Real Estate Report: Denver, Springs home markets cool as prices stay high

The housing markets in Denver and Colorado Springs closed out the first half of 2025 with both buyers and sellers facing challenges.

While inventory levels in both metropolitan areas reached highs not seen in over a decade, median prices demonstrated resilience in Denver, though affordability remains a hurdle.

Listings in the seven-county Denver metro area jumped to 18,870, in June, an 18.7% increase from a year ago. The surge pushes inventory to levels not seen in 15 years, with June marking the third consecutive month of record highs.

“We are experiencing a buyers’ market, with roughly 1.5 sellers for every buyer,” said Cooper Thayer of Denver-area real estate brokerage The Thayer Group, “Buyers hold a lot of negotiating power right now. They have so many choices and more time.”

Despite this, new listings for single-family homes fell 13.8%, and condos dropped more than 20% from May, indicating that the inventory buildup is largely a result of homes staying on the market longer rather than a flood of new properties.

Median pricing for single-family homes remained steady, rising 0.8% in June to $640,000. Condo and townhome median pricing remained flat month-over-month at $400,000 but is down 2.4% from June 2024.

More than 60% of closings in June included a seller concession, averaging more than $10,500, as sellers adapt to attract the limited pool of potential buyers.

For buyers looking for condos and townhomes, now is a good time to buy, Thayer said. Denver has about eight months of condo inventory.
But owning a condo may not be the most affordable option because of rising HOA fees, largely driven by increased insurance premiums.
“A couple hundred bucks in HOA can be up to 30% of your budget, especially at entry-level price points, which has discouraged a lot of buyers from considering a condo,” Thayer said.

Stagnation and affordability challenges in Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs real estate experts described the Pikes Peak region’s housing market as “lackluster” and “stagnant.”
While more homes hit the market year-over-year, with a 25.7% increase in active listings, and overall sales rose 6.5%, the market is still constrained in many price points.

“The market continues to feel stagnant in many price points. If you’re trying to sell a property for $450,000 or under its very difficult,” said Patrick Muldoon, president of Muldoon Associates Inc. in Colorado Springs. “The buyers for those properties are getting hit hardest with all the other price increases. We’re even seeing rental inventory sitting right now, despite being aggressively priced, because affordability is a real problem with the high discrepancy between median wages and median prices.”

Muldoon said many people are holding off on moving because they believe that the Federal Reserve will drop interest rates and don’t realize it doesn’t impact mortgage rates.

“That affects short-term bank-to-bank lending for credit cards and car loans,” Muldoon said. “Mortgage rates are based on the 10-year yield, and they are currently in the 6% to upper 6% range.”

Despite the challenges, the average and median sales prices in Colorado Springs reached historic highs in June, at $570,516 and $500,000, respectively, for single-family and patio homes.

Muldoon called it a “bell curve” effect because it’s easier to sell higher-end homes, while lower-end properties struggle to find buyers.
“Our $450,000 and under market is very hard, but an $850,000 home might go under contract quickly,” Muldoon said.