The residential real estate market in Montezuma County picked up in the fourth quarter of 2014, according to numbers recently released by the Four Corners Board of Realtors.
The fourth-quarter data was captured from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31.
The report, compiled by the Colorado Real Estate Network using Multiple List Service data, indicates that sold listings countywide were up 6.8 percent from the same quarter last year.
The countywide median sales price also was up 16.9 percent from the previous year, coming in at $180,000 compared to $154,000 in 2013.
The average sales price countywide was up 14 percent to $191,021 compared to the $167,519 recorded in the same quarter of 2013. The number of days a Montezuma County property sat on the market until it was sold also was down slightly, from 216 days in 2013 to 213 days in fourth-quarter 2014.
Total sold listings in 2014 hit 309 compared to 273 the previous year, a 13.2 percent increase.
Just looking at Cortez, sold listings were up 7.1 percent, translating to 45 properties sold during the fourth quarter. That compares to 42 in the same quarter in 2014. The average sales price was up 14.6 percent to $163,216.
Looking at 2014 as a whole, the average sales price was up 10.7 percent from 2013 to $159,268.
Dolores saw 18 sold listings in the fourth quarter of 2014, compared to the 13 sold in the fourth quarter of 2013. The average sales price saw a noteworthy jump from $235,481 in 2013 to $260,299 in 2014. Comparing 2014 as a whole to the previous year, average sales prices were up 21 percent, or $278,542, compared to $228,625. For the year, 59 homes were sold in Dolores, according to the data.
Mancos saw a slight decline in the number of homes sold during the quarter, 11 compared to 17 in the same quarter the previous year. Average sales prices in the fourth quarter came in around $206,991 compared to $186,814 in the same quarter in 2013. Looking at 2014 as a whole, the average sales saw a 29.6 percent jump, from $156,250 in 2013 to $202,500 in 2014.
Carol Click, president of the Four Corners Board of Realtors and broker/owner of RE/MAX Mesa Verde Realty, said the increases seen in the county as a whole weren’t very large, but the market remains stable – a luxury that many other larger markets don’t have.
“Even when the market went down (in 2008), we went down but not as much as some of the other areas. We’ve never really dropped and came back up drastically. We’re a lot more stable than other areas,” said Click.
Click also noted that the foreclosure rate has dropped drastically since the height of the recession, a sign of a healthy local economy.
“We’re about 24 to 36 months behind trends that hit metro areas,” Click said.
Bonnie Leighton, broker with Southwest Realty and director of the Four Corners Board of Realtors, said homes under $200,000 are selling the best and usually are sought after by buyers downsizing for retirement.
After a strong close to 2014, Leighton says she’s optimistic about forward momentum this year, although she noted that the local economy isn’t completely immune to national and global economic turmoil.
Top selling Montezuma County Brokerages in 2014
Montezuma County real estate agents reported a total sales volume in excess of $132.5 million in 2014, according to Multiple List Service data. The sales price for homes sold in 2014 averaged $177, 927, according to the MLS data.
The top selling local real estate brokerages in 2014 were:
RE/MAX Mesa Verde Realty: $46,010,210 sales volume; $173,296 average sales price
Century 21 West Slope Realty: $39,656,448 sales volume, $165,235 average sales price
4 Corners Properties Inc: $20,756,501 sales volume; $203,495 average sales price
Southwest Realty Cortez: $10,999,900 sales volume; $146,665 average sales price
Colorado Ranch and Home Realty: $4,258,601 sales volume; $185,157 average sales price
XTROV Realty: $3,512,200 sales volume; $167,248 average sales price
Summit Vista Realty: $1,854,630 sales volume; $168,603 average sales price
Colorado West Realty: $1,543,550; $118,735 average sales price
Sierra Realty: $585,000 sales volume; $292,500 average sales price
Bear Paw Realty: $135,250 sales volume; $135,250 average sales price
