Telluride’s Real Estate Recovery

After a half decade of strong real estate sales, the Telluride real estate market peaked in 2006 and 2007. During this peak more homes, condos and lots were sold at higher prices than ever before. Nearly every segment of the regional real estate market established a new high mark in either 2006 or 2007. This rising tide lifted Telluride, Mountain Village, Aldasoro and the Mesas.
When the national economy began its historic recession in 2008, the Telluride real estate market followed suit. The impact of the recession took its toll in the regional market with a breathtaking fall off in the number of transactions and an unprecedented softening of property prices.
While the recession kicked into full gear, second homebuyers sat on the sidelines. Notably, the bellwether segment of single family homes in the Town of Telluride fell from 33 homes sales in 2007 to only 10 home sales in 2009. In Mountain Village, 85 condos were sold in 2006 while only 36 were sold in 2009. Buyers across the nation deemed it too risky to wade into the Telluride market. While many sellers chose to wait out the storm, some sellers found themselves in a position where they had to sell. The lack of demand from second homebuyers led to a level of illiquidity that forced these sellers to significantly reduce prices to find a buyer.  This reduction in prices marked the first true period of price softening in memory.