REAL ESTATE: The Riley Report

Photo by Jeff Laydon, Pagosa Photography.

Hello From Beautiful Pagosa Country!

As I looked out my window the other morning, I was excited to see cloudy skies. The weatherman said we are expecting rain off and on for the next couple of days.

This was great news since we had such a mild winter. We really need the moisture badly. Our snowpack in the mountains is currently at 27% of median for this time of year, and we are in a Category 2 drought.

With this drought situation, we always worry about fires in the summer. The local governmental agencies including the Forest Service, the Town, the County, and the fire departments have all been getting together to make a plan so that they are ready if there is a need.

There are two other major news stories happening downtown. The big one is the reconstruction of Highway 160 going right through the center of town. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) is removing all the asphalt to be replaced with concrete. Concrete is supposed to hold up better with less maintenance. While the road is torn up, the Town is upgrading all the utilities in the roadway. This project started a couple weeks ago and will go on through the Fall of 2026. This project is making it extremely difficult for the merchants along main street downtown, as parking is limited and traffic congestion is heavy at times. With that being said, I encourage all the locals and the tourists who come to town to make an extra effort to buy locally. Visit the restaurants. Go out of your way to give a helping hand in this time of need.

The second happening is the Springs Resort recently completed their expansion project, adding 78 more rooms and 25 more geothermal pools. There are now a total of 157 rooms and 53 hot spring pools. The new restaurant is due to open soon.

Now for the latest real estate news. The total number of real estate sales is up 16 percent for the year with 199 sales so far this year compared to 171 last year. Home sales are up 27%, townhome sales are up 25%, and land sales are up 10%. The most notable increase was in homes priced at $600,000 to $750,000, which were up 217%. Another stat worth mentioning was vacant land sales in the 3-to-6 acre range were up 111%. Some more good news is inventories are up. Home inventory is up 31%, and townhome inventory is up 19%, but vacant land inventory is down slightly by 4%.

The biggest negative in last month’s numbers were the pending sales, which were way down from last year. We have 60 pending sales in the hopper today compared to 84 last year at this time. Most of these pending sales are deals that came together in the last 30 days or so. The drop in pending sales coincides with the large drop in the stock market which happened about the same time. Many buyers saw their 401K retirement funds take a hit, and the ensuing volatility has made them nervous.

Many buyers are sitting on the sidelines for now, waiting to see what happens in the next couple of months.

Interest rates have also been on a roller coaster ride recently, swinging from 6.6% up to 7.25%. Today’s 30-year mortgage is 6.81% and the 15-year is at 6.17%. I expect interest rates for the near future to stay in that same range until we have a little bit more clarity about what the future has in store for us.

So long for now. Go out and smell the Spring flowers! Think positive – the glass is half full.

Please go downtown and help the local merchants by spending an extra dollar or two. They really need it!