Home prices rose in nearly every ZIP code in the Denver metro area in the first few months of 2022.
That's according to Denver Metro Association of Realtors' data comparing median sales prices in the first quarter of 2021 to the first quarter of 2022. The real-estate trade group pulled the information from real-estate search app Re:Colorado, and the numbers reflect most every transaction.
As less dense suburban real estate became popular during the pandemic, the 80215 ZIP code -- which covers parts of Lakewood and Wheat Ridge -- witnessed the largest hike in median sales price. The area including the Applewood, Cedar Crest and Heverly Heights neighborhoods saw a 59.6% leap from $432,450 in 2021 to $690,000 in early 2022.
That was followed by 80227, spanning the Bear Creek, Bear Valley and Lakewood Estates neighborhoods in Lakewood. The area saw median final sales prices jump by 38.5% from $347,250 to $480,800.
In Denver, the 80231 ZIP code experienced a 35% increase in median final sales price from $299,950 to $405,000. The area includes Indian Creek, Hampden and Cherry Creek Country Club.
"Some of the areas that have kind of fared the best have been those neighborhoods that were maybe not as overheated," said Steve Danilew, the founder of the Denver Metro Association of Realtors Market Trends Committee. In picking neighborhoods, buyers, he added, are looking for affordability over other factors, and that's becoming increasingly challenging now that most of the area is overheated.
Out of the entire metro area, only two of 90 ZIP codes saw a drop in median final sales prices. Both were in older neighborhoods in Denver and neither drop was over 5%.
The 80224 ZIP code, which includes Washington Virginia Vale, fell by 1.7%, from $585,000 to $575,100.
The 80220 ZIP code, spanning South Park Hill, Hale, Montclair and East Colfax, fell 4.3%, from $650,000 to $622,000.
Looking at the declining median final sales price in those two ZIP codes, Denver realtor Carrol Rhead and her team at CVJ Real Estate don't think people hoping to do business in either area should fret over the drop -- especially because the average final sales price rose by 16.7% in 80224 and 3% in 80220.
The explanation, she said, is likely related to the types of homes that were sold in the timeframe.
"It is very possible that since these neighborhoods are older, the number of 'distressed' properties sold were enough to skew the median price downward?" she wrote in an email. "For example, 80220 includes that Colfax corridor where fix-and-flips have been skyrocketing....so, back up about 6-9 months and you'll potentially see the sales of those less desirable properties which lowered the median price?"
Danilew agreed that the drop in prices isn't a sign that properties in neighborhoods like South Park Hill and Washington Virginia Vale are losing their value.
"The numbers don't lie, but they can sometimes fool you," he said.
His take is that the lower median cost reflects that more people were buying attached residences like condos and duplexes rather than detached residences like single-family houses.
"They are choosing to buy the properties that are more economical," Danilew said.
