Real Estate Trends in Colorado

Anyone planning to relocate to another state wants to know what the average property values are in the new location. Currently the annual rate of appreciation from 3rd quarter of 2004 to 3rd quarter of 2005 nationally is 12.95%. The states that rank the highest are Arizona at 34.90% and Florida at 26.83%. The appreciation rate during that same timeframe for Colorado is 5.99% on the average for the state and is ranked number 44th out of 51 states. This is a bit of a shock for homeowners in Colorado who purchased there current residence approxiamately 5-6 years ago when Colorado was in the top 5 for appreciation.

There are many theories as to why this happening, but it always boils down to supply and demand from Economics 101. We have a higher supply of homes on the market currently then we have had in the past decade. That is why people refer to this as a Buyer's market. It is my personal opinion that this is one of the best Buyers markets I have seen. There are alot of homes to choose from, prices are more competitve then ever, the interest rates are still low, and the many alternative financing options makes home ownership easier then ever for the First-time Home Buyer.

How long will this market last? I have no idea. Real estate is impacted by economic trends and with so many changes happening world-wide; it is hard to let history predict the future in real estate. I believe Colorado is one of the best places to live and as more and more natural disasters are happening along the coastal states people will want to move more inland. That certainly does not explain why Florida is #2 nationally for appreciation or why California is #6 with an annual appreciation rate of 21.07%.

If your thinking about purchasing a home in the future and you ask me if this is a good time to buy-my answer is yes. I can not tell you about future predictions, there are many experts that are better at predicting the future then I am.