In contrast with the scenic backdrop of Telluride, a brawl is brewing between local homeowners and San Miguel County. A judge recently ruled in favor of the locals and rejected re-zoning 39 acres of land for the “Diamond Ridge” project. Instead, developers working with the county aim to build a “Community Housing Zone District,” 780 housing units, to provide affordable housing for working families in the area… sounds excellent, right?
Well, not according to these particular locals. Aside from obstructing their mountain views and crowding their neighborhood, they also feel the plan was poorly thought out. Plus, they were sold lots on top of this Mesa with promises that any new construction would be made into separate, single-family housing, per the existing zoning. One local homeowner had this to say:
“We’ve just been very frustrated in a process that is all upside down. They did it so quickly, buying it for a bunch of money without any development plan, sketches, or even a rough idea of the cost of water and sewer upgrades up here. They set it up like a done deal, and we couldn’t say anything about it.”
The county recently appealed the court’s decision, so this is far from over. However, in their eyes, affordable housing is critical to the growth of their local economy.
This type of clash is not uncommon lately in Colorado. Since the pandemic set in and people could more easily work from home, affluent buyers flocked to the mountains and resorts in droves to be closer to skiing, climbing, and all the great outdoors Colorado offers. One of the problems with that is that due in part to the latest influx of buyers, home prices were driven up by as much as 56% in some areas. This made them unaffordable for the teachers, nurses, police, firefighters, servers, etc., who work hard to keep these communities going. In addition, many buyers were heavily invested in the stock market and other industries that are not closely tied to the local communities.
On the other side, there are existing homeowners like those in Deep Creek Mesa who had lived up the mountains their whole lives before things were so expensive or inherited family properties. The cities and counties are also responsible for maintaining these areas, which tend to lean towards bringing in as much revenue as possible and expanding their resources to serve tourism better, etc.
Who is right in all of this? Well, that depends on your side, and every stakeholder has a viable argument. However, I must align with local climate scientist Adam Chambers, who moved to Mesa in 2017. He said, “I’m pro-housing, and I’m pro-neighbor. But, let’s behave as neighbors first and try to find solutions as a community rather than being so divisive.” It is hard to argue with that.
(Info Source: coloradosun.com/2023/02/02/telluride-san-miguel-county-rural-rezoning)
LOCAL MARKET UPDATE
Market Activity Is Increasing, But Not as Much as Last Year
Right now, there is a feeling like spring is in the air. Of course, it’s not, but real estate agents must think 2-3 months in advance to keep their businesses running smoothly, especially in a slow economy. The good news is that activity does seem to be on the rise. More contracts are coming our way this month than last when they were down about 9% city-wide from the previous year; things feel more like a stock market for this time of year. However, although the activity is picking up as part of normal seasonality, things are still much slower than the frenetic pace at the start of 2022.
If you look at the Monthly Market Snapshot, you can see that for-sale housing inventory at the end of January was 83% more than at the end of January last year. This is partial because buyer demand is lower due to recession fears, and listings stay on the market for about twice as long as before. However, average home prices were still up 2.5% from the year prior, which is a good sign that they are remaining steady so far rather than declining quickly as some feared they would.
INFO FOR SELLERS
More Competition Means More Effort
For sellers, this increase in inventory means a little more competition this month. Your home must be as easy to show and presentable as possible. If it is hard to schedule a showing, or the house doesn’t show well upon arrival, buyers have more options than last year. They may move on. But if you can lock in a solid buyer, now may be a good time to do so before things get even more competitive in the spring. That is historically when most sellers list their homes for sale once the weather improves.
This market is similar to the one we saw in January 2020, right before Covid struck. That means things are still reasonably competitive for buyers, but just not selling at extreme price premiums as they have over the past couple of years. As a result, you are much more likely to get offers at or below market value right now than to sell at a premium.
INFO FOR BUYERS
More Options to Choose From
For buyers, things should be a little more comfortable than they were if you were looking for a home at this time last year. There are roughly 4,600 homes to choose from, which we haven’t seen since just before the pandemic. Inventory is still tight, especially in the entry-level price band, but buyers are a little less desperate than before. If you write an offer that gets rejected, do not get discouraged. It is common to place bids on 3 or 4 properties before one hits the mark.
Also, keep in mind that if a property is close to perfect but needs minor repairs, you may be able to ask for slightly more seller concessions than you would have a year ago. It is still a seller’s market, but you have more work in your favor than before.
*We use reasonable efforts to include accurate and up-to-date information. The real estate market changes often. We make no guarantees of future real estate performance and assume no liability for any errors or omissions in the content.