Luxury home sales up 78%

Vote in a poll at the end of this blog

This home closed for $4.8 million last month, the most expensive home to sell in January.

Well-heeled home buyers purchased 34 homes in the Denver area in January priced at $1 million or more, 78 percent more than a year earlier, according to a report released on Tuesday.

In total, the homes sold for $50.86 million, a 50.6 percent increase from the $33.78 million in dollar volume in January 2010, shows the report by independent broker Gary Bauer.

However, sales were down 23.8 percent from December, when 42 homes sold for $61 million. Last month, two of the homes were condos, while in December only one condo sold in that price range.

“It’s not sizzling yet, but the market continues to improve,” Bauer said. His report shows there are 819 homes in that lofty price range. Although that is a 16.6 percent lower than the 1,040 homes with price tags of at least $1 million, there is enough of a supply that “it is still a long-term market.”

Bauer’s report found that:

Nine homes were Denver.
Seven were each in Arapahoe and Boulder counties.
Five were in Douglas County
One was in Elbert County

Of the condos, one was in Boulder and the other in Denver.

$1 million haircut

The most expensive home fetched $4.8 million, a 19.3 percent discount from its original asking price of $5.95 million. That Cherry Hills home has 14,696 square feet, seven bedrooms and 10 bathrooms. It sits on 2.5 acres.

The least expensive home went for $1.2 million.

“Isn’t amazing,” exclaimed Kentwood Co. broker Edie Marks, when told about the luxury sales data from last month. “It just tells you that people are taking money out of the bank and they think high-end homes have hit bottom.”

Unbelievable deals

She said buyers with the money are “getting unbelievable deals. There is a pent-up demand out there. There are more cash deals out there than there have ever been.”

High-end buyers are choosey and taking their time, she said.

“The number of showings are not yet translating into deals in the way you would think,” Marks said. “They’re not pulling the trigger, because they don’t yet feel the urgency.”

Warmer weather will heat up buying

The weather hasn’t been the friend of Realtors, either.

“If we could just it to stop snowing and warm up a bit, we could get more people out there,” she laughed.

Although the stock market is up more than 80 percent from its bottom in March 2009, Bauer said he doesn’t think many people are cashing in equities for a castle.

“I think that is still several months away,” Bauer said. “Listening to select financial advisors, they are advising you to continue to be diversified and keep a large part of your investments in equities, that is stocks, right now. They say play with some bonds and play with some precious metals and establish your foundation. Once your foundation is in place and secure, then start looking at real estate.”

For a snapshot of high-end home sales, check this COhomefinder.com link.