Phil Castle, The Business Times

Even as overall real estate sales continued to trend upward on a year-over-year basis in Mesa County, residential transactions dipped in May.

A healthy economy sustains strong demand, but higher interest rates on mortgages and lower housing inventories continue to hamper activity, said Robert Bray, chief executive officer of Bray & Co. Real Estate based in Grand Junction. “It’s a bumpy road to recovery.
I think we’ll continue to see the ups and downs through the year.”

Jenn Hardey, marketing director for Fidelity National Title in Colorado, said 416 real estate transactions worth a total of $190 million were reported in Mesa County in May. Compared to the same month a year ago, transactions increased 12.4 percent and dollar volume rose 22.1 percent.

Hardey said 23 large transactions worth a combined $32.7 million bolstered dollar volume, including the sale of two large homes for a total of  $4.25 million and an eight-unit apartment complex for $2.56 million.

Through the first five months of 2024, 1,516 transactions worth a collective $737 million were reported. Compared to the same span in 2023, transactions rose 5 percent and dollar volume increased 20.8 percent.

According to numbers Bray & Co. tracks for the residential market, 264 transactions worth a total of $132.5 million were reported in Mesa County. Compared to the same month a year ago, transactions fell 9.9 percent even as higher prices pushed up the difference in dollar volume by 1.8 percent.

For the first five months of 2024, 1,034 residential transactions worth a combined $459 million were reported. Compared to the same span in 2023, transactions declined 4.9 percent and dollar volume edged up seven-tenths of a percent.

After residential sales increased on a year-over-year basis in April, Bray initially believed the gain signaled the possibility of a recovery. He said he still believes the Mesa County market is heading in the right direction, but the road there could be bumpy.

Higher interest rates on mortgages continue to curtail home sales, Bray said, in not only making financing more expensive, but also making homeowners otherwise interested in selling and buying something else reluctant to do so for fear of trading an existing mortgage with comparatively lower interest rates for a new mortgage with higher rates.

Industry observers expect the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee to perhaps lower its key short-term interest rate in September, Bray said.

But even as homebuyers wait for lower rates, prices continue to escalate, he said. The median price of homes sold during the first five months of 2024 increased 4.9 percent to $395,000 compared to the same span in 2023.

Persistent demand combined with lower supplies push prices higher, he said. There’s some good news in an increase in residential inventories. As of the end of May, there were 506 active listings in Mesa County. That’s up 25.6 percent from the same time a year ago. At the current pace of sales, though, those listings represent less than a two-month supply and far less than what’s needed, he said. “That’s not balance in the marketplace.”

Bray said he remains encouraged the Mesa County real estate market remains healthier than it was a year ago and the local economy strong. But ups and downs in monthly sales likely will continue as well.

Meanwhile, property foreclosure activity continues to decline in Mesa County. For the first five months of 2024, 73 foreclosure filings and 14 sales were reported. Compared to the same span in 2023, filings dropped 35.4 percent and sales fell 17.6 percent.