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The Real Estate Insider Vol. 45, No. 11 | December 2021

SIZING UP THE HOME SALES MARKET IN 2021

So, who has been selling their homes, why are they selling, and how is the market really different from previous years?

Research from one national real estate company has captured the profile of the typical American home seller, factors that are usually motivating people to sell, and some of the wrinkles that sellers have been encountering in one of the hottest markets on record.

More offers, bigger homes

First the wrinkles.

According to Zillow’s 2021 Consumer Housing Trends Report, nearly a quarter (24 percent) of all sellers this year received at least four offers on their property. Last year, only 14 percent received four or more offers. About two-thirds of sellers (65 percent) buy another home, and the majority (58 percent) are buying a bigger home.

Age, lifestyle, and income

The median age of a seller was 45, but 24 percent were 60 or older. Seventy percent of sales were single-family houses, and the average seller spent 14 years in their home before selling. The median household income of a seller was roughly $70,000, close to the national median of $65,700.

Reasons for selling

Nationally, 79 percent of sellers said they were influenced by a life event. The most common life event? A change in household or family size (46 percent). Other common factors included a new job or transfer (36 percent) or the pandemic-related need to accommodate remote work (35 percent).

Locally, the impact of the pandemic on selling decisions is noteworthy. According to Kathleen Hollerbach, The Group’s Relocation Director, the number of corporate relocation transfers to our region this year is at just 63 percent of the pre-pandemic volume in 2019. By comparison, the number of sellers who made a personal decision to sell this year is roughly 93 percent of 2019 levels.

Call me if you’d like to learn more about selling your home.

EXPERTS SAY TO ADD INSURANCE INTO YOUR RENOVATION EQUATION

Remodeling your home almost always adds value. It also adds a need to reevaluate your home insurance coverage.

Industry experts recommend contacting your insurance carrier as part of your renovation planning process. Here are some of the benefits to keeping your insurance agent in the loop:

  • For significant remodels, such as moving walls or finishing a basement, you can get a builder’s risk policy to cover theft of equipment or damage that might occur during construction.
  • Your agent can make sure your policy covers the added home value created by the remodel. Without it, your replacement cost coverage only covers the pre-renovation value, and you risk being under-insured.
  • Your remodeling results (i.e., new roof, updated wiring or HVAC, security systems) may qualify you for safety discounts on the cost of your policy premiums.

Call me if you're considering remodeling or to schedule your annual real estate review.

‘SNOWBIRDS’ OF ALL AGES ARE FLYING SOUTH

You might know a “snowbird.” That’s the person – or couple – who relocates to a different climate when the weather shifts.

Traditionally, it’s a nickname applied to retirees or empty nesters who own another home in the south where they go to sit out the winter. But due largely to the pandemic, real estate insiders are witnessing a younger version of snowbird take flight.

In growing numbers, people in their 30s and 40s who possess the means are buying a second property to escape the winter chill (or becoming “sunbirds” and migrating north during the heat of summer). The frequency of younger snowbirds is attributed to the work-at-home option—or requirement—that the pandemic has thrust upon many high-earning professionals.

A recent report in Money magazine quotes a Miami, Fla.-based real estate agent who estimates that 25 percent of transactions in her area involve younger snowbirds. While warmer weather seems to be the key attraction, some buyers acknowledge they were also drawn by the more relaxed approach to COVID-19 restrictions that they find in southern states.

Even as the pandemic subsides, the snowbird/sunbird phenomenon may not. Many businesses are committed to sticking with a work-at-home model, or a hybrid model, to meet the preferences of their employees or to save on real estate costs.

LANDMARK LARIMER COUNTY RANCH SELLS FOR $42.5 MILLION

The home where the buffalo roam has been sold.

One of Northern Colorado’s most exclusive properties, the Diamond Tail Ranch – all 59 square miles of deeded and leased land located in northwest Larimer County – sold for $42.5 million at the end of September.

The sale included 1,100 head of bison and cattle, a hilltop chapel, and 12 cabins that sleep 72 guests. The heritage of the ranch – located in between the Medicine Bow Mountains and Laramie Mountain – dates back centuries, to when Native Americans lived in the Laramie River valley.

According to listing broker Hall & Hall, evidence of their camps is written in rock teepee rings lining the ridge overlooking 11.5 miles of the river’s meadowlands.

Many historic structures from the late 1800s and early 1900s are preserved and still used today. Since 1979, Diamond Tail Ranch has been stewarded by the Raymond Twomey Duncan family, known as California vintners and Colorado entrepreneurs. Ray Duncan died in 2005, when his four sons took over ownership and operations. The buyer, Rooney Ranch Properties, is based in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin.

THE GROUP DIFFERENCE

All the things that make here, here

We know where we live is truly a special place. We never take that for granted and are willing to do whatever we can to make it even more special.

We are grateful every day for the opportunities we have to serve our community and hope that you are healthy and safe this holiday season.

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at The Group!

REAL ESTATE BY NUMBERS

$15.75 million. Record sale price that former Denver Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan received for his 32,254-square-foot mansion in Cherry Hills Village. It’s reported to be the most expensive single-family home sale in Denver-area history.

$6.2 million. Price paid by two health care businesses for a pair of office condominiums in east Loveland. Legacy Front Range Plastic Surgery LLC bought 5,364-square-foot unit for $2.2 million and Range View Oral & Facial Surgery PLLC paid $4 million for a 9,742-square-foot unit. Meyer Natural Foods LLC sold both units, previously part of its headquarters complex.

$23.3 million. Price paid by Utah-based investors for the 200-unit Hickory Village mobile home park, 400 Hickory St. in North Fort Collins.

$68,000. The average change in value for a home in the 80517 Zip code (Estes Park) between 2020 and 2021, according to a study by Headwaters Economics. It’s the largest year-over-year value increase for any Zip code in Larimer or Weld counties.

$11.25 million. Price paid by the University of Denver for the Magic Sky Ranch in northern Larimer County, a 724-acre facility previously owned by the Girl Scouts of Colorado. DU plans to use the site for a mountain campus.

$191 million. Price that a Utah-based investor paid for the 526-unit Arista Flats apartment community in Broomfield.

$44 million. Price paid by Utah-based investors for a 308,000-square-foot industrial/warehouse complex, along with 25 acres, located at 259 30th St. in southeast Greeley.

154. Number of apartment units planned for Avenida Loveland, a 55-and-over complex planned for a site near the intersection of North Boyd Lake Avenue and U.S. Highway 34 in east Loveland.

$109 million. Price paid by Chicago-based investors for two Fort Collins apartment complexes, the Miramont Apartments ($57.36 million) and Pinecone Apartments ($51.62 million). Both properties totaling 405 units, were sold by Inland Private Capital Corp

$66.5 million. Price paid by a California investor for The Habitat, a 300-unit apartment complex at 2736 Raintree Drive in west Fort Collins.

64 percent. Portion of millennial homeowners (ages 25-40) who said they had some regrets about their home purchase, according to a recent survey conducted Bankrate. The primary issue was the unexpected costs for maintenance and upkeep.

$97.8 million. Price that Google paid for 125,000 square feet of office space at The Reve, a mixed-use complex located at 30th and Pearl streets in east Boulder.

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