Each year, the Denver Metro Association of Realtors hosts their Economic Summit, featuring key economic experts who share their outlook on local, state and national financial & economic trends.
Topics covered include the health of the housing market, real estate trends, interest rates, housing inventory, local and national economic forecasts and more.
This year, the keynote speaker was Economist Elliot Eisenberg, known as “The Bowtie Economist”. Eisenberg was quoted by the Denver Post, saying “My guess is that a recession happens in the middle of 2023. It won’t be that deep and it won’t be that long.”
Even if the economy doesn’t technically enter a recession, growth will be close to zero, he said, speaking primarily to real estate agents who are already feeling the cold winds of a chilling economy.
West + Main Homes continues to be a sponsor + supporter of the Economic Summit, as we believe that it is up to Real Estate agents to convey the facts of the shifting market to consumers.
Many West + Main Homes agents were in attendance at the sold out Economic Summit and shared their key takeaways.
“If there’s one thing that we have learned from all past recessions it’s how to get out of them,” said Realtor Emily Johnson. “So if we end up in one, we’ll have a soft landing and we’ll recover quickly.”
With a recession comes a rate reduction, so at this point we would expect to see rates in the 5’s by this summer, said Jackie Weinhold.
Despite uncertainty in the market, many Realtors are cautiously optimistic about what is to come in 2023.
“Pain and change happen. People need to move,” said W+M Managing Broker Malisa Miller Eakins, who also serves on the Board of Directors at DMAR. “Elliot has given us lots of key indicators to keep an eye on as the market shifts, as well as always keeping an eye on changing interest rates of course.” Eakins is confident that she will be able to continue to best serve her clients through the shift, especially with the additional knowledge gained from industry experts like Elliot Eisenberg.
KJ Pogorzelski was also among the West + Main agents who attended the event. “The housing market settling into a good pace is so important in the long run. The last two years have been the opposite of normal, and this is a great sign for housing pricing and appreciation in the future.”
Another sign of the abnormal market we’ve experienced the past for years is that the the 10-year trend shows 50K people moving to CO every year, said Bianca Barnes. “In 2020 8,000 more people moved out than moved in, which isn’t usually the case in Colorado. In 2022 we had 28k move in., and the 2023 is forecast for 22k.” As the market returns to a state of “normal”, West + Main agents are excited to come up with innovative ways to serve their clients.
Thank you to DMAR for putting on a wonderful event, we’re already looking forward to next year!
