{"id":3767744,"date":"2020-11-30T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-30T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newwebdev.wordpress-developer.us\/hauteresidence\/?p=3767744"},"modified":"2020-11-30T15:51:38","modified_gmt":"2020-11-30T20:51:38","slug":"doug-labor-3q2020-breaks-three-records-steamboat-springs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newwebdev.wordpress-developer.us\/hauteresidence\/doug-labor-3q2020-breaks-three-records-steamboat-springs\/","title":{"rendered":"Doug Labor: 3Q2020 Breaks Three Records In Steamboat Springs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor’s Note: Haute Residence member and Steamboat Springs, CO, real estate expert Doug Labor details the record-breaking third quarter of 2020 in the area’s market.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"DougPhoto Credit: Steamboat Sotheby\u2019s International Realty<\/span><\/p>\n

Like the rest of the country and the world, the Steamboat Springs real estate market has taken a wild ride over the past eight months, from news of the Coronavirus spreading globally in February, then shortly thereafter the local impact of the Steamboat Ski Resort abruptly halting winter lift operations on March 15. The real estate world entered a \u201cCOVID Freeze\u201d with buyers holding off their searches and sellers pulling their properties off the market. Brokers were not permitted to show properties, let alone keep their brick\u2010and\u2010mortar offices open. After a month, the Colorado Real Estate Commission took direction from the Governor\u2019s office on new protocols on showing properties and keeping the public safe. Lenders, appraisers, property inspectors, title companies and contractors all had to learn new procedures and stifling activity. The industry flipped upside down.<\/span><\/p>\n

Although prior to the pandemic most of the population had an inkling that working at home was a possibility, it suddenly became a\u00a0 requirement. Many realized that \u2018home\u2019 did not even have to be within commuting distance to company headquarters anymore.\u00a0 Providing reliable internet access and for some reasonable access to air travel, employees could be as productive as normal, while employers realized the benefit of reduced overhead. Compounding the pandemic panic was the rioting that hit several big\u2010city streets, giving more people a reason to look elsewhere for a safer haven and healthier lifestyle with small\u2010town living. The exodus for those wanting a change seemed to hit towns like Steamboat Springs in earnest around the end of May.<\/span><\/p>\n

The statement has become clich\u00e9 that the pandemic that hit the world is unprecedented and most certainly devastating to the economy. No one would have projected the equally unprecedented and opposite reaction certain real estate markets have had, and Steamboat Springs has become a case study in a nationwide demand for real estate.<\/span><\/p>\n

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A Turn on a Dime<\/strong><\/p>\n

With data compiled by the Steamboat Springs Multiple Listing Service, the second quarter (QII) of the year is typically the second most active for transactions. Over the past five years, it has averaged 325 transactions and captures 27% of the annual market. QIII is the busiest quarter averaging 31% of annual transactions. QII of 2020, which was the first full quarter of the pandemic, saw only 214 transactions \u2010 a 36% drop from QII 2019 and the lowest posting that quarter had since 2011. However, QIII of 2020 set an all-time high for quarterly transactions at 604 (blue line in the graph) and an all\u2010time low for listings at\u00a0 801 (pink line). The prior transaction record was set in QII of 2007 at 569,\u00a0 or bettering the old record by 6%.<\/span><\/p>\n

Over the past three months, these 604 transactions generated over $438 million in sales, surpassing the quarterly record set back in QII of\u00a0 2007 of $306 million.<\/span><\/p>\n

Although the increase in transactions from the prior record was only 6% (QII of 2007 to QIII of 2020), the dollar volume increase was an unbelievable 43%!<\/span><\/p>\n

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What\u2019s a Buyer to Do?<\/strong><\/p>\n

All this activity has caused a feeding frenzy for buyers. Sellers are certainly in the driver\u2019s seat and some have seen as many as 14 offers on their property. So, what is a buyer to do to make his offer stand out?\u00a0 The following are carrots a buyer can throw into an offer to make their offer rise to the top:<\/span><\/p>\n