue to be an issue, but with future development on the horizon, there’s hope down the road for an ease on the competition.