Top 5 Things Buyers Want in Colorado Springs

We've been selling homes for a long time in Colorado Springs. The market has always been changing and adapting, but we've found that across the years Buyers stick to pretty much the same Top 5 wants. Yep, of course there are specific needs and different scenarios, but let's have a quick look at the things that we feel always come up in order of frequency. 

Location

This one feels obvious, however, you would not believe the amount of people we talk to that haven't thought about it. Location itself is hugely important for a variety of reasons: commute, school district, crime rate, neighbors, convenience, family etc. etc. Sometimes Buyers are constrained by their budget, but whether you've thought about it or not, location becomes a serious want for almost everyone. Once a Buyer has figured out the location they next have to figure out the location of the home within the neighborhood also. Houses that back to main roads are always harder to sell than those that don't! 

Here are the top 3 areas that people ask us to find homes in: School District 20, the 'West side', and close to Carson. As you can see these are fairly wide avenues. Taking time to refine a little more will help in the long run, and allows us to dig deeper now that the market is more relaxed. 

Bedrooms

Again, obvious right? "At least 3 but I'd like 4, and we could make 2 work". Crazy. We have found that a total of 4 rooms to sleep (3 and an office, or 4 total) has been the sweet spot for the vast majority of families. However, interestingly enough, most investors we work with buy 3 bedroom homes. They think that 3 bedrooms asks for a small family resulting in less chance for damage, but still a high ROI. Either way we look at this, bedroom are clearly a necessity...duh. But don't just think what works now for your family, think to the future, having guests, needing a work from home space, needing a room to house hack. Think ahead. 

Layout

Not just the modern open layout, people specifically want ranch, two story, tri level, bi level, modular all the time. The point here is that it's easy to not think too much about this when you first talk to a Realtor, but know what you're looking for in a home. I prefer two story homes, but my wife prefers ranch homes. Strangely ranch homes are popular in Colorado Springs, but not so much in other places. 

Built Recently

It goes without saying that when people invest in a property they invest with the future in mind. Given that, who wouldn't want a home that was built recently that is less susceptible to pesky repairs and issues? Most builders have a 10 year structural, but only a one year 'bumper to bumper'. It's also worth noting that a water heaters life expectancy is only 8 years....so if you want a home less than 10 years old are you really limiting much?

No HOA

More people than not actively try to avoid HOAs. Most people end up in an HOA regardless, but that's not the point. It's hard to find a home in the mid range budget that is in fantastic shape that fits all the other boxes people typically want if it isn't one of the cookie cutter homes. The unfortunate truth is if you're looking in Colorado Springs for a $500k property with an open concept built within the past decade you have little choice but to live in an HOA. I do have to give props to most of the neighborhood HOAs as they are managed reasonably well. In fact Banning Lewis was the most popular neighborhood last year, with an HOA that actually does its' job. 

If you're looking for more info about Buying a home in Colorado Springs, check out this informative blog about Earnest Money.