INVENTORY PICTURE KEEPS GETTING BRIGHTER FOR HOMEBUYERS
Following a long stretch of tight housing inventory in Northern Colorado, choices for would-be homebuyers in the area are on the upswing.
The number of homes for sale across the region in April ballooned to 1,738, up 38.9% over April 2024, when 1,251 homes were on the market. The April 2025 total is up 73.9% over April 2023. The growing volume is good news for buyers, as the spring-summer real estate season swings into action.
Expanding inventory is part of a trend toward a balanced housing market in Northern Colorado, after many years of seller-friendly conditions. More choice means less of a helter-skelter environment, characterized by stabilizing prices and more time for buyers to make decisions that suit their budget and property goals.
On the flip side, the slightly less competitive market puts more responsibility on sellers to make sure their home is properly priced and well-staged to attract buyers.
The local inventory picture is reflective of what’s happening statewide and nationally. Across Colorado, listings were up 23.7% between March 2024 and March 2025, and the seven-county Denver metro area reported a 30% increase. Nationally, total inventory was up 8.1 percent in March, according to the National Association of Realtors.
Locally, all eight sub-markets reported a growth in inventory for April. At 61.1%, Greeley showed the greatest year-over-year growth since last April. Timnath was a close second at 59.2%. Severance, at 2.5% growth, was the only community to show less than double-digit growth. Wellington, at 20%, was the market with the next-lowest growth rate.
The following chart shows the number of homes for sale in April for each of the last three years in Northern Colorado communities: Call me to discuss how an increase in inventory could impact you.
numbers reflect both condo/townhome & detached properties
CONDO OWNERS: TIME TO TAKE A GREATER ROLE IN YOUR HOA
Homeowners’ associations, or HOAs, that govern condominium projects are making headlines in recent months. And the news has not been kind.
The upshot from media reports is that an increasing number of condominium projects are not keeping up with standards for “warrantability” as set by Fannie Mae. That means Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac may not underwrite a conventional loan to buy a condo if it’s part of a non-warrantable project.
And since Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac are a party to roughly 70% of conventional loans, non-warrantable status can be a significant obstacle for both sellers and buyers. Without it, buyers would need to opt for cash purchases or more expensive rates for non-conventional loans. Local condo owners need to know that this is not simply an East Coast-West Coast concern. In its report, the Wall Street Journal listed Colorado as the state with the third-largest number of non-warrantable condo projects (210). For condo owners, the takeaway is to take a greater interest in how your HOA is operating. For instance, make sure your HOA is adequately insured for the cost of repairing or replacing damaged property, and check to see that essential maintenance is up to date.
According to reports, the most likely reasons a condo project is tagged as nonwarrantable is that the responsible HOA lacks inadequate insurance or has fallen behind on building repairs—often as a cost-saving measure. Another reason is that more HOAs, in the face of rising insurance costs, opted for policies with higher deductibles. The problem? Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac requires a maximum deductible of 5%.
Other issues that can cast clouds on a condo project include a lack of funds held in reserve by the HOA (it must be at least 10% of the HOA’s annual budget), if more than 15% of an HOA’s income is from non-residential leases (i.e., parking fees), and if unfunded repairs average more than $10,000 per unit.
Just because you believe your HOA is historically well-run, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stay on top of how your investment is managed. When you want to sell your condo is not the time to find out there’s a problem that could keep you from selling. Call me to learn more about what steps you can take to assess your HOA’s financial health.
CONDO CONCERNS
States with the greatest number of nonwarrantable condominium projects, according to a database maintained by Fannie Mae:
ALL THE THINGS THAT MAKE HERE, HERE.
Everyone at The Group understands that where we live is truly a special place. We never take that for granted and will do whatever we can to make Northern Colorado even more special.
We are your community partners and look forward to greeting you at events this summer.
SUMMER OF ’25: LOCAL EVENTS YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS
Get outdoors this summer and enjoy even more of what makes Northern Colorado one of the best places to live in the country.
June 6-7, Greeley Blues Jam, Downtown Greeley and Island Grove, featuring The Motet, Elvin Bishop & Charlie Musselwhite, Guerilla Fanfare Brass Band, and more.
June 7-8, Taste of Fort Collins, two days of live music, food, and vendor booths at Washington Park.
June 14, Loveland Bluegrass and Brews Festival, in the Downtown Loveland Foundry Plaza.
June 25 - July 6, Greeley Stampede, rodeos, concerts, and family fun. Colorado’s largest Independence Day Parade starts with a longhorn cattle drive to Downtown Greeley – events at Island Grove Park.
July 21-22, Fort Collins PBR’s Best of the West: PBR bull riding event at CSU’s Canvas Stadium, followed by Tim McGraw (Monday) and John Pardi (Tuesday) concerts.
FREE WEEKLY EVENTS:
Greeley: Tuesdays in July, 8 p.m., Concerts Under the Stars at UNC Garden Theatre
Fort Collins: Wednesdays, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m., June 11 – July 23, The Lagoon Concert Series at CSU
Loveland: Wednesdays, 12 p.m. – 2 p.m., June 11 – July 16, Kids on the Plaza, Downtown Loveland Foundry
Fort Collins: Thursdays, 10 a.m., June 13, 20, and 27, July 11 and 18, Children’s Summer Series on the Lincoln Center lawn
Windsor: Thursdays, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., June 12 – August 21, Summer Concert Series, Boardwalk Park
Fort Collins: Thursdays, 7 p.m. - 9 p.m., May 30th - September 5, Bohemian Nights
Thursday Night Live, Old Town Square
REAL ESTATE BY NUMBERS
11,248. Number of single-family homes that could be built as part of the proposed Cascadia mixed-use project in west Greeley. The proposal also includes 4,980 multifamily units, 1.65 million square feet of retail space and more than 8.9 million square feet of non-retail commercial space.
$5 million. Price that the city of Greeley paid for 99 acres in west Greeley, which will be the site for a new hockey arena. As planned, the facility will become the new home of the Colorado Eagles minor-league hockey team.
$77.8 million. Sale price for a 400-unit manufactured home community in east Longmont. The Longview Manufactured Home Community, located at 11135 Longview Blvd., was purchased by a Canadian investment group.
$6 million. Purchase price for a 61,095-square-foot industrial building at 801 N. Second St. in Berthoud. The 17-year-old building once housed Lehman Printing and later Prairie Mountain Media, which operated a press for newspapers. The printing plant closed in August 2024.
286.9. Acres that a developer wants to get annexed into the city of Fort Lupton. As planned, the property would be home to a new industrial park. The developer, Westside Property Investments, envisions future uses for data centers, warehouses, and manufacturing.
875. Number of homes that Greeley-based Journey Homes wants to build on a 235-acre development site in Milliken.
11.8. Median number of years that American homeowners were staying in their homes as of 2024, nearly double the median homeowner tenure rate of 6.5 years in 2005, according to a study by Redfin. Among large cities, the median tenure rate in Denver was 9.7 years in 2024.
166. Number of apartment units proposed for a 24-acre site in west Greeley. As planned, Journey Homes would build the Prairie Hawk Apartments near the intersection of 83rd Avenue and West 10th Street.
$79.5 million. Total price that investors paid to buy a 221unit apartment complex in south Boulder. The Boulder Creek Apartments, located at 3455-3605 Table Mesa Drive, changed hands in March.
42 percent. Portion of home purchases in the U.S. that baby boomers made between July 2023 and July 2024, the highest among generational groups according to the National Association of Realtors. Millennials were next at 29 percent.
