January 2026 Market Review + Updates

The Denver real estate market is carrying the weight of three years of flat performance, leaving buyers and sellers fatigued. Everyone is desperate for signals of directional movement: upward momentum to give sellers more equity in their homes, or downward pressure that creates genuine buying opportunities. Buyers have more options than in recent years, but continue to navigate affordability challenges with elevated interest rates and home prices.

Active inventory continues to give buyers options. At the end of January, 8,228 active listings were on the market, up 8.16% from the end of December and up 7.02% from January 2025.

Many people reset in December 2025. Sellers withdrew listings from the market, and buyers reevaluated their plans and expectations. Only 1,919 homes sold in January. Looking at the data back to January 2008, there have only been two other months with fewer than 2,000 homes sold: January 2010 and January 2011. I don’t love this.

Buyers and sellers are eager to start in 2026, with showing requests and new inventory entering the market early. Perhaps we can thank the warm weather for this. January saw a 152.55% increase in new listings month-over-month. Many of these were listings withdrawn from the market in November and December.

Pending sales for detached homes were up 48.19% from December, while attached homes saw a much-welcomed increase of 43.79% month-over-month.

The median sale price for detached homes decreased 1.60% month-over-month and 3.61% year-over-year. Attached homes saw a slight increase of 1.30% month-over-month and a decrease of 2.01% year-over-year. December and January are typically the low points in the year for home sale prices.

The average close-price-to-list-price ratio was 97.94%, down slightly from 98.23% in December and 98.50% in January 2025. Sellers who had been on the market longer than they were comfortable with were more willing to negotiate on price.

We don’t anticipate major changes in market conditions in the near future, so rather than waiting for the market to make sense, you should move when it makes sense for you, your lifestyle, and your family. Here to help, always!