Home prices not dropping in Colorado Springs

Local housing industry experts said prices are not decreasing, contrary to what several online search engines currently show.

Realtors and an economist said prices and demand have continued to rise since the end of the last recession in 2008.

According to at least two websites that search for home prices, asking prices for many homes have decreased by several thousand dollars — one, by as much as $25,000. If true, that would provide more options to prospective homebuyers.

However, two local Realtors said they aren’t seeing the price drops reflected on the websites. They expressed skepticism about the source and accuracy of the websites’ data, and said a website doesn’t have more detailed information about home prices that a Realtor would have.

Realtors also said the websites’ falling prices may be an example of some homes being overpriced as owners try to sell them.

Fred Crowley, an economist at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, said the area is on pace to sell 3,200 new homes and as many as 13,000 existing homes.

“We haven’t seen this kind of sales volume since 2006,” he said. “Sales are up 15 percent and overall prices are up 6 percent. I don’t see the market softening up in the future.”

Crowley said a stronger economy and two employers bringing new jobs to town are factors in the housing trend.

“(The employers) pay people $80,000 a year,” he said. “That’s twice what the going rate is, and that gives you a lot of buying power.”

But for some prospective homebuyers, the trend makes it more difficult to find the homes they want at the prices they want.

“Homes are selling quickly,” said Kelly Price, a Realtor for Vanguard Homes. “If you’re with the right person to list your home, you can get it under contract within 30 to 60 days.”

Contributing to the trend is what’s called a “spillover effect” from the more-expensive Denver area housing market, as buyers seek to get more house for their money.