r/denverrealestate

Several years ago, someone on this sub did a really thorough breakdown comparing west Denver neighborhoods (Barnum, Athmar Park, etc.) and made the observation that a lot of the homes in Westwood weren't worth saving. Can't remember all that they said, but they made it sound like the build quality of a lot of those post war homes wasn't the best, and a lot of them have had questionable electrical, etc. work done on them over the years.

I don't work in real estate or construction, nor am I familiar enough with the area, so I can't say for sure if their takes on the neighborhood were right or not.

But as I'm potentially looking at buying a different home (and now that I have a more realistic understanding of what a huge maintenance liability houses truly are), I'm leery of buying an old home that's maybe not worth sinking a lot of money into. I want to know which neighborhoods have the most homes that fall into this category.

I also realize the question in this post's title may seem odd, as we typically think of a house as existing in perpetuity. Although evidently in some countries (like Japan?) they usually decide after 40-50 years homes should be torn down and rebuilt because they're not worth upgrading.

FWIW, one could argue that the Highlands/NW Denver was a good answer to this question 20ish years ago. There was a post on this sub where someone was complaining about the tear-downs and slot homes in NW Denver, but another poster pointed out that a lot of the old houses in that area were wood frame homes from around the turn of the 20th century that were in bad condition. Given the area's proximity to downtown, it's not surprising that those homes in poor condition were demo'd for redevelopment.

Anyway, what do you think? Which neighborhood currently has the most homes that make you go "eh, I'd stay away from this?"

The Case-Shiller headlines this week called Denver the weakest of 20 major metros, worse than Tampa. A lot of people in my office and in my client conversations have been asking about it.

I pulled the actual DMAR April 2026 report to see what's really happening.

Median price in April 2026: $605,000 Median price in April 2025: $604,000 Median price in April 2024: $602,000

That's $3,000 of movement over three years. Inventory is up, days on market held at 14, and sales are roughly flat year over year.

The honest read: the market isn't crashing. It stopped the insane appreciation from 2020-2022 and stabilized. For buyers that actually creates something useful -- seller concessions, inspection contingencies, and negotiating room that hasn't existed since before COVID.

Wrote up a full breakdown here if anyone wants the details: cartwrightmortgage.com/denver-housing-market-stagnation-2026

I'm trying to move into the Denver area, i've lived there for quite some time but I had to move away for work. I'm looking to put down roots and buy a house. Trying to have enough space to have a detached shop plus a food garden. I was hoping to nail down a house with a one acre lot but i'm having a hell of a time with it.

I've toured out east in Strausberg and Bennett but nothing seems to fit. I have to commute to denver otherwise i'd be ok down in Castle rock or Elizabeth.

How often are folks seeing 1 acre lots up for grabs in the roughly 700k, range? Am I just being unrealistic with the size or price? I can wait so it's not like i'm on a time crunch but Zillow and Redfins historical data is garbage and very poorly labeled so I have no clue if the type of house i'd even like has ever even gone up for sale.

Hey friends, I am back with another Denver market update. I apologize for the lack of consistency (a few of you have reached out). It has been a busy year, personally and professionally. I am trying to do better! Anyway, lets get into it...

Month-Over-Month:

April picked up as it normally does during spring market season.

Home sales were up about 9% compared to March, and prices increased slightly by around 2% month over month. Homes also started moving a little faster, with average days on market dropping from 18 days to 15 days.

Seller activity picked up too, with new listings climbing roughly 11% compared to March. Pending sales dipped slightly, but only by about 2%, so overall activity was still pretty strong.

Year-Over-Year:

Home prices stayed pretty steady, with the typical home selling for around $600,000. About the same number of homes sold this April as last year, with a little over 4,000 homes closing across the Denver Metro area. Homes took slightly longer to sell, averaging about 15 days on the market compared to 14 last year.

Fewer new homes came on the market compared to last year, but buyers were still active and putting homes under contract at a higher rate. Because of that, there are slightly fewer homes available overall than there were last year.

Even with fewer homes available, buyers are still comparing their options, so homes that are priced too high tend to get passed over.

Rentals:

Leased rentals were down about 10% year over year, and median rent dipped around 5% to roughly $2,695.

Price per bedroom stayed about the same, while price per square foot dipped slightly year over year from $1.74 to $1.72. Renters are seeing slightly more value!

Rentals are taking a bit longer to lease, with average days on market increasing from 20 to 23 days. Nothing dramatic, but it does point to a slightly slower pace than last year.

Overall:

Overall, April was pretty steady. Homes and rentals are taking a little longer to move than last year, but demand is still solid and things are moving at a relatively normal seasonal pace.

Hi everyone,

My wife and I are moving to Denver this summer. Does anyone have insight to what the Berkeley neighborhood is like? 4546 Meade St seems like a great property, but I want to learn more about the area before we make an offer.