Denver Residential Market Update For August
The Denver residential market illustrated continued cooling in August, with new listings and total completed sales both taking a dive from last month’s numbers paired alongside an increase in expired listings. Despite the decline in sales, homes transacted slightly faster than they did a year ago and at marginally higher sales prices. Rates have currently swelled up to around 6.76%. The 10-year average for expired listings in August is 1,076, but we are looking at 2,037 expired listings as of this August, so we are still well above the long-term average. Months of inventory also went up to 5 months in August from 4 months in July. Let’s dive into the key market data for the Denver residential real estate market to see what is happening with supply, demand, sales prices, and months of inventory for August 2026.
Supply
In August, we had 5,220 new listings hit the market. This is down (9.6%) from July but up 2.2% from August 2025. A decline in listing activity limits the options for potential buyers.
The total amount of active listings at the end of the month was 14,609. This is down (2.2%) from July 2026. The 10-year August average from 2016 to 2025 is 9,565 listings, so we are also above our long-term average for active listings.
The most recent report for detached home construction starts is July 2026. The Denver Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) pulled permits on 781 homes. This is higher than the five year average of 728 for July. Year to date construction starts for July 2026 compared to year to date construction starts in July 2025 shows a (1.7%) decline.
In terms of active listings, the supply is in a better position compared to the last three years, and we are now starting to see more new construction starts when compared to the last three years as well.
Demand
Showings are a great leading indicator for demand in the residential real estate market. There were 52,345 showings booked through the largest showing service in the Denver metro area during August.
This is down (8.2%) when compared to August 2025. The average amount of showings for August, over the last five years, is 61,786. Therefore, we have fewer showing requests when compared to previous years.
Denver had 3,185 properties go under contract in August 2026. This is up 3% compared to July 2026 but is down (6.7%) compared to August 2025.
There were 3,082 closings in August 2026 compared to 3,624 in July 2026, representing a (15%) decrease. A year ago, we had 3,495 closings in August 2025, so the volume of closings is less year-over-year by (11.8%).
The median days on market for August was 28 days, increased from 21 days (by one week) in July. This means half of the properties listed are now under contract in approximately 4 weeks.
The list price to close price ratio went down to 99.40% in August from 100.00% in July, indicating that sellers are now getting generally, not exactly, what they are asking.
All in all, demand for housing is stronger when we look at showings and when we look at closings. Let’s look at the median sales price.
Sales Prices
In August, the median sales price decreased from $599,925 to $585,000. This metric includes detached and attached properties. The decrease in the median price represents a (2.5%) decline over July but 0.5% growth from August 2025.
The long-term average appreciation for residential real estate is 6%. Rising prices and interest rates will continue to temper appreciation in the short run. Tight inventory is helping to prop up the market.
We are encouraged to see prices continue to decrease slightly going into September, as historically, the 10-year market data supports this as being the trend.
Let’s look at months of inventory now.
Months of Inventory
Months of inventory is a great indicator to watch for market trends. Typically, a seller’s market has 0-3 months of inventory. A balanced market has 4-6 months of inventory, and 7+ months of inventory is a buyer’s market. In a seller’s market prices go up. In a buyer’s market prices go down.
With 14,609 listings on the market and 3,082 closings in August, the months of inventory is at 5 months or 20.31 weeks of inventory. There is more inventory when compared to July, with 5 months of inventory cementing the continuance into a more balanced market.
Overall, months of inventory is a great metric to watch.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, supply, demand, median sales price, and months of inventory are ideal key performance indicators to watch for market trends. Supply is way higher than the record lows of 2021 and 2022 and is also higher than the long-term average. Based on the historical data, as we head into the fall season, median sales prices are going to start to dip and homes will remain on the market for longer periods of time. August was able to overcome these assumptions from a year-over-year standpoint, but statistically, fall produces condensed market activity. We believe there is a tremendous amount of pent up demand happening right now and as soon as rates come down, more buyers will enter the market. Five months of inventory suggests a balanced Denver residential market but one that could also be susceptible to price decreases if buyer activity proceeds to cool down further.
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