The Denver Post interviewed local housing experts and renters looking to make the leap to homeownership who offered their advice — and a real-estate reality check for those entering the battle royale of homebuying.
Marcie Black cradled her baby bump one afternoon last week while touring a four-bedroom, three-bathroom Centennial property. The 33-year-old envisioned her family’s life taking shape inside the home’s brick walls at the end of the neighborhood’s cul-de-sac.
It’s hard enough for experienced hands; for people trying to buy their first home in this market, it’s beyond daunting. The level of competition and lack of property inventory has turned traditional house-hunting in metro Denver on its head, replacing it with a process that demands immediate decision-making, virtually zero concessions by sellers, and access to unheard of amounts of cash, local real estate experts said.
They’ve got a 30-minute showing to decide whether they’re set on that house. If so, they’ve got to act immediately and put in an offer, she said. Sposa, an attorney, and her boyfriend, a middle school band teacher, spent the pandemic in their $2,100-a-month Centennial apartment, saving up for a down payment on a house.“But if I look at a home that costs $450,000 and it’s in Park Hill, it’s going to sell for $550,000 and that buyer is going to have $100,000 over the asking price in cash, and that’s the difference between them and me,” Sosa said. “Ultimately, we have the cash we have. I can’t make it appear out of thin air.
“Just because you qualify for a big, giant loan on a big, giant house doesn’t mean you can actually afford it,” Engelstad said. “You have lenders saying that the idea of 28% to 30% going to a mortgage is old-fashioned and maybe we could have up to 40% going to a mortgage.
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